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(CNN) – In front of 700 people this Wednesday at the second edition of the International Human Genome Summit, He Jiankui, the Chinese scientist who claimed to have contributed to the creation of the world's first genetically modified baby , defended His work and he says "proud" of his feat.
Last Monday, he announced in an online video that two apparently healthy twins were born this month from a modified embryo designed to make them resistant to HIV.
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"For this particular case, I'm proud, but more proud because they had lost the hope of living," he said. he told his parents on Wednesday. the twins, whose father would carry HIV. "But with this protection, [el padre] he sent a message saying that he would work hard, earn money and take care of his two daughters and his wife."
When asked if his clinical trials had resulted in any other pregnancies, he replied, "There is another, another pregnancy possible," but did not reveal any more details.
In addition, he stated that his research had been sent to a scientific journal for review, without naming the publication, and he apologized for the "unexpected" leak.
His research has raised serious ethical questions about the transparency of gene editing and has sparked calls for a binding global code of behavior.
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During the question-and-answer session that followed the presentation, he stated that he had made two rounds of informed consent with the parents, with Three hours in total.
"The mere fact that he is directly involved in obtaining the patient's consent is a big problem," said Robin Lovell-Badge, head of the Stem Cell Biology Lab. Genetics of Development at the Francis Crick Institute, who facilitated the discussion
"This should never be done There must be an independent third party able to adequately explain the risks and benefits" said Lovell-Badge.
Other concerns focused on the CCR5 gene, which, according to conference scientists, is crucial for the human immune system. By eliminating it, the risk of susceptibility to other diseases such as West Nile virus and influenza increases.
MIRA: A DNA test reveals the dark secret of this doctor in terms of fertility, according to a trial [1945]. 19659002] "When you change a thing, something else also changes," said Feng Zhang, one of the inventors of the gene editing technique of the family of sequences. CRISPR DNA.
However, many participants in the Hong Kong conference indicated that, although it has not violated any international standard, its alleged use of CRISPR is a clear break with the way things are done in normal conditions.
"There is a fairly narrow consensus on what is and is not acceptable in genome editing at the moment, and the reported work represents a departure from it," said David R Liu, professor of chemistry and chemical biology at Harvard University. was a pioneer in improving DNA sequence versions CRISPR
The potential for long-term social effects on girls was particularly worrying at the Hong Kong summit. A member of the audience asked him if he had thought about what the girls would be like and how they would be treated by society. "I do not know how to answer that question," he said.
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After his presentation, the President of David Baltimore, of the conference , said the research was not medically necessary because there are other treatments for HIV.
Baltimore criticized the lack of transparency of the latter and referred to an agreement reached at the 2015 conference that would be irresponsible. use this gene edition until the security issues have been resolved.
Investments of One Million Dollars
China has invested heavily in genetic modification technology, funding research on a series of "novelties" worldwide, including the first use of the technology. CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tool in humans in 2016, in addition to the first informed use of gene editing technology to modify non-viable human embryos in 2015. [19659002] L & # 39; last year, China spent a record $ 254 billion on research and development, and the country is catching up with the investment the United States has made in the same area. This spawned an "arms race" called "Sputnik 2.0" by Dr. Carl June, a specialist in immunotherapy at the University of Pennsylvania.
"Unfair"
However, in a joint statement issued Monday, more than 120 Chinese scientists have condemned the use of the CRISPR-Cas9 tool as a "blow" to the reputation of the Chinese biomedical research.
"It is extremely unfair to Chinese scientists who are hardworking, innovative and who defend the scientific ethics background," they write, adding that "direct experimentation on human beings does not occur. is that of madness … as soon as a living man is produced, no one can predict what kind of impact it will bring, since the modified hereditary substance will inevitably merge with the human genome group. "[19659002] MIRA: Scientific controversy about an alleged genetic modification on humans
The Chinese government also ordered an "immediate investigation" into its claims. He will follow the moves to ban participation in the procedure, both at the university to which he is affiliated and at the hospital mentioned in the ethics approval documents.
At another event Wednesday, Rice University said that it was investigating bioengineering professor Michael Deem, after being quoted in the media for being involved in the Heem works.
Deem was Rice's advisor to Rice for more than three years and published three articles with him.
"This research raises troubling scientific, legal and ethical issues," said Doug Miller, director of the press office. from Rice University. In a statement, Miller said that Rice "had no knowledge of this work".
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