Nature, Shanghai Jiao Tong Probe Gene-Editing Paper After 6-Year-Old's Death and $860,000 Funding
Updated
Updated · Retraction Watch · Jul 28
Nature, Shanghai Jiao Tong Probe Gene-Editing Paper After 6-Year-Old's Death and $860,000 Funding
3 articles · Updated · Retraction Watch · Jul 28
Summary
Nature placed an editors’ note on the February paper and opened an investigation after concerns surfaced over undisclosed funding, the girl’s death and the study’s data.
The paper described only preclinical work for a treatment for Snijders Blok-Campeau syndrome, but the family of a 6-year-old patient paid $860,000 to support that work before she died seven days after receiving the therapy.
Nature said the submitted manuscript mentioned no planned human trial, while outside experts cited in the report also questioned some efficacy results presented in the study.
How did a fatal, privately funded gene-editing trial on a child remain hidden during publication in a top scientific journal?
Why were severe organ damage warnings from animal trials allegedly ignored before injecting a child with an unproven CRISPR therapy?
Fatal Gene Therapy in China: The Hidden Death of "Mei," $800,000 Parental Payment, and the Global Fallout for Scientific Ethics
Overview
In March 2025, neuroscientist Zilong Qiu and his team in China gave a high-dose experimental gene-editing therapy to a six-year-old girl known as 'Mei', despite preclinical animal trials warning of severe organ damage. The excessive viral dose caused a fatal immune reaction, leading to Mei’s death within a week. Instead of reporting the tragedy, Qiu’s team published a paper omitting Mei’s case and her family’s funding. This cover-up was exposed in July 2026, prompting a formal investigation and calls for stricter oversight, highlighting serious ethical and regulatory failures in China’s gene-editing research.