Human Genetics Alert (abbreviated HGA) is a secular, independent

watchdog group Watchdog journalism is a form of investigative journalism where journalists, authors or publishers of a news publication fact-check and interview political and public figures to increase accountability in democratic governance systems. Role ...

based in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. It advocates against uses of

reproductive technology Reproductive technology encompasses all current and anticipated uses of technology in human and animal reproduction, including assisted reproductive technology (ART), contraception and others. It is also termed Assisted Reproductive Technology, whe ...

and

human genetics Human genetics is the study of inheritance as it occurs in Human, human beings. Human genetics encompasses a variety of overlapping fields including: classical genetics, cytogenetics, molecular genetics, biochemical genetics, genomics, populatio ...

research that it considers harmful.

History

Human Genetics Alert was founded in 1999 as the Campaign Against Human Genetic Engineering. It was reborn as Human Genetics Alert (HGA) in December 2000, at which point it began to receive funding from the

Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust The Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust (JRCT) is a philanthropic grant-making trust that supports work undertaken in the UK and Ireland, and previously South Africa. It is one of three original trusts set up by Joseph Rowntree in 1904. The Trust ...

. HGA stopped receiving funding from the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust in 2005. As of December 2018, its director was David King.

Positions

Human Genetics Alert states that it is not opposed to all genetic research, but that it is opposed to certain proposed uses of it, including

human genetic engineering Human genetic enhancement or human genetic engineering refers to human enhancement by means of a genetic modification. This could be done in order to cure diseases (gene therapy), prevent the possibility of getting a particular disease (similarly ...

human cloning Human cloning is the creation of a genetically Cloning, identical copy of a human. The term is generally used to refer to artificial human cloning, which is the reproduction of human Cell (biology), cells and Tissue (biology), tissue. It does ...

, and

genetic discrimination Genetic discrimination occurs when people treat others (or are treated) differently because they have or are perceived to have a gene mutation(s) that causes or increases the risk of an inherited disorder. It may also refer to any and all discr ...

. The organisation has also opposed prenatal

sex selection Sex selection is the attempt to control the sex of the offspring to achieve a desired sex. It can be accomplished in several ways, both pre- and post-implantation of an embryo, as well as at childbirth. It has been marketed under the title family ...

, and the proposal that led to the establishment of the

UK Biobank UK Biobank is a long-term prospective biobank study in the United Kingdom (UK) that houses the de-identified biological samples and health-related data of half a million people. The volunteer participants aged 40-69 were recruited between 2006 ...

References

External links

* {{authority control Bioethics research organizations Genetics in the United Kingdom Genetics organizations Organizations established in 1999 Organisations based in London 1999 establishments in England