Comment by fc417fc802

> Aren't there laws regulating bioethics that forbid such questionable practices?

Not generally, no. Most of it is by convention coupled with the fact that no reputable journal will publish your work these days if you don't go through an IRB for certain types of work. There's also the funding angle, with most work being paid for by one of a few very large governmental bodies and each of those having stringent rules about what they do and don't permit.

Basically pursuing certain lines of research would make you unemployable thus (almost) nobody does it. Unless it looks likely to turn a profit in which case you can start a company and try your luck with VCs.