European Law Research Center, Henan University, No.85, Minglun Road, Sunhe District, Kaifeng, 475001 China.
Glob Health Res Policy. 2020 May 14;5:24. doi: 10.1186/s41256-020-00153-4. eCollection 2020.
Human genome-editing is banned by guidelines, laws and regulations in most countries. However, the first criminal case on genome-edited babies was sentenced in China in 2019. In this commentary we discuss our legal reflections on this case. Genome-editing on healthy embryos of human may lead to irreversible mutations and serious consequences on the heredity of future generations, while its long-term safety is unpredictable. A full set of laws, regulations along with the guidelines should be formulated to penalize genome-editing behaviors and prevent similar negative events in the future. More effective and binding mechanisms should be constructed and implemented among different countries. A collaborative network should be strengthened for better global registry and surveillance of human genome-editing technologies and research.
人类基因组编辑在大多数国家受到指导方针、法律和法规的禁止。然而，2019 年中国首例基因编辑婴儿案件被宣判。在这篇评论中，我们讨论了对这一案例的法律思考。对人类健康胚胎进行基因组编辑可能导致不可逆转的突变和对后代遗传的严重后果，而其长期安全性是不可预测的。应制定一整套法律、法规和准则来惩罚基因组编辑行为，防止未来发生类似的负面事件。应在不同国家之间构建和实施更有效和具有约束力的机制。应加强协作网络，以便更好地对人类基因组编辑技术和研究进行全球登记和监测。
