The Potential Risks and Ethical Regulations of Contemporary Life Sciences and Technologies

The accelerated development and in-depth application of contemporary life sciences and technologies brings significant benefits but also raises potential ethical challenges. At the level of technological ethics, contemporary life sciences and technologies may infringe upon the rights to life, lead to the leakage of personal privacy and pose threats to biosecurity. At the societal ethics level, they may pose challenges to social ethics and employment structures, exacerbate social prejudices, discrimination, illegal and immoral behaviors. At the individual ethics level, they may not only violate personal dignity, autonomy and the right to informed choice but also result in the materialization of the doctor-patient relationship, trigger conflicts in medical decision-making and cause the blurring the responsibilities of relevant stakeholders. Following the ethical principles of science and technology that prioritize public welfare and rational control risks, standardizing ethical reviews, strengthening the supervision of laws and regulations, enhancing ethical education and training, and strengthening research and innovation in science and technology ethics are feasible strategies for regulating the behaviors of life sciences and technologies.