Third International Summit on Human Genome Editing

06 - 08 March 2023 08:30 - 18:00 Online
abstract image of genome data collection

The Third International Summit on Human Genome Editing took place on 6-8 March 2023 at the Francis Crick Institute, London UK.

Building on previous events held in Washington, DC (2015) and Hong Kong (2018), the London meeting continued the global dialogue on somatic and germline human genome editing. Major themes for discussion included developments in clinical trials and genome editing tools such as CRISPR/Cas9, as well as social, ethical and accessibility considerations these scientific developments entail.

The three-day Summit was organised by the Royal Society, the UK Academy of Medical Sciences, the US National Academies of Sciences and Medicine and The World Academy of Sciences. The Summit’s Organising Committee, chaired by Professor Robin Lovell-Badge FMedSci FRS, released a statement based on the Summit discussions. 

Event resources

Watch all three days of the Third International Summit on Human Genome Editing.

Read the closing statement from the Summit's Organising Committee.

The Summit booklet, which includes the agenda, is available to download.

The report of a research project aiming to survey, document, catalogue and analyse empirical information regarding regulatory capacity and governance approaches for somatic genome editing research interventions in different countries, which was commissioned ahead of the Summit, is available to download. Findings from the report were presented by Piers Millett on Wednesday 8 March at the Summit.

A recorded presentation on 'CRISPR and Human Genome Editing: Progress & Opportunities' by Jennifer Doudna, Li Ka Shing Chancellor's Chair Professor in the Department of Chemistry and the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, USA, is available to watch.

A handout for the agenda session on the morning of Wednesday 8 March 'Civil Society and Human Genome Editing: roles and challenges in public engagement' is available to download.

In preparation for the Summit, a three-part series of online events was held in 2022 'Looking Ahead to the Third Human Genome Editing Summit', which focused on scientific developments, equity and access, and governance of human genome editing. Recordings of all the presentations are available to watch.

Schedule

Chair

Dr Robin Lovell-Badge FMedSci FRS, Group Leader and Head of the Division of Stem Cell Biology and Developmental Genetics, The Francis Crick Institute

09:30-09:45 Welcome and opening remarks
Professor Dame Linda Partridge FMedSci FRS, Director, Institute of Healthy Ageing, University College London

Professor Dame Linda Partridge FMedSci FRS, Director, Institute of Healthy Ageing, University College London

Victor Dzau

Victor Dzau

United States National Academies of Sciences and Medicine

09:45-10:00 History of the Summits
Dr David Baltimore ForMemRS

Dr David Baltimore ForMemRS

The California Institute of Technology

Chair

Alta Charo

Professor Alta Charo

University of Wisconsin–Madison, US

10:00-10:25 Regulation in China following the 2018 misuse of heritable human genome editing
Joy Zhang

Joy Zhang

University of Kent

Yaojin Peng

Yaojin Peng

Chinese Academy of Sciences

Chair

Alta Charo

Professor Alta Charo

University of Wisconsin–Madison, US

10:25-10:45 Genome editing for precision medicine: status and opportunities abstract content
David Liu

David Liu

Broad Institute, Harvard University & Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Chair

Alta Charo

Professor Alta Charo

University of Wisconsin–Madison, US

11:15-11:45 International equity for access to gene therapies
Jantina De Vries

Jantina De Vries

University of Cape Town, South Africa

 Natacha Salomé Lima

Natacha Salomé Lima

National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) & Universidad de Buenos Aires

Ping Yan

Ping Yan

Dalian University of Technology

11:45-12:15 Hopes and fears for human genome editing
Kelly Ormond

Kelly Ormond

ETH-Zurich & Stanford University

Filippa Lentzos

Filippa Lentzos

King's College London

12:15-12:50 Panel discussion
David Liu

David Liu

Broad Institute, Harvard University & Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Jantina De Vries

Jantina De Vries

University of Cape Town, South Africa

 Natacha Salomé Lima

Natacha Salomé Lima

National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) & Universidad de Buenos Aires

Ping Yan

Ping Yan

Dalian University of Technology

Kelly Ormond

Kelly Ormond

ETH-Zurich & Stanford University

Filippa Lentzos

Filippa Lentzos

King's College London

Chair

Julie Makani

Julie Makani

Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Tanzania

13:50-14:15 Overview and clinical context of Sickle Cell disease
Alexis Thompson

Alexis Thompson

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia & University of Pennsylvania

Ambroise Wonkam

Ambroise Wonkam

SickleInAfrica & African Society of Human Genetics

14:15-14:25 The lived experience of genetic editing treatment for Sickle Cell disease
Victoria Gray

Victoria Gray

14:25-14:50 Patient perspectives panel discussion
Melissa Creary

Melissa Creary

University of Michigan

Victoria Gray

Victoria Gray

Arafa Salim Said

Arafa Salim Said

Sickle Cell Disease Patients Community of Tanzania

Gautam Dongre

Gautam Dongre

National Alliance of Sickle Cell Organizations (NASCO) India

14:50-15:05 Clinician's perspective on treating underserved population
Matthew Porteus

