Prof ZHOU Canquan and Associate Professor HUANG Jun have reported on the application of CRISPR/Cas9 system to the human HBB gene (β-globin gene) carrying gene mutations causing β thalassemia. They injected a gene construct into 86 three fertilized zygotes of which 71 survived, but no targeted genetic modifications could be observed. The findings were rejected from publication in Science and Nature on grounds of ethical concerns on genetic manipulation of human germ cells.
China Bio news release, April 24, 2015