Meet Lulu and Nana, supposedly the first children in the world to be published by a gene

It seems like it was not that long ago, an uproar was raised against Dolly the Sheep, the first animal created by cloning cells. Now, if we believe a Chinese researcher, we have taken the step of cloning animals to genetically edit our own offspring.

The researcher, Shenzhen's He Jiankui, said that the twins known as Lulu and Nana "came in shouting into the world as healthy as other babies" several weeks ago and are now at home with their parents .

In collaboration with a Chinese team and the assistance of an American scientist – who has traveled abroad as this modification of DNA is currently banned in the United States – has managed to crush and altering the DNA of twins through the CRISPR gene modification tool, according to the Associated Press.

The goal? Medical impairment and resistance to the disease, namely the HIV / AIDS virus.

The embryos provided by seven couples have been altered, with a successful pregnancy up to now. According to the scientist, the successful pregnancy, culminating in twins, was carried out with the help of the sperm of a man named Mark, HIV carrier, and "never having thought that he could have children ".

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"Grace [the mother] started her pregnancy with a difference; after sending her husband's sperm into her eggs, we also sent some protein and some instructions for gene surgery, "he says. When Lulu and Nana were more than a single cell, it removed the door through which HIV infects people. "

The protein gate is used by a gene called CCR5 that allows HIV to enter the cells. It is this gene that the team has focused on publishing.

He added that a few days later, the team had sequenced the genes to see if the changes had taken root. According to the scientist, "the operation has worked as expected", and no other gene has been modified.

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However, the trial was conducted in secret and no document has yet been submitted for close peer review in the field of genetic sequencing and editing.

The identity of the parents and children involved in the trial – which some describe as irresponsible and dangerous human experimentation – was also kept anonymous.

If such claims prove true, it would be a major step in the science that could lead to a generation born with inherent resistance to some of the most debilitating diseases in existence. However, such a future also raises a number of ethical issues and the possibility of a slippery slope for "designer" children and DNA that could – or should – be changed.

The research, which has not yet been independently verified, was revealed before a conference on gene editing was scheduled to begin in Hong Kong on Tuesday.

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The seemingly used tool to conduct the experiment is known as the short cluster palindromic repetition (CRISPR / CRISPR-Cas9), a genome editing tool based on a system called "CRISPR / CRISPR-Cas9". natural edition of bacteria. By using CRISPR, dangerous genes can be disabled.

Scientists around the world are still exploring the potential applications of this tool, but for some, manipulation of human DNA may have been carried out too early.

"It's far too premature," said Dr. Eric Topol of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in California at the AP. "We are dealing with the use of a human being.It is a big problem."

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