Chinese scientists say they have created "disease-resistant" babies

A team of scientists from the University of Shenzhen, China, claimed to have created the first genetically modified babies in order to make them "disease-resistant", the MIT Technology Review reported, a fact highlighted by Argentinian specialists but also approached with caution.

He Jiankui, the scientist who led the research for which the gene modification technique known as Crispr was used, revealed the fertilization process that followed until the birth of the Lulu and Nana twins, "genetically modified" so that "can not catch the AIDS virus (HIV)."

He Jiankui, in charge of unprecedented genetic manipulation, in his laboratory in southern China – AP

"The results indicate that the operation worked well, as expected", badured the Asian in a video on Youtube.

The results of this study were published yesterday by the MIT trade journal., although local media (such as the China Daily newspaper) said today that it still lacks "consistency".

He, who announced that next month "will be announced more details about the survey," said the amendment was not intended to eliminate genetic diseases, but "to give babies the natural ability to withstand a possible future HIV infection ".

"Crispr's technology was used in this case to eliminate the gateway to the AIDS virus (HIV)," he explained during a dialogue. with Telam Marcelo Rubinstein, researcher at the Institute for Research in Genetic Engineering and Molecular Biology (Ingebi) of Conicet,

"Up to now, no one has ever reported having created genetically modified babiesso that they can be first, "added the specialist, who is also a professor of genetic engineering at the Faculty of Exact Sciences of the UBA.

Chinese scientists claim to have created genetically modified babies and surprised the world – AP

Regarding the technique (Crispr), Rubinstein emphasized "that it is possible to use it with a potentially very high degree of security", adding that "this adds to the technological arsenal that began to be used 40 years ago from the first baby test tube, with the notorious aggregate that here a single gene is modified directly and directed in the newborn ".

"This change in the genetic code is heritable, so that the girls and sons of these genetically modified babies can carry the newly created mutations," he continued.

While He Jiankui explained that the purpose of his research was to prevent a disease by improving DNA, Rubinstein made it clear that it was a "subjective appreciation" . and that the potential prevention of a disease through genome modification need not be read as an improvement in itself ".

However, the Argentine specialist pointed out that "it is undoubtedly a very interesting area of ​​research".

"There are already in the US other types of presentations using the same mutations repair technology, but in this case, the experiment was interrupted. at an embryonic stage and babies have not come to birth ", detailed.

For his part, Sergio Papier, a specialist in reproductive medicine, told Telam that "gene editing is a valuable alternative for the future", although he considered "that today remains an experimental method until proven effective and safe in research protocols rigorous scientific, legal and ethical".

In this direction, Rubinstein said that "of course, this topic will unleash meetings of groups of ethics experts who will address the issue in each country".

"But ethics is a cultural construct in flux, so it is difficult to predict what will happen in the short and medium term with the use of this gene editing technology," he said. he declared.