Matthew Porteus

Stanford University

15:05-15:40 Panel discussion
Alexis Thompson

Alexis Thompson

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia & University of Pennsylvania

Ambroise Wonkam

Ambroise Wonkam

SickleInAfrica & African Society of Human Genetics

Victoria Gray

Victoria Gray

Melissa Creary

Melissa Creary

University of Michigan

Arafa Salim Said

Arafa Salim Said

Sickle Cell Disease Patients Community of Tanzania

Gautam Dongre

Gautam Dongre

National Alliance of Sickle Cell Organizations (NASCO) India

Chair

Mayana Zatz

Mayana Zatz

Brazilian Association of Muscular Dystrophy, University of São Paulo

16:00-16:15 Gene therapy as a benchmark for clinical management of gene-based treatments
John Tisdale

John Tisdale

National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, USA National Institute of Health

16:15-16:30 Therapeutic innovation by gene editing: the growing number of precise engineering options and early clinical findings
Dan Bauer

Dan Bauer

Boston Children's Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute & Harvard Medical School

16:30-16:45 Gene editing 2.0: base editing and beyond for sickle cell disease
Annarita Miccio

Annarita Miccio

Imagine Institute, Paris University

16:45-17:15 Bioethicist considerations panel discussion
Kofi Anie

Kofi Anie

London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust & Imperial College London

Daima Bukini

Daima Bukini

Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Tanzania

17:15-17:30 Panel discussion
John Tisdale

John Tisdale

National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, USA National Institute of Health

Dan Bauer

Dan Bauer

Boston Children's Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute & Harvard Medical School

Annarita Miccio

Annarita Miccio

Imagine Institute, Paris University

Kofi Anie

Kofi Anie

London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust & Imperial College London

Daima Bukini

Daima Bukini

Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Tanzania

Chair

Cor Oosterwijk

Cor Oosterwijk

VSOP (Patient Organisation for Rare and Genetic Diseases), The Netherlands

08:30-08:50 The role of patient organisations
Mathieu Boudes

Mathieu Boudes

Montsouris Consilium

Bettina Ryll

Bettina Ryll

Melanoma Patient Network Europe & European Commission

08:50-09:00 The role of activists and DIY community
Alex Pearlman

Alex Pearlman

Bioethicist, Journalist & MIT Media Lab Community Biotechnology Initiative

09:00-09:10 The role of cultural beliefs
Māui Hudson

Māui Hudson

University of Waikato, Aotearoa New Zealand

09:10-09:30 Panel discussion
Mathieu Boudes

Mathieu Boudes

Montsouris Consilium

Bettina Ryll

Bettina Ryll

Melanoma Patient Network Europe & European Commission

Alex Pearlman

Alex Pearlman

Bioethicist, Journalist & MIT Media Lab Community Biotechnology Initiative

Māui Hudson

Māui Hudson

University of Waikato, Aotearoa New Zealand

Chair

Luigi Naldini

Luigi Naldini

San Raffaele University School of Medicine, Italy

09:30-09:40 Update on the clinical research involving somatic editing
Amy Wagers

Amy Wagers

Harvard University

09:40-09:50 Delivery platforms: streamlining gene targeted therapies
Joni L Rutter

Joni L Rutter

National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, USA National Institute of Health

09:50-10:00 Clinical promise of CAR-T cell therapies using next-generation CRISPR technology
Rachel Haurwitz

Rachel Haurwitz

Caribou Biosciences

10:00-10:10 Genetic engineering of allogeneic donor cells for acceptance by the host's immune system
Sonja Schrepfer

Sonja Schrepfer

University of California San Francisco & Sana Biotechnology Inc

10:10-10:30 Panel discussion
Amy Wagers

Amy Wagers

Harvard University

Joni L Rutter

Joni L Rutter

National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, USA National Institute of Health

Rachel Haurwitz

Rachel Haurwitz

Caribou Biosciences

Sonja Schrepfer

Sonja Schrepfer

University of California San Francisco & Sana Biotechnology Inc

Chair

Luigi Naldini

Luigi Naldini

San Raffaele University School of Medicine, Italy

11:00-12:00 Accessibility and price for somatic editing
Mike McCune

Mike McCune

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Steve Pearson

Steve Pearson

Institute for Clinical and Economic Review

Claire Booth

Claire Booth

UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health & AGORA Initiative

Chair

Dr George Daley, Children’s Hospital Boston and Harvard Stem Cell Institute, USA

Dr George Daley, Children’s Hospital Boston and Harvard Stem Cell Institute, USA

13:00-13:20 Prenatal somatic cell editing for severe, early-onset genetic diseases
Tippi MacKenzie

Tippi MacKenzie

University of California, San Francisco

13:20-13:40 CRISPR correction of heart and muscle disease
Eric Olson

Eric Olson

University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

13:40-14:00 Gene silencing by epigenome editing for therapeutic uses
Angelo Lombardo

Angelo Lombardo

San Raffaele-Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy & Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Italy

14:00-14:20 Creating a turnkey system for engineering CRISPR therapeutics for N=1 genetic disease
Fyodor Urnov

