A woman in China has given birth to two genetically edited baby girls, according to the Associated Press news agency. The aim of the experiment was to create children who are immune to HIV, but it hasn’t yet been independently reviewed or verified.

The experiment has been widely condemned as unethical, even by those who are in favour of using gene editing in eggs, sperm or embryos to prevent diseases in children if it can be done safely.

“If true, this experiment exposes healthy normal children to risks of gene editing for no real necessary benefit,” says ethicist Julian Savulescu at the University of Oxford. “There are many effective ways to prevent HIV in healthy individuals.”

“There is no pressing need for this – it’s totally inappropriate,” says Greg Neely at the University of Sydney, Australia.

HIV enters and infects cells by binding to a protein on the surface called CCR5. The team in China, led by He Jiankui of Southern University of Science and Technology of China in Shenzhen, says it has used the CRISPR gene editing technique to try to disable the gene for CCR5.

Edited genes
One aspect of the experiment that has come under criticism is that we don’t yet know if it is safe to delete both copies of the CCR5 gene – which is involved in immunity – in every cell of the body. “We don’t know what the full effects will be,” says Neely.

Seven pairs of men and women reportedly took part in the experiment. All of the men were HIV-positive, and, according to the Associated Press, each couple was offered free IVF treatment in exchange for participating in what was described on ethical consent forms as an “AIDS vaccine development programme”. The team behind the work says the couples were fully informed about the experiment.

An embryo being given CRISPR machinery
An embryo being given CRISPR machinery
AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein
The sperm from each man was “washed” to rid it of any HIV, and then injected into eggs extracted from their partners. Next, the CRISPR gene editing machinery was injected into the resulting embryos.

In total, the experiment produced 22 embryos. To check that the CRISPR gene editing had worked, a single cell was removed from each embryo and analysed. He says that 16 embryos had successfully been edited, 11 of which were implanted. Only one pregnancy was successfully achieved, and it produced twins.

Of these twins, one is said to have had both their copies of CCR5 disabled. That means that their body won’t make the CCR5 protein, and their cells should be able to resist infection with HIV.

However, according to the Associated Press, the embryo for the second twin only had one copy of CCR5 disabled. This raises ethical questions – why was this embryo still implanted in its mother, given the known risks of gene editing, and the fact that this individual will still be vulnerable to HIV?
http://tellmystory.com.ng/worlds-first-gene-edited-babies-created-by-a-scientist-in-china/

Okay

China again

You mean a China baby?

A Nigga once said:as a nigerian we don't have any buisness with technology..but don't worry apostle suleiman will soon open his 150,000 capacity church building..

I agree that there is no urgent need for this! This experiment should have been channeled into producing a cure for HIV.

Dis china pipu don dey do china pikin join??

Assembled in china babies

Eugenics has been going on for quite sometime (abortion of babies who are deemed unwanted)
Guess ordering your baby isn't so far fetched after all..

Until these people start creating Blade Runner replicants I am not interested in their minuscle advances.

They think what they removed is useless. Don't worry, you guys will learn when the child start having health complications

This is most excellent.

Wondered if they used the Cas9 system.

Anyway kudo.

While this may actually be advantageous, the public must be made to know all the potential demerits. Is the protein not useful for anything at all?

They should help tell that prof that cloning a 75yr old is possible.

see as them dey talk about deleting and editing as if say na Microsoft word dem dey talk about

In case you want to learn more about the technology through which this feat is possible, here's an article I wrote on it
https://www.nairaland.com/4242574/genetic-engineering-change-everything-forever

sunky97:
A woman in China has given birth to two genetically edited baby girls, according to the Associated Press news agency. The aim of the experiment was to create children who are immune to HIV, but it hasn’t yet been independently reviewed or verified.

The experiment has been widely condemned as unethical, even by those who are in favour of using gene editing in eggs, sperm or embryos to prevent diseases in children if it can be done safely.

“If true, this experiment exposes healthy normal children to risks of gene editing for no real necessary benefit,” says ethicist Julian Savulescu at the University of Oxford. “There are many effective ways to prevent HIV in healthy individuals.”

“There is no pressing need for this – it’s totally inappropriate,” says Greg Neely at the University of Sydney, Australia.

HIV enters and infects cells by binding to a protein on the surface called CCR5. The team in China, led by He Jiankui of Southern University of Science and Technology of China in Shenzhen, says it has used the CRISPR gene editing technique to try to disable the gene for CCR5.

Edited genes
One aspect of the experiment that has come under criticism is that we don’t yet know if it is safe to delete both copies of the CCR5 gene – which is involved in immunity – in every cell of the body. “We don’t know what the full effects will be,” says Neely.

Seven pairs of men and women reportedly took part in the experiment. All of the men were HIV-positive, and, according to the Associated Press, each couple was offered free IVF treatment in exchange for participating in what was described on ethical consent forms as an “AIDS vaccine development programme”. The team behind the work says the couples were fully informed about the experiment.

An embryo being given CRISPR machinery
An embryo being given CRISPR machinery
AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein
The sperm from each man was “washed” to rid it of any HIV, and then injected into eggs extracted from their partners. Next, the CRISPR gene editing machinery was injected into the resulting embryos.

In total, the experiment produced 22 embryos. To check that the CRISPR gene editing had worked, a single cell was removed from each embryo and analysed. He says that 16 embryos had successfully been edited, 11 of which were implanted. Only one pregnancy was successfully achieved, and it produced twins.

Of these twins, one is said to have had both their copies of CCR5 disabled. That means that their body won’t make the CCR5 protein, and their cells should be able to resist infection with HIV.

However, according to the Associated Press, the embryo for the second twin only had one copy of CCR5 disabled. This raises ethical questions – why was this embryo still implanted in its mother, given the known risks of gene editing, and the fact that this individual will still be vulnerable to HIV?
http://tellmystory.com.ng/worlds-first-gene-edited-babies-created-by-a-scientist-in-china/

made in china baby

CRISPR cas9, crRNA ,gene therapy , gene editing etc

Lots of concern about the ethics, is this particular one done here even necessary? I dont think so.

Joe88:
I agree that there is no urgent need for this! This experiment should have been channeled into producing a cure for HIV.

Cure for HIV? Hahahahahaha.. Do you know how much these big pharmaceuticals make yearly from HIV? There will never be a cure. It's more like business now.

China again

kudos to them