If someone wants to create gene-edited babies, who would stop them?
A Chinese researcher claims to have created the world’s first gene-edited babies, a move bioethicists say is the latest example of how gene-editing technology is advancing faster than regulation. If true, this experiment could have worldwide effects — and there’s no law that prevents it from happening in the US or anywhere else.
It’s still unclear whether researcher He Jiankui truly used a powerful gene-editing tool called CRISPR cas-9 to enhance the ability of twin girls (“Lulu” and “Nana”) to resist HIV. Nobody has independently verified any data and nothing has been published in a journal. Still, Jiankui’s alleged actions have already been widely denounced. “There was inadequate regulation and no serious oversight,” says Arthur...