Chinese researcher who illegally created gene-edited babies arrested

On Dec. 30, Chinese researcher He Jiankui was sentenced to three years in prison and fined $430,000 for using the gene editing software CRISPR-Cas9 to edit out the HIV gene from twin girls in 2018. He later revealed that he had also experimented on a third baby. The act had stirred controversy in the scientific community: while He claimed that he used the gene editing software to protect the babies from the HIV virus, many believe that He was primarily motivated by fame and recognition. Two other researchers that He worked with, Zhang Renli and Qin Jinzhou, were also sentenced to prison, and all three scientists received a lifetime ban working with human-assisted reproductive technology services again. 

CRISPR, a family of DNA sequences, is the technology that is responsible for making gene-editing a possibility. “CRISPR” stands for “Clusters of regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats.” Nucleotides, which are the building blocks of DNA, are distributed through what is called a CRISPR region, and viruses are incorporated into spacers among the sequence. Since CRISPR has the ability to remember and fight the virus, it has the capacity to edit genes in humans. 

Due to this event, CRISPR as well as the topic of gene editing have gained traction. He used the software in late 2018 to edit the HIV gene, also known as CCR5, out of the embryo of the newborn twin girls as well as the third baby. Members of the scientific community have spoken out and shared their opinions. In an interview with AP, Kehkooi Kee, a researcher at Tsinghua University said, “He (Jianku) should be held responsible for any fallout from the experiment on the lives of the babies and their families.”

Scientists like bioethicist Dr.William Hurlburt are more sympathetic to He’s situation and felt sorry for his family. In another interview with AP, Hurlburt said “I warned him things could end this way, but it was just too late.”

MCPS students like Springbrook junior Aruna Bundu feel that such genetic experimentation is not worth the risk. “It was a success, but it wasn’t necessary,” Bundu said. “He has put a potential danger on these children’s future generations. I’m not saying he deserves it I’m just saying I understand why he was arrested.”

The controversy of this event has also refueled the debate on gene editing as a whole and its ethics. As reported by CNN, gene-editing in viable human embryos is illegal in many countries, including the U.S. Students like Bundu feel that gene-editing would only be appropriate as a last option choice. “If it were my last option, why not? However it wasn’t necessary to use it the scientist simply got happy-headed,” Bundu said. 

On the other hand, Springbrook junior Helina Zewdu’s response to the question of whether she would use such technology was simply “No.”

Article by Hallie Rozario of Springbrook High School

Graphic by Charles Wang of Walter Johnson High School