Reuters Health News Summary
Following is a summary of current health news briefs.
China finds more cases of African swine fever on Hainan island
China has detected new cases of African swine fever in six farms across four locations in Hainan province, the agriculture ministry said on Sunday, adding to two earlier cases of the contagious disease identified in the province on Friday. The disease, which is fatal to pigs but harmless in humans, has spread to every province on the Chinese mainland since its initial detection in August 2018.
Second death in Novartis gene therapy trials under investigation
Novartis AG, which this week announced positive interim trial results for its experimental gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy, on Friday said investigation is underway into whether a second trial death could be related to the treatment. Novartis has filed for U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of the gene therapy, Zolgensma, and a decision is expected within weeks. The FDA submission was based on findings from a trial of 15 babies treated with Zolgensma.
China draws up tighter rules on human gene and embryo trials: Xinhua
China's top legislature will consider tougher rules on research involving human genes and embryos, the first such move since a Chinese scientist sparked controversy last year by announcing he had made the world's first "gene-edited" babies. He Jiankui, associate professor at Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen, attracted condemnation from the global scientific community when he said he had used a technology known as CRISPR-Cas9 to alter the embryonic genes of twin girls born in November.
