Once-jailed Chinese scientist He Jiankui is back with a new 'monstrous' gene-editing proposal

He Jiankui, a scientist from China who was once imprisoned by the state for his experiments with the human gene, has a new proposal. He wants to do a research where he would genetically modify a human gene by bringing together mouse embryos and then human fertilised egg cells, or zygotes, in order to test whether the mutation offers protection in Alzheimer’s disease in China's ageing population.

What 

Jiankui put forward his proposal on Thursday, June 28, which invited criticism from other scientists in China. The scientists have said that Jiankui’s experiment with a human gene has the tendency to destroy human DNA across generations. 

The experiment, according to scientists, involves a kind of abnormal fertilised egg cell, generally not considered suitable to be implanted in a woman.

Who is Hi Jiankui and why was he jailed?

Jiankui is a Chinese scientist who works as an Associate Professor at the Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen, China.

• He made headlines in 2018, when he altered the genes of two twin girls, to try and give them protection from HIV.
• The two girls, Lulu and Nana, were born in 2018. Jiankui had modified their genes by targeting a gene called CCR5, which gives protection from HIV.
• However, a study showed that people who have the mutation that he was trying to recreate, were more likely to die young.
• Jiankui’s actions were considered ‘foolish’ and ‘dangerous’ by experts.
• He was found guilty by a Chinese court along with two others for this experiment, which his peers called “monstrous”.
• He was sentenced to three years of jail, and fined 1 million Yuan.

Why experts find his current proposal problematic

According to Peter Droge, an associate professor at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, “The whole thing is, to put it bluntly, insane. He basically wants to genetically modify the human species so they do not get Alzheimer's disease. I am really surprised he's coming up with this again.”

• The fear that the scientists community in China has over his experiment is that, if gone wrong, it would impact the DNA of the generations to come. 
• Modifying a human genome is highly restricted and prohibited in China and other countries like the UK and US.
• The Chinese law does not allow gene-edited human embryos, used in research to be implanted in humans, or developed for more than 14 days. All gene editing for reproduction has long been banned.

Moreover, Jiankui’s proposal comes at a time when there are already several conspiracy theories floating around that the SARS-COV-2 or the Covid virus was genetically engineered in China. The world might not be able to digest another so-called experiment from China.