Chinese scientist announces genetically-edited twins born, sparking controversy

The scientific community is buzzing amid claims by a Chinese researcher that his team has been able to genetically-enhance a pair of newborn twin girls with a genetic resistance to HIV, the virus which causes AIDS.

In this Oct. 10, 2018 photo, He Jiankui is reflected in a glass panel as he works at a computer at a laboratory in Shenzhen in southern China's Guangdong province. Chinese scientist He claims he helped make world's first genetically edited babies: twin girls whose DNA he said he altered. He revealed it Monday, Nov. 26, in Hong Kong to one of the organizers of an international conference on gene editing. [Photo: AP/Mark Schiefelbein]

Chinese scientist He Jiankui says he and his team used the CRISPR-Cas9 genetic editing program to remove the gene from the zygote which scientists believe allows the HIV virus to infect the body.

In this Oct. 9, 2018 photo, an embryo receives a small dose of Cas9 protein and PCSK9 sgRNA in a sperm injection microscope in a laboratory in Shenzhen in southern China's Guangdong province. Chinese scientist He Jiankui claims he helped make world's first genetically edited babies: twin girls whose DNA he said he altered. He revealed it Monday, Nov. 26, in Hong Kong to one of the organizers of an international conference on gene editing. [Photo: AP/Mark Schiefelbein]

He Jiankui has made the claim in Hong Kong, one day ahead of an international conference on gene editing that is scheduled to run from Tuesday to Thursday.

However, the claims have not been published in a scientific journal, as is traditional when any successful research is completed.

The reported breakthrough has sparked controversy, with concerns being raised about the security, legality, morality and ethics behind gene-editing.

The verasity of the reported breakthrough is also being questioned.

In this Oct. 9, 2018 photo, Zhou Xiaoqin, left, loads Cas9 protein and PCSK9 sgRNA molecules into a fine glass pipette as Qin Jinzhou watches at a laboratory in Shenzhen in southern China's Guangdong province. Chinese scientist He Jiankui claims he helped make world's first genetically edited babies: twin girls whose DNA he said he altered. He revealed it Monday, Nov. 26, in Hong Kong to one of the organizers of an international conference on gene editing. [Photo: AP/Mark Schiefelbein]

The Southern University of Science and Technology where He Jiankui used to work as a deputy professor in the Biology Department has declared that they have no knowledge of He's study, suggesting it is a serious violation of academic ethics and norms.

The university says He has been on unpaid leave from February, 2018 to January, 2021.

An official with local medical ethics committee with the Health and Family Planning Commission in Shenzhen has told the Beijing News that verification of He Jiankui's claims are underway.

In this Oct. 9, 2018 photo, a microplate containing embryos that have been injected with Cas9 protein and PCSK9 sgRNA is seen in a laboratory in Shenzhen in southern China's Guangdong province. Chinese scientist He Jiankui claims he helped make world's first genetically edited babies: twin girls whose DNA he said he altered. He revealed it Monday, Nov. 26, in Hong Kong to one of the organizers of an international conference on gene editing. [Photo: AP/Mark Schiefelbein]

The revelation has also set off a major debate within the academic field. Some scientists are condemning this type of "experiment on human beings," while others, including one famed geneticist, Harvard University's George Church, have stepped up to defend the gene editing for HIV, calling it "justifiable."