6-Year-Old Girl Dies After $800,000 Gene-Editing Treatment In China, Probe On
Shanghai Jiao Tong University is investigating the death of a six-year-old girl who died following an experimental gene-editing treatment. The trial, which cost the parents $800,000, was not disclosed in subsequent research papers published by the lead scientist.
Why it matters
This case raises serious ethical concerns regarding medical research transparency, informed consent, and the regulation of experimental gene therapies.
A Chinese university is looking into reports that a gene-editing trial caused the death of a six-year-old girl, which was not disclosed in the published research, the school said on Sunday.The girl, given the pseudonym "Mei", died last year around a week after receiving a spinal infusion of trillions of viruses designed to penetrate the brain for treatment, according to a joint investigation by Science and Retraction Watch.The experimental gene therapy was meant to fix a rare genetic condition that caused a delay in cognitive development, the report said on Thursday.Neuroscientist Zilong Qiu, the lead researcher, went on to publish a paper on related animal studies in the prestigious journal Nature that made no mention of Mei.In response, the Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine said in a statement that it "attaches great importance to the matter and has set up a special working group to conduct a comprehensive…
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in