Chinese scientists claim to have created genetically modified babies

According to the American publication, Chinese scientists claim to have created the first genetically modified baby in the world. "MIT Technology Review", although the Shenzhen University in which they work is not aware of this study.

The researchers used the twin-CRISPR / Cas9 technique to make them resistant to diseases such as HIV, cholera or smallpox, according to data published on Sunday by the specialist magazine.

Although the MIT stresses that the work has not yet been published in a scientific journal, the principal investigator, He Jiankui, announced in a video posted on Youtube, the process of fertilization that followed until At the birth of the two twins, Lulu and Nana, genetically modified. [19659] 004] "The results indicate that the operation worked fine, as expected," says He in the video, in which she notes that the genes of the girls are changed so that they can not to contract HIV.

According to He, the modification The purpose of genetics is not to eliminate genetic diseases, but to "give girls the natural ability to resist a possible infection with HIV".

To this end, researchers have "deactivated" the CCR5 gene, which This practice would constitute a DNA enhancement, he adds, adding that "next month" more details about the investigation will be published. "

The development of this plan, which uses a forbidden technology in the United States and Europe, could spark controversy, as some scientists discover a new form of medicine that eliminates genetic diseases, others a form of Eugenics.

The university has no record of studying him and the author. Shenzhen health agencies "have not received no demand "to run, today reports the China Daily.

The Chinese newspaper adds that the study" sparked controversy "between its academics and the country's citizens" for his ethics and its effectiveness. "

" Genetic editing technology is far from mature and should not be used in humans, "said scientist Wu Zunyou to the newspaper, for whom it is" inappropriate "to lead such research on man.

In 2016, a group of Chinese scientists became the pioneer of human use, especially in patients with cancer of the lung, CRISPR genetic modification technology, reported by Nature,

.The UK has discovered that CRISPR gene editing technology can cause more damage to cells than did not think so before, according to a study published this year by the same newspaper.