Fyodor Urnov

University of California, Berkeley

14:20-14:40 Increasing capacity for diagnosing, manufacturing treatments, and treating genetic diseases
Sofonias Tessema

Sofonias Tessema

Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

14:40-15:30 Panel discussion
Tippi MacKenzie

Tippi MacKenzie

University of California, San Francisco

Eric Olson

Eric Olson

University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

Angelo Lombardo

Angelo Lombardo

San Raffaele-Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy & Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Italy

Fyodor Urnov

Fyodor Urnov

University of California, Berkeley

Sofonias Tessema

Sofonias Tessema

Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Chair

Michele Ramsay

Michèle Ramsay

Wits Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Bioscience (SBIMB) & The University of the Witwatersrand

16:00-16:30 Current known work on somatic editing globally and the relevant regulatory systems in place
Piers Millett

Piers Millett

International Biosecurity and Biosafety Initiative for Science

Katherine Littler

Katherine Littler

World Health Organization

16:30-16:45 Why in vivo somatic editing must be a priority for low- and middle-income countries
Kiran Musunuru

Kiran Musunuru

University of Pennsylvania

16:45-17:00 Ethical considerations for regulation and policy approaches
Kaushik Sunder Rajan

Kaushik Sunder Rajan

University of Chicago

17:00-17:30 Panel discussion
Katherine Littler

Katherine Littler

World Health Organization

Piers Millett

Piers Millett

International Biosecurity and Biosafety Initiative for Science

Kiran Musunuru

Kiran Musunuru

University of Pennsylvania

Kaushik Sunder Rajan

Kaushik Sunder Rajan

University of Chicago

Chair

Francoise Baylis

Françoise Baylis

Dalhousie University, Canada

09:00-09:45 Roles and challenges in public engagement
Lluís Montoliu

Lluís Montoliu

ARRIGE & National Centre of Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC)

Sheila Jasanoff

Sheila Jasanoff

Global Observatory & Harvard University

Simon Niemeyer

Simon Niemeyer

Global Citizens’ Assembly on Genome Editing & University of Canberra

Sarojini Nadimpally

Sarojini Nadimpally

SAMA Resource Group for Women and Health

09:45-10:30 Are there compelling reasons for heritable human genome editing?
Ephrat Levy-Lahad

Ephrat Levy-Lahad

Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Israel

César Palacios-González

César Palacios-González

University of Oxford, UK

Tina Rulli

Tina Rulli

University of California, Davis

Chair

Haoyi Wang

Haoyi Wang

Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences

11:00-11:20 The advantages and disadvantages of editing gametes
Amander Clark

Amander Clark

University of California, Los Angeles

11:20-12:05 Update of core technologies for editing gametes
Katsuhiko Hayashi

Katsuhiko Hayashi

Kyushu University, Japan

Kyle Orwig

Kyle Orwig

University of Pittsburgh

Mitinori Saitou

Mitinori Saitou

Kyoto University

12:05-12:40 Panel discussion
Amander Clark

Amander Clark

University of California, Los Angeles

Kyle Orwig

Kyle Orwig

University of Pittsburgh

Katsuhiko Hayashi

Katsuhiko Hayashi

Kyushu University, Japan

Mitinori Saitou

Mitinori Saitou

Kyoto University

Chair

Dr Robin Lovell-Badge FMedSci FRS, Group Leader and Head of the Division of Stem Cell Biology and Developmental Genetics, The Francis Crick Institute

13:40-14:00 Chromosomal consequences of gene editing
Dieter Egli

Dieter Egli

Columbia University Irving Medical Center

14:00-14:20 Analysis of gene editing in human embryos
Shoukhrat Mitalipov

Shoukhrat Mitalipov

Oregon Health and Science University

14:20-15:00 Genetic approaches to study early lineage specification in human embryos
Kathy Niakan

Kathy Niakan

Francis Crick Institute & University of Cambridge

15:00-15:20 Monkey embryo editing: perspective on science and technology
Yuyu Niu

Yuyu Niu

State Key Laboratory of Primate Biomedical Research & Kunming University of Science and Technology

15:20-15:40 Panel discussion
Dieter Egli

Dieter Egli

Columbia University Irving Medical Center

Shoukhrat Mitalipov

Shoukhrat Mitalipov

Oregon Health and Science University

Kathy Niakan

Kathy Niakan

Francis Crick Institute & University of Cambridge

Yuyu Niu

Yuyu Niu

State Key Laboratory of Primate Biomedical Research & Kunming University of Science and Technology

Chair

Maui Hudson

Māui Hudson

University of Waikato, Aotearoa New Zealand

16:10-17:00 How to enforce research policies and ethical principles for human genome editing
Leigh Turner

Leigh Turner

University of California, Irvine

María de Jesús Medina Arellano

María de Jesús Medina Arellano

National Autonomous University of Mexico

Yaojin Peng

Yaojin Peng

Chinese Academy of Sciences

Chair

Dr Robin Lovell-Badge FMedSci FRS, Group Leader and Head of the Division of Stem Cell Biology and Developmental Genetics, The Francis Crick Institute