Genemodding

What is Gene Modding?

Genetic modification is defined by the artificial impact of intelligent life on a species’ hereditary outcome and protein sequences. Something that can be crude as selective breeding like most speciess have done for centuries. To the now more ‘accepted’ measure of designer embryos and targeted retroviruses. Gene modding is used today for eliminating hereditary disease, cosmetic body choices and expressions. Agriculture and hostile exoplant habitation.

How Does it work?

There isn’t one perfect, true way for today’s genemodding to be done just a selection of what's cost effective to be done. All splices done to the body can and often are done via specific tweaked retroviruses that target bone marrow sequences to steadily adapt the body to it's new DNA blueprint. The host of these changes will also be put into a limited statis within cryogenics pods to prevent undue stress on the body. A therapy that can take weeks, or up to months.

However with the widescale use of Soulcrypt, custom-grown bodies as a solution for extreme or extensive modifications has become a tangible plausibility.

How Legal is it?

The easy answer would be 'it depends where and what kind' however it's a much more complex topic than that. In Solgov space almost any genetic modification both practical and cosmetic is legally allowed. However most systems and worlds ban any splices that that are deemed too dangerous or 'too far'.

Skrellian space has a similar stance as most Solgov worlds. However culturally genetic modifications are more seen for practical use in work and life - anything cosmetic is often very low key and 'tasteful' , such as pigment changes, head-tail alterations or at most, a tail or two.

Yet for the Dominion, genetic splicing is banned all together for anything that's not agricultural or livestock. While there are some recorded exceptions for those suffering from a hereditary disease. Any practical or cosmetic alterations outright defy the Unity's tenets.

How Expensive is it?

The past two centuries has made most cosmetic and performance splices affordable to the middle-class sapient with either small loans, or some savings. On the same scale as purchasing a used car today. With the lower, cheaper and easier end of them being much more affordable.

Examples skin color or texture changes, hair color changes or minor cosmetic work. However on the other end of the spectrum are heavy modifications or custom body resleeves such as tauric lower halves or species transplants.

Mekhane's concerning rise in popularity and their tenets of body freedom have also thrown a wrench in body modification pricing. However legally their work is not approved or condoned by any medical board, nor are their cruciforms.