Neurogenethics: An emerging discipline at the intersection of ethics, neuroscience, and genomics

The analysis of ethical, legal, and social implications (ELSI) associated with genetics (“genethics”) has focused on traditional concerns in bioethics, such as privacy and informed consent. The analysis of ELSI associated with neuroscience (“neuroethics”) has focused on concerns related to personhood, such as free will or cognitive enhancement. With neurogenomics coming of age, this is an appropriate time to attend to the set of novel concerns that arises when we consider the confluence of these two lines of research. I call this area of ethics inquiry “neurogenethics”, map out the problem space, and highlight future areas of inquiry related to genome editing and gene therapy, optogenetics and memory manipulation, and genomic identity and online communities.