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China has announced new regulations for the use of human genetic resources that come from Chinese participants. The rules, announced on June 10, require international scientists using biomaterials from China to have a Chinese collaborator and go into effect on July 1.
Alice Huang, a biologist at Caltech who follows Chinese developments as vice president of the 80-20 Educational Foundation, an organization promoting equal opportunities for Asian Pacific Americans, tells The Scientist that she is not surprised at the announcement. “We’re finding that a lot of individuals as well as governments are realizing that these types of information can become very valuable and then they become much more protective of their data,” she adds, emphasizing the growth of companies such as 23andMe that collect human genetic data.
The state council order contains 46 articles restricting the use and storage of any materials from China that ...
