Assistant Professor of Biomedical Ethics Research, Mayo Clinic
Registration required – https://go.unc.edu/elsivirome
Advancing understanding of the human virome (all viruses that live in and on us) is a national scientific priority. Commensal relationships with viruses prompt questions of what it means to be human and healthy, shifting with new understandings of our complex cohabitation with the most abundant replicating entity on the planet. Applications of human viromics include the capacity to detect directionality of disease transmission, bacteriophage therapy development, and virulence factor studies. In this presentation, ethical, legal, and social implications (ELSI) of these viromics topics will be presented via vignettes which comprise textual scenarios designed to elicit attendee reflection. We will discuss the ELSI implications of each, soliciting feedback on draft vignettes which will be used in future research.
Center for Genomics and Society Seminar Co-hosted by the UNC Center for Bioethics