Aresearch team led by Doctor Fan Yong from the Third Affiliated Hospital ofGuangzhou Medical University has achieved HIV immunity through human embryogene-editing technique. This latest research result on human embryo gene editing has been published on Journal ofAssisted Reproduction and Genetics on April 6^th. It is also thesecond published report at the international level which is about the researchon human embryo gene editing.

Inorder to achieve the effect of immunity to HIV, the research team used CRISPR/Cas9 technique to edit the abandoned 3PN human fertilized eggs (the fertilized eggs combined by two sperms and one ovum) and did precise modification to the cell membrane proteins CCR5 gene of immune cell (this isone of the main receptors that HIV virus invade cell T). This research conceptually proved the possibility of gene-editing techniques to HIV immunity.

Doctor Fan introduced that this research was only a foundation research and theembryos used in research were not the normally developed ones. On the contrary,because of the extra set of chromosomes, the abandoned 3PN human embryoscouldn’t develop normally and became the abandoned embryonic cells. Moreover,the embryos would be destroyed in 3 days of experiments. So there was noquestion of making genetically modified babies.

The research group made it clears in paper that before the adequate solution ofethics and scientific problems, any activity tries to transform the early embryos and make genetically modified babies must be forbidden strictly.

Source:www.news.cn

Time:2016.4.15