A Thomistic appraisal of human enhancement technologies

Disability, Enhancement, and Flourishing

Recent debate among bioethicists concerns the potential to enhance human beings' physical or cognitive capacities by means of genetic, pharmacological, cybernetic, or surgical interventions. Between "transhumanists," who argue for unreserved enhancement of human capabilities, and "bioconservatives," who warn against any non-therapeutic manipulation of humanity's natural condition, lie those who support limited forms of enhancement for the sake of individual and collective human flourishing. Many scholars representing these views also share a concern over the status and interests of human beings with various types of cognitive and physical disabilities, some of which may be ameliorable by enhancement interventions. The question addressed in this paper is whether valuing the enhancement of human capabilities may be reconciled with valuing the existence and phenomenological experiences of human beings with various disabilities. Can we value enhanced capabilities without disvaluing those whose capabilities fall below a defined threshold of "normal function"? Furthermore, if certain forms of disability, particularly cognitive disabilities, negatively impact one's flourishing, could the enhancement of one's cognitive capacities through biotechnological means enhance one's flourishing.

Ethical considerations in the translation of regenerative biofabrication technologies into clinic and society

Biofabrication technologies have the potential to improve healthcare by providing highly advanced and personalized biomedical products for research, treatment and prevention. As the combining of emerging techniques and integrating various biological and synthetic components becomes increasingly complex, it is important that relevant stakeholders anticipate the translation of biofabricated 3D tissue products into patients and society. Ethics is sometimes regarded as a brake on scientific progress, yet from our perspective, ethics in parallel with research anticipates societal impacts of emerging technologies and stimulates responsible innovation. For the ethical assessment, the biofabrication field benefits from similarities to regenerative medicine and an increasing ethical awareness in the development of tissue-engineered products. However, the novelty of the technology itself, the increase in attainable structural complexity, and the potential for automation and personalization are distinguishing facets of biofabrication that call for a specific exploration of the ethics of biofabrication. This review aims to highlight important points of existing ethical discussions, as well as to call attention to emerging issues specific to 3D biofabrication in bench and bedside research and the translation to society.