INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Chinese authorities have declared the work of He Jiankui, who shocked the scientific community by claiming he successfully createdthe world
first gene-edited babies, an illegal decision in pursuit of &personal fame and gain.& Investigators have completed preliminarysteps in a
probe that began in November following He claims and say they will &seriously& punish the researcher for violations of the law, China
official news agency Xinhua reported on Monday.
He, who taught at Shenzhen Southern University of Science and Technology, had led a team to
research the gene-editing technique CRISPRsince mid-2016 in attempts to treat cancers and other diseases
The incident drew significant attention to the professor own biotech startups that are backed by local and overseas investors.
UPDATED:
CRISPR scientist in China claims his team research has resulted in the world first gene-edited babies
The official probe shows that He
fabricated ethics approvalswhich he used to recruit eight couples to participate in clinical procedures between March 2017 and November 2018
The attempt led to two pregnancies, including one that resulted in the birth of twins and the other embryo yet to be born
Five couples failed to achieve fertilization and one pair dropped out of the experiment.
He project has sparked a wave of criticism among
scientists across the world
CRISPR is still dangerously unethical at this point for it may cause serious genetic damage
Some researchers have proposed amoratorium on CRISPRuntil more guidelines become clear while others call for developing safer and more
ethical methods to propel the technology forward
Many countries, including the United States and China, prohibit gene-editing of human embryos for reproductive purposes.
CRISPR DNA editing
may cause serious genetic damage, researchers warn
