He Jiankui attended the 2nd International Summit on Human Genome Editing at the University of Hong Kong as scheduled yesterday and delivered a speech.This is his first public appearance since revelations about gene-edited babies.(AFP)
Chinese scholar He Jiankui pointed out that this research has been submitted to a scientific journal for review, but some of the research results were unexpectedly leaked before the Second International Summit on Human Genome Editing, but he emphasized that his affiliated Shenzhen Southern University of Science and Technology had no knowledge of his research, he completed the experiment through self-financing.
Chinese scholar He Jiankui claimed to have successfully used gene editing technology to give birth to a pair of twins with the ability to resist the love virus, which caused a global outcry.In his final appearance in Hong Kong yesterday, he apologized for the controversy but insisted he was proud of the experiment.
He Jiankui revealed that there was actually another potential pregnancy involving the second couple during the experiment, which turned out to be a chemical pregnancy, an early miscarriage that occurred within five weeks of gestation.
Based on the current situation, this clinical trial has been suspended.However, the incident shows no sign of subsiding for the time being.The Guangdong Provincial Health Commission stated on its official website yesterday that Guangdong and Shenzhen had set up a joint investigation team the day before yesterday to fully investigate the gene-edited baby incident.
He Jiankui, an associate professor of the Department of Biology at Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen, who has been caught in the cusp of public opinion recently, attended the 2nd International Summit on Human Genome Editing held by the Hong Kong Academy of Sciences at the University of Hong Kong as scheduled yesterday and delivered a speech.This is also his first public appearance since the incident was exposed.
When He Jiankui delivered his speech, he first apologized to the audience, saying that this study had been submitted to a scientific journal for review, but some of the research results were accidentally published before the summit.The experiments were carried out through self-financing.
He Jiankui disclosed his research process in his speech.Of the eight couples originally enrolled in the study, one dropped out, he said.These couples, whose men have AIDS and whose women do not, know the risks of research and potential off-targets.During the research process, they took measures to reduce the chance of the mother being infected with AIDS, and the twins born smoothly were healthy and normal.
After He Jiankui's speech, he also accepted questions from experts and hosts.When answering questions, he said that there are many AIDS patients in the world who are under social pressure, so it is necessary to help them.The research team will follow up the health of the twin girls immune to AIDS virus after gene editing for a long time.
"We will continue to evaluate the effects of gene editing on the twins, including blood tests to monitor their susceptibility to HIV," he said.We also plan to monitor their health for the next 18 years, and we will continue to monitor and provide support when they become adults and agree to authorize them.
He Jiankui pointed out that he will share the knowledge gained from his research with the public, and now it is up to the public to decide how to use it.He said: "In this case, I'm actually proud, I'm very proud, because he (the twin's father) lost his life, but on the day the baby was born, he sent a text message saying that he will work hard and he will be the same for the rest of his life."Take good care of a pair of daughters and his wife.
When asked if he would use this research technology if he wanted to have children, He Jiankui responded that if necessary, he would take the lead in applying his research results.
Criticized by many participating scholars
Although He Jiankui defended his research behavior, many participating scholars criticized his approach after the meeting, including questioning the need for the research, questionable safety, and whether the patients were fully informed before consenting.Some scholars even said that after hearing He's speech, they had more doubts, accusing him of being irresponsible.
The Nobel laureate and American biologist Baltimore, who served as the chairman of the preparatory committee for the summit, accused that the relevant clinical experiment work is medically unnecessary and violates the consensus and standards of the scientific community: we will not wait until after the completion of the research and when the child is bornI only learned about the incident later, and I think it reflects a failure of self-regulation in the scientific community because of the lack of transparency in this research.The Summit Organizing Committee will hold a meeting on the topic today and issue a statement.
All the professors of the Biology Department of Shenzhen Southern University of Science and Technology also issued a joint statement through the school's official Weibo after He Jiankui's speech in Hong Kong.Under the circumstances of full inspection, rashly carrying out the clinical application of gene editing of human embryos seriously violates academic norms and moral ethics, and expresses firm opposition and strong condemnation to this.
The statement also pointed out that since the establishment of the Department of Biology of the university, it has always paid attention to complying with national scientific research ethics and policies and regulations, constantly improving relevant rules and regulations, and conducting scientific research rigorously and prudently within the scope permitted by the rules.We deeply regret the adverse effects caused and will fully cooperate with the school in a comprehensive investigation.
According to a report by Radio Television Hong Kong yesterday, Bai Hualin, head of the AIDS organization in mainland China, Bai Hualin, confirmed that he had assisted He Jiankui in finding subjects for the experiment.He said that now he felt sad and regretted introducing AIDS patients to the other party for the experiment, and worried that the two baby girls in the incident would face life-threatening in the future.
Bai Hua said that she had communicated with two families participating in the project the day before yesterday. She obviously felt that they did not fully understand the risks of the experiment. She could only tell them that He Jiankui comforted them. The chance of contracting AIDS is very low. After the baby is born, they can buy insurance for them.and so on.Neither family understood or considered much about the potential risks and ethical issues posed by the technology.
