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On Thursday (September 3), the International Commission on the Clinical Use of Human Germline Genome Editing released a report that reviews the available research and determines gene editing’s ethical use on human embryos. The 225-page document offers a roadmap to the testing and regulations necessary to develop the technology and ultimately concludes that the technology is not yet reliable enough to use on humans. Any country that permits its scientists to do so in the future should limit the activity to severe single-gene diseases.
The commission, composed of dozens of scientists worldwide, was formed after Chinese geneticist He Jiankui claimed in 2018 to have used CRISPR-Cas9 on a set of twins and a third baby to make them HIV-resistant. While the validity of the editing has yet to be determined, He’s claims have been met with international condemnation and a three-year prison sentence for illegally practicing ...
