A powerful gene-editing tool called CRISPR-Cas9, which this month nabbed the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for two female scientists, can cause serious side effects in the cells of human embryos, prompting them to discard large chunks of their genetic material, a new study has found.

Administered to cells to repair a mutation that can cause hereditary blindness, the CRISPR-Cas9 technology appeared to wreak genetic havoc in about half the specimens that the researchers examined, according to a study published in the journal Cell on Thursday.

The consequences of these errors can be quite serious in some cases, said Dieter Egli, a geneticist at Columbia University and an author of the study. Some cells were so flummoxed by the alterations that they simply gave up on trying to fix them, jettisoning entire chromosomes, the units into which human DNA is packaged, Egli said.

The new paper’s findings further underscore that “it’s really too soon to be applying CRISPR to reproductive genetics,” said Nita Farahany, a bioethicist at Duke University who was not involved in the study.

Scientists can use CRISPR-Cas9 to home in on a specific region of the genome and snip it in two. Sensing trouble, the cell rushes to heal its genetic wound, sometimes using a similar-looking stretch of nearby, intact DNA as a template as it stitches the pieces back together. This gives researchers an opportunity to splice in a tailor-made template of their own, in the hopes that the cell will incorporate the intended change.

In 2017, a team of researchers led by Shoukhrat Mitalipov, a geneticist at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, reported that human embryos carrying a mutation could be coaxed into this process without a synthetic template. The researchers generated embryos from a union between two cells: a sperm carrying a mutation that can make it harder for the heart to pump blood, and an egg with a healthy version of the gene. Mitalipov and his team used CRISPR-Cas9 to cut the broken copy of the gene to see if the intact version would guide its repair. They reported the experiment a success and published it in the journal Nature.

The new findings could cast some doubt on the 2017 work, Egli said.

A powerful gene-editing tool called CRISPR-Cas9, which this month nabbed the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for two female scientists, can cause serious side effects in the cells of human embryos, prompting them to discard large chunks of their genetic material, a new study has found.

A powerful gene-editing tool called CRISPR-Cas9, which this month nabbed the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for two female scientists, can cause serious side effects in the cells of human embryos, prompting them to discard large chunks of their genetic material, a new study has found. Administered to cells to repair a mutation that can cause hereditary blindness, the CRISPR-Cas9 technology appeared to wreak genetic havoc in about half the specimens that the researchers examined, according to a study published in the journal Cell on Thursday. The consequences of these errors can be quite serious in some cases, said Dieter Egli, a geneticist at Columbia University and an author of the study. Some cells were so flummoxed by the alterations that they simply gave up on trying to fix them, jettisoning entire chromosomes, the units into which human DNA is packaged, Egli said. The new paper’s findings further underscore that “it’s really too soon to be applying CRISPR to reproductive genetics,” said Nita Farahany, a bioethicist at Duke University who was not involved in the study. Scientists can use CRISPR-Cas9 to home in on a specific region of the genome and snip it in two. Sensing trouble, the cell rushes to heal its genetic wound, sometimes using a similar-looking stretch of nearby, intact DNA as a template as it stitches the pieces back together. This gives researchers an opportunity to splice in a tailor-made template of their own, in the hopes that the cell will incorporate the intended change. In 2017, a team of researchers led by Shoukhrat Mitalipov, a geneticist at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, reported that human embryos carrying a mutation could be coaxed into this process without a synthetic template. The researchers generated embryos from a union between two cells: a sperm carrying a mutation that can make it harder for the heart to pump blood, and an egg with a healthy version of the gene. Mitalipov and his team used CRISPR-Cas9 to cut the broken copy of the gene to see if the intact version would guide its repair. They reported the experiment a success and published it in the journal Nature. The new findings could cast some doubt on the 2017 work, Egli said.

CRISPR gene editing can cause unwanted changes in human embryos, study finds

A Chinese court on Monday sentenced the doctor who claimed to be behind the world's first gene-edited babies to three years in prison for illegal medical practice, state media reported.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/chinese-experiment-to-immunise-twins-against-hiv-may-have-failed-created-mutations-scientists-266043">He Jiankui</a>, who shocked the scientific community last year by announcing the birth of twins whose genes had allegedly been altered to confer immunity to HIV, was also fined 3 million yuan ($430,000), Xinhua news agency said.

He was sentenced by a court in Shenzhen for "illegally carrying out the human embryo gene-editing intended for reproduction", Xinhua said.

The news agency said a third gene-edited baby was born as a result of He's experiments, which had not previously been confirmed.

The scientist announced in November last year that the world's first gene-edited babies,&nbsp;twin girls had been born that same month after he altered their DNA to prevent them from contracting HIV by deleting a certain gene under a technique known as CRISPR.

The claim shocked scientists worldwide, raising questions about bioethics and putting a spotlight on China's lax oversight of scientific research.

Amid the outcry, He was placed under police investigation, the government ordered a halt to his research work and he was fired by his Chinese university.

Gene-editing for reproductive purposes is illegal in most countries. China's health ministry issued regulations in 2003 prohibiting gene-editing of human embryos, though the procedure is allowed for "non-reproductive purposes".

A Chinese court on Monday sentenced the doctor who claimed to be behind the world's first gene-edited babies to three years in prison for illegal medical practice, state media reported.

A Chinese court on Monday sentenced the doctor who claimed to be behind the world's first gene-edited babies to three years in prison for illegal medical practice, state media reported. He Jiankui, who shocked the scientific community last year by announcing the birth of twins whose genes had allegedly been altered to confer immunity to HIV, was also fined 3 million yuan ($430,000), Xinhua news agency said. He was sentenced by a court in Shenzhen for "illegally carrying out the human embryo gene-editing intended for reproduction", Xinhua said. The news agency said a third gene-edited baby was born as a result of He's experiments, which had not previously been confirmed. The scientist announced in November last year that the world's first gene-edited babies, twin girls had been born that same month after he altered their DNA to prevent them from contracting HIV by deleting a certain gene under a technique known as CRISPR. The claim shocked scientists worldwide, raising questions about bioethics and putting a spotlight on China's lax oversight of scientific research. Amid the outcry, He was placed under police investigation, the government ordered a halt to his research work and he was fired by his Chinese university. Gene-editing for reproductive purposes is illegal in most countries. China's health ministry issued regulations in 2003 prohibiting gene-editing of human embryos, though the procedure is allowed for "non-reproductive purposes".

China jails scientist He Jiankui for three years who gene-edited babies: Report

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CRISPR gene editing can cause unwanted changes in human embryos, study finds

China jails scientist He Jiankui for three years who gene-edited babies: Report