A third gene-edited baby may have been born

China confirmed the gene editing experiment of scientist Ha Kien Khue that led to the birth of three babies.

The scientist Ha Kien Khue was sentenced to three years in prison and had to pay a fine of 430,000 USD.(Photo: CNN).

The Nansha court, Guangdong province, sentenced the prisoner to edit gene-editing scientist Xia Jia Khue and his accomplices Zhang Ren Le and Qin Jinzhou earlier this week. According to the indictment, Mr. Xia was sentenced to three years in prison for " illegally conducting gene editing on human embryos and giving birth to three genetically modified babies".

Mr. Xia acknowledged using CRISPR-Cas9 genetic modification technology to create an HIV / AIDS twin female named Lulu and Nana at Hong Kong's International Summit on Genetic Modifications in November. / 2018. However, the scientist provides very little details about the experiment. He vowed to create more modified embryos to give birth to babies resistant to HIV.

Also at the conference, Mr. Xia revealed another woman who is pregnant with a baby has a genetic modification. Chinese authorities have confirmed this information after investigating Mr. Xia's research. William Hurlbut, a doctor and bioethicist at Stanford University, said the woman was likely 12 to 14 weeks pregnant at the time, meaning she would give birth around June or July. / 2019. However, since then, there has been no news of gender, health status or complications associated with births.

Mr. Xia studied at Rice University and Stanford University in the United States before returning home and became an associate professor at Shenzhen University of Science and Technology. His research was strongly condemned by the Chinese scientific community and the world. Under pressure from public opinion, the Chinese government immediately suspended all research activities of Mr. Xia and opened an investigation.

1. The third gene-edited baby is about to be born