Experts Debate Safety and Science of Huidagene’s Gene Therapy Trial After Patient Death

Three months prior to a young boy’s death during Huidagene’s gene editing trial in 2023, the company’s former CEO Alvin Luk presented preliminary data at the American Society for Gene and Cell Therapy’s Presidential Symposium—one of the most prominent venues in the field.

STAT reached out to multiple gene editing and neuromuscular disorder specialists to evaluate footage from the presentation. Their responses were notably divided, particularly regarding both the rigor of Huidagene’s research methodology and the prudence of its therapeutic strategy.

“I’m not impressed,” commented Dongsheng Duan, a researcher who has focused on gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy for over a decade at the University of Missouri.

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