Mar 31, 2025
The Chinese scientist who was imprisoned for secretly creating the world’s first genetically-engineered babies has claimed he will be remembered as China’s Charles Darwin for ultimately eliminating natural selection.
He Jiankui, who shocked the scientific world in 2018 when he said he had rewritten the DNA of two twins, Lulu and Nana, told The Telegraph that he had no regrets over the controversial experiment.
An investigation by Chinese authorities – which also revealed a third gene-edited baby – resulted in a three-year prison sentence.
“I hope people remember me as the ‘Chinese Darwin’ in 50 years,” said Mr He, who asked to be called a “pioneer of gene editing”.
Mr He’s defence of his work contrasts with his public image.
He was dubbed “China’s Frankenstein” when it first emerged that he had illegally carried out gene editing on babies. He was sentenced to three years in jail in 2019.
While the case shocked the world at the time, Mr He claimed he will be proved to have been on the right side of history. He predicted that countries, including the UK, would legalise gene editing in humans within the next two years – as he claims it would allow people to cure Alzheimer’s and cancer.
The cost, he says, will be a few thousand dollars, suggesting that most parents will choose to edit embryos’ DNA.
The scientist has returned to a laboratory in China after leaving prison in 2022, and has proposed resuming his research to eliminate Alzheimer’s disease.
However, Mr He admitted that he was “deeply worried” about where his work could ultimately lead.
Genetic editing – effectively cutting out parts of DNA and replacing it to alter genetic makeup – has been the subject of lab experiments for decades, as well as being a plentiful source of inspiration for science fiction. However, editing humans was seen as an ethical and scientific minefield, and was widely banned. READ MORE
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SOURCE: Yahoo News