Beijing has ordered an investigation into claims by a Chinese scientist to have created the world’s first genetically edited babies, a move that would be a ground-breaking medical first but which has generated a barrage of criticism.
中国政府已下令对一名中国科学家声称已制造出世界上首批基因编辑婴儿的说法进行调查，此举将是破天荒的医疗第一步，但招致了大量批评。
A video posted on YouTube by university professor He Jiankui said the twin girls, born a few weeks ago, had had their DNA altered to prevent them from contracting HIV, prompting a heated debate among the scientific community.
大学教授何建奎在 YouTube 上发布的一段视频显示，几周前出生的这对双胞胎女孩的 DNA 发生了改变，以防止他们感染艾滋病，这引起了科学界的激烈争论。
As experts cast doubt on the claimed breakthrough and others decried it as a modern form of eugenics, China’s National Health Commission ordered an “immediate investigation” into the case, the official Xinhua news agency reported early on Tuesday, citing a statement on the NHC’s website.
新华社周二早些时候报道，中国国家卫生委员会( National Health Commission )下令对此案进行“立即调查”。新华社援引国家卫生委员会网站的一份声明称，专家们对这一突破性进展表示怀疑，其他人则谴责这是一种现代形式的优生学。
The professor, who was educated at Stanford University in the US and works from a lab in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, said the twins’ DNA was modified using CRISPR, a technique which allows scientists to remove and replace a strand with pinpoint precision.
World’s first gene-edited babies created in China, claims scientist
这位教授在美国斯坦福大学( Stanford University )接受教育，在中国南方城市深圳的一家实验室工作。他表示，这对双胞胎的 DNA 使用 CRISPR 进行了修改。 CRISPR 是一种技术，可以让科学家以精确的点来移除和替换一股 DNA 。科学家称，世界上第一个由基因编辑的婴儿是在中国出生的。
The development emerged on Sunday in an article published by industry journal the MIT Technology Review, which referenced medical documents posted online by He’s research team to recruit couples for the experiments. He said the babies, known as “Lulu” and “Nana” although they are not their real names, were born through regular IVF but using an egg which was specially modified before being inserted into the womb.
上周日，《麻省理工学院技术评论》( MIT Technology Review )发表了一篇文章，引用了何鸿燊研究团队在网上发布的医学文件，招募新人参加实验。他说，这些被称为“ Lulu ”和“ Nana ”的婴儿虽然不是真正的名字，但是通过正常的试管婴儿出生的，但使用的卵子是在插入子宫之前经过特殊修饰的。
“Right after sending her husband’s sperm into her egg, an embryologist also sent in CRISPR/Cas9 protein and instructions to perform a gene surgery intended to protect the girls from future HIV infection,” he said.
“在将她丈夫的精子送到卵子中后，一位胚胎专家还发送了 CRISPR / Cas9蛋白，并指示进行基因手术，以保护女孩不受未来的艾滋病感染，”他说。
Gene editing is a potential fix for heritable diseases but it is extremely controversial because the changes would be passed down to future generations and could eventually affect the entire gene pool.
基因编辑是一种潜在的解决可遗传疾病的方法，但它是极具争议的，因为变化将传递给后代，并最终可能影响整个基因库。
The MIT Technology Review warned “the technology is ethically charged”.
《麻省理工学院技术评论》( MIT Technology Review )警告称，“该技术受到道德指控”。
在本周香港召开世界专家会议之前，他预计将在周三和周四发表讲话。
The claims come ahead of a conference of world experts in Hong Kong this week, with He expected to speak on 《Wednesday and Thursday》.
但目前还没有对他的说法进行独立核实，这一说法尚未在同行评议的期刊上发表——这是科学家批评者抓住的一个疏漏。
But there is as yet no independent verification of his claims, which have not been published in a peer-reviewed journal – an omission that the scientist’s critics have seized on.
这项研究受到中国科学家和机构的强烈批评。他所在的大学表示，自2月以来，他一直处于无薪休假状态，他的研究“严重违反了学术道德和规范”。
The research has been robustly criticised by Chinese scientists and institutions. The university where He works said he had been on unpaid leave since February and his research is a “serious violation of academic ethics and norms”.
“这项研究工作是由何建奎教授在校外进行的，”南方科技大学( Southern University of Science and Technology )周一在一份声明中表示。”
Rice University in the United States said it will investigate the involvement of physics professor Michael Deem. This sort of gene editing is banned in the US, though Deem said he worked with He on the project in China
.
美国莱斯大学表示将调查物理教授迈克尔·迪姆的参与情况。这种基因编辑在美国是被禁止的，不过迪姆说他在中国的项目上与他合作。
“Regardless of where it was conducted, this work as described in press reports violates scientific conduct guidelines and is inconsistent with ethical norms of the scientific community and Rice University,” the school said in a statement.
该学院在一份声明中表示：“无论在哪里进行，新闻报道中描述的这项工作违反了科学行为准则，也不符合科学界和莱斯大学的道德规范。”
And a joint statement from a group of 100 scientists in China criticised the findings and called for better state legislation.
来自中国100名科学家的联合声明批评了这一发现，并呼吁加强国家立法。
“It is a great blow to the global reputation and development of biomedical research in China,” said the statement posted on social media platform Weibo.
“这对中国生物医学研究的全球声誉和发展是一个巨大打击，”该声明发布在社交媒体平台微博上。
“It is extremely unfair to the vast majority of Chinese scholars who are diligent in scientific research and innovation.”
“对绝大多数致力于科学研究和创新的中国学者来说，这是非常不公平的。”
Other scientists all around the world were also critical, with some saying a YouTube video was an inadequate way of announcing scientific findings, and others warning that exposing healthy embryos and children to gene editing was irresponsible.
世界各地的其他科学家也持批评态度，一些人说， YouTube 视频不足以宣布科学发现，还有一些人警告说，让健康的胚胎和儿童接触基因编辑是不负责任的。
Professor Joyce Harper, professor in genetics and human embryology at London’s UCL, said: “Today’s report of genome editing human embryos for resistance to HIV is premature, dangerous and irresponsible.”
伦敦大学洛杉矶分校( UCL )遗传学和人类胚胎学教授乔伊斯•哈珀( Joyce Harper )表示：“今天的基因组编辑人类胚胎抵抗艾滋病的报道为时过早、危险且不负责任。”
One independent expert even questioned whether the claim could be a hoax. Deem, the Rice scientist who says he took part in the work, called that ridiculous.
一位独立专家甚至质疑这一说法是否可能是一场*局骗**。赖斯的科学家迪姆说，他参与了这项工作，他说这是荒谬的。
“Of course the work occurred,” Deem said. “I met the parents. I was there for the informed consent of the parents.”
“当然，工作发生了，”迪姆说。“我遇到了父母。我在那里得到父母的知情同意。”
内容来源：The Guardian
机器翻译：商鹊网