Short Life Expectancy for CRISPR Twins

Last year, the world was shocked with the story of a pair of twins who were genetically edited using CRISPR technology. The researcher, Jiankui He, received several criticisms by the international scientific community. The modification consisted on the introduction of a deletion mutation, called delta-32, on the protein CCR5. This mutation´s intention was to give the twins immunity to HIV.


Nevertheless, research made by Rasmus Nielsen, PhD and his team at UC Berkeley showed that this mutation increase the risk of a premature death between the ages of 41 and 78. This is because CCR5 is a protein related with the immune system signaling and function. This mutation, which renders the protein inactive, could result in a hindered immune system and leave the body vulnerable.


Careful thought should be given if humanity is to venture into the field of human gene editing. Genetic backlash and unwanted effects, like the ones mentioned before, will surely arise as this technology starts to be applied. Several other efforts regarding gene editing which are not applied to humans may help shed a light on the effects and consequences of germline gene editing. Such is the case of the edition of chicken gene´s to give them flu resistance. This may help in avoiding a future pandemic, but, as we have learned, it may have unwanted side effects.

Links:https://www.genengnews.com/crispr/crispr-babies-lives-could-be-cut-short/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucelee/2019/06/05/can-gene-editing-stop-the-bird-flu-here-is-the-latest-with-chickens/#1e6f69a52193