The commitment to development with new gene-editing techniques in Argentina

Abstract

The discovery that CRISPR could be used to edit DNA democratized access to genetic engineering by reducing the costs, time and knowledge required. In Argentina, it appeared as a "window of opportunity" to improve the insertion of biotechnological goods and services in the international market and to solve the problems generated by the massive extension of agriculture with GMO. Using interviews, observations, and secondary sources, this paper reconstructs the practices of scientists, businessmen, and government officials that make possible CRISPR research, development and innovation (R&D&i), identifying its limits and possibilities. It finds that the main challenge for ongoing innovations is the regulatory framework established by other countries. Therefore, the commitment to development based on this biotechnological application depends on strategies and geopolitical negotiations that allow the export of the results of the R&D+i carried out in the country.