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"I must apologize, the result was leaked unexpectedly," said a Chinese scientist.
The Chinese scientist who claims to have created the world's first genetically modified babies said Wednesday that the trial had been suspended following an international outcry over this highly controversial procedure
He Jiankui defended his work in front of a busy biomedical conference in Hong Kong, claiming that he had managed to altering the DNA of binoculars born to a seropositive father, a medical first.
A total of eight couples of volunteers – HIV-positive fathers and HIV-negative mothers – enrolled in the program. test, one of which was abandoned before it was interrupted.
pregnancy "involving a second couple, but when asked questions, he also agreed that it was & # 39; a chemical pregnancy – a term referring to a very early miscarriage.
"I have to apologize for this result t" A breakthrough "The clinical trial was halted because of the current situation," he added.
The conference was turned upside down by the claims of genetic revelations on baby, after the university professor, He, posted a video claiming that the twins – born a few weeks ago, their DNA had been modified to prevent them from contracting HIV.
This decision sparked a lively debate within the scientific community;
The development of human embryos can create unexpected mutations in other areas, called "off-target effects," which can be pursued until birth, experts warn.
But he took the stage Wednesday for He explained to his audience that his parents were aware of the potential dangers they ran when they enrolled.
"The volunteers were informed of the risk posed by the existence of a potential untargeted target and they decided to implement it," he said.
He also indicated that the university in which he worked "was unaware of the course of the study".
The Southern University of Science and Technology, located in the city of Shenzhen, in the south of China, was already distant. himself, claiming that he had been on leave without pay since February and that he "had violated seriously the ethics and codes of conduct of academics".
The organizers of the second International Summit on the Modification of the Human Genome, which opened on Tuesday, also indicated that they were not aware of it.
Robin Lovell-Badge, moderator of the conference, said that his trial was a "step back" for the scientific industry, but nevertheless described the birth of these babies as "memorable".
"This is an example of an approach that was not prudent enough, cautious and proportionate," he said.
"Clearly, however, it is a historical point … These two babies would seem to be the first babies to have been modified by a gene, so it's an important point of history. "
Nobel Prize President David Baltimore said there had been" a failure of self-regulation by the scientific community because a lack of transparency ".
He claims Baltimore said: "to be considered irresponsible".
An Ethical Process bypbaded
According to his studies at Stanford University, twins' DNA was altered using CRISPR, a technique that allowed scientists to suppress and suppress replace a strand with precise precision.
Gene editing is a potential solution for hereditary diseases, but it is extremely controversial because the changes would be pbaded on to future generations and could potentially affect the entire gene pool.
In many countries, editing of human DNA
Qiu Renzong, former vice chairman of the ethics committee of the Chinese Ministry of Health, told reporters at the conference that lax regulations in China
The National Health Commission of China has ordered the opening of an "immediate investigation" on this case, reported the Xinhua official news agency, while Shenzhen hospital was supposed to have approved it. the research program denied his participation.
A union of Chinese scientists issued a statement in which it stated "resolutely opposed to so-called scientific research and biotechnological applications that violate the spirit of science and ethics ", said Xinhua.
The case at the Chinese Union of Life Sciences companies has undermined China's international reputation on the ground.
This is not the first time that Chinese researchers are experimenting with human embryo technology.
Last September, scientists from Sun Yat-sen University used adapted version of gene editing to correct a mutation causing disease in human embryos.
There is also a history of fraud in the Chinese academic community. Last year, a scandal led to the withdrawal of 100 "compromised" scientific articles.
A joint statement by a group of 100 scientists in China criticized He Jiankui's claims and described them as "a major blow to global reputation and development". of Biomedical Research in China. "
(With the exception of the title, this story has not been altered by NDTV staff and is published from a stream syndicated.)
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