US Company Revives "Gene-Edited Babies"?

In the past couple of days, a "bombshell news" appeared on the official website of the journal Nature: a US company named "Manhattan Genomics" claimed that its goal is to "alter the genome of human embryos to prevent genetic diseases." This news has raised concerns among many scientists.

This inevitably brings to mind a scandal that shook the global life sciences community in November 2018—He Jiankui announced that he had edited human embryos and implanted them, resulting in the birth of two babies with "enhanced immunity to HIV." Subsequently, he was sentenced to three years in prison for "illegal medical practice."

"Although gene-editing technology has developed rapidly in recent years, our understanding of the role of genes throughout the entire life cycle is still incomplete. Making arbitrary changes can lead to unpredictable consequences and is extremely irresponsible towards life." Years later, Li Jinsong still holds this view. "Researchers are continuously optimizing gene and base-editing technologies to improve their precision, but whether these technologies are safe enough for use in human embryos remains undetermined."

In recent years, gene-editing technologies for non-reproductive cells have advanced rapidly, and several gene-editing therapies have been approved for treatment. In 2023, the world's first CRISPR gene-editing therapy, exa-cel, received conditional approval from the UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency for treating two inherited blood disorders.

"Ethically and scientifically, editing non-reproductive cells is different from editing embryos," said Huang Jun, a renowned expert in the field of gene editing and a professor at Sun Yat-sen University. He believes that editing embryos means genetic changes will be passed on to the next generation, the consequences of which are difficult to predict. "The technology is not yet mature, and the ethical consensus and legal framework for its use are also underdeveloped."