A group of Chinese scientists have confirmed the first genetically modified human embryo. The procedure has been applauded in China but is facing controversy in the West.
Huang Junjiu, an associate professor of biology at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou revealed that his research team used technology to split a gene that is responsible for beta thalassemia — a deadly and common blood disorder among children in southern China.
The paper was previously submitted to the journals Nature and Science, but it was turned down due to ethical objections. The paper has since been accepted at the journal Protein & Cell, with the authors acknowledging that the study may create ethical controversy.
The scientists explained that their research utilized embryos that had problems, which are usually discarded by hospitals. They also used eggs that were fertilized by several sperm, which is standard for scientific experimentation as these eggs cannot lead to a live birth.
Chen Guoqiang, a biology professor at Tsinghua University, applauded the study. He said the breakthrough in research would benefit mankind.
"The editing of human DNA holds the key to cure many diseases, maintain health, retain youth, live long. These will all be possible in the future and free many families from pain and sufferings," said Guoqiang.
Other biologists in China have also commented that a study of this kind should not raise any unethical questions. Zhao Shimin, a biologist at the Fudan University, Shanghai, stressed that the study involved non-viable embryos for experimentations. The findings of the study do not have any commercial use or clinical application.
Shimin claims that editing of human DNA is inevitable. The DNA of animals and plants has already been been subjected to editing and it only follows that the DNA of humans is next.
In an opinion piece published in Nature, a group of scientists spoke out against research in editing human embryos:
"In our view, genome editing in human embryos using current technologies could have unpredictable effects on future generations," wrote Edward Lanphier, Fyodor Urnov and colleagues.
"This makes it dangerous and ethically unacceptable. Such research could be exploited for non-therapeutic modifications. We are concerned that a public outcry about such an ethical breach could hinder a promising area of therapeutic development, namely making genetic changes that cannot be inherited."
The scientists on the other side recognize the dangers, and Junjiu also raised caution about the use of the technology in his paper. Nevertheless – used appropriately – it could also reap great medical value, curing and perhaps preventing many diseases in the future.
This is not the first time that an Asian study of human embryos has produced debate in the Western world. Around 10 years ago, some South Korean scientists claimed to have cloned human embryos. In spite of backlash, they were hailed by many people as national heroes. However, it was later revealed that the discovery was fake.
Photo: Mehmet Pinarci | Flickr
