On Tuesday 7 May 2019, Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Agius from the Faculty of Theology delivered a lecture on the 'Ethical Challenges of Biotechnology in Europe' to the medical students of the Third Faculty of Medicine at Charles University, Prague.
Biotechnology has raised high expectations, in particular regarding novel therapeutic approaches (e.g. gene editing), which have not materialised as quickly as anticipated. Moreover, certain modern biotechnology applications are raising new issues and triggering controversial discussions involving the broader public (e.g. genetically modified crops, cloned animals for food production, human embryonic stem cells (hESC), patenting of hESC, and the use of personal genetic data).
Prof. Agius spoke of the contribution of the European values (human dignity, subsidiarity, proportionality, justice, common good, solidarity, the rule of law and democracy) enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the Lisbon Treaty to these biotechnological challenges.
Prof. Agius spoke of the contribution of the European values (human dignity, subsidiarity, proportionality, justice, common good, solidarity, the rule of law and democracy) enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the Lisbon Treaty to these biotechnological challenges.
Prof. Agius also chaired a seminar on the 'Ethical Issues in the Application of AI and Robotics in Healthcare' organised by the Faculty.