One of the central themes of the interview given to the UFV’s Office of the Vice President for Research is his rejection of the notion of bioethics as an obstacle or barrier.
For a long time, he explains, “ethics has been seen as something that comes in at the end to set limits or to rein in what science wants to do.” His approach is very different.
For Postigo, bioethics must be an integral part of scientific work itself. Ethics, he argues, must also guide the researcher’s actions. It should not come into play only after everything is already underway. It must be embedded within the research process from the start. Not as a moral code imposed from the outside—for that would be moralizing—but as a way to think more carefully about what is being done, why it is being done, and whom it might affect.
That is also the vision she seeks to convey to her students. The idea is not that scientists should face external scrutiny once the process is complete, but rather that they should be able to “think ethically within the context of their own scientific and technological work and direct it toward serving people and the common good,” the expert emphasizes.
That perspective shifts the focus. The issue, he insists, is not a fear of technology. It is the responsibility with which it is used. Researchers today work with tools of extraordinary power. That is why they must ask themselves about the good they seek, the harm they might cause, and the meaning of their work. In this sense, bioethics does not weaken science. It gives it depth, direction, and discernment.
Postigo gives a clear example. Gene editing for therapeutic purposes using CRISPR/Cas9 could open up valuable applications in medicine. But editing the somatic line is not the same as editing the germline or embryonic line.
In the latter case, he explains, the consequences can be unpredictable and seriously affect human integrity. Here, the reflection is first and foremost scientific, because it requires an assessment of real risks, and also ethical, because it must guide the direction of research.
