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HONG KONG – Latest news from a Chinese scientist claiming to have created the first baby in the world to be published by a gene (all times are local):
7:30 p.m.
The Chinese government ordered the cessation of work by a medical team that claimed to have helped make the first baby in the world to be modified.
Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Xu Nanping told CCTV on Thursday that his ministry was strongly opposed to efforts to produce binoculars earlier this month. Xu called the team's actions illegal and unacceptable and said that an investigation had been ordered.
The researcher He Jiankui claims to have altered the DNA of the twins to try to make them resistant to infection with the AIDS virus. The mainstream scientists have condemned the experiment, and universities and government groups are conducting research.
There is no independent confirmation of what he says he did. He said that a second pregnancy could be in progress.
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1:30 p.m.
A group of renowned scientists said it was still too early to try to make permanent changes to DNA that could be inherited by future generations, as claimed by a Chinese researcher.
Scientists gathered this week in Hong Kong for an international conference on gene editing, the opportunity to rewrite the code of life to try to correct or prevent disease.
Although science is promising to help people who are already born, scientists said Thursday it was irresponsible to try eggs, sperm or embryos, because there was not enough knowledge about its risks or security.
The conference was shaken by the Chinese researcher's claim that she helped create the first baby in the world to be published by a gene, binoculars born earlier this month.
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