The State Council will speed up the legislative work on "gene editing"

, Premier Li Keqiang signed an order from the State Council announcing the Regulations of the People's Republic of China on the Administration of Human Genetic Resources (hereinafter referred to as the Regulations), effective July 1, 2019, Xinhua reported.The CPC Central Committee and the State Council attach great importance to the management of human genetic resources. On the basis of the experience of the Implementation of the Interim Measures for the Management of Human Genetic Resources formulated in 1998, the Regulations provide for the management of human genetic resources in China in terms of strengthening protection efforts, promoting rational utilization, strengthening norms and optimizing the supervision of services.
First, increase protection. The Regulations provide for the state to conduct surveys of human genetic resources and to implement a registration system for the declaration and registration of human genetic resources in important genetic lineits and specific areas. Foreign organizations and institutions established or actually controlled by foreign organizations or individuals that need to use China's human genetic resources to carry out scientific research activities shall be carried out in cooperation with Chinese units. If information on human genetic resources is made available to the outside world or is open to use, it shall be filed and backed up, and if it may affect the public health, national security and public interests of our country, it shall pass a security review.
The second is to promote rational use. The Regulations stipulate that the State shall support the rational use of human genetic resources for scientific research, the development of the biopharmaceutical industry, the improvement of medical and therapeutic technologies, the improvement of China's biosecurity capacity and the improvement of the level of people's health security;
Third, strengthen the norms. The Regulations stipulate that the collection, preservation, utilization and external provision of human genetic resources in China shall not endanger the public health, national security and public interests of our country, and shall conform to ethical principles, protect the legitimate rights and interests of resource providers and abide by the corresponding technical norms. To carry out biotechnology research and development activities or clinical trials, the relevant laws, administrative regulations and relevant state regulations on biotechnology research and clinical application management shall be observed. The Regulations clarify the conditions for examination and approval and improve the examination and approval procedures for the collection and preservation of human genetic resources in China and the use of human genetic resources in China for international cooperation in scientific research.
Fourth, optimize service supervision. The Regulations require that the administrative departments of science and technology shall optimize and improve their services in such areas as making it easier for applicants to use the Internet for examination and approval and filing matters, and strengthen supervision and inspection of all aspects of the collection, preservation, utilization and external provision of human genetic resources. At the same time, improve the relevant legal responsibilities, increased the intensity of punishment. (Xinhua)