Journalists are invited to attend the Third International Summit on Human Genome Editing which will take place March 6-8, 2023 at the Francis Crick Institute in London. The three-day summit is hosted jointly by the Royal Society, the UK Academy of Medical Sciences, the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and U.S National Academy of Medicine, and The World Academy of Sciences. 

Building on previous events held in Washington, DC (2015) and Hong Kong (2018), the London meeting will continue the global dialogue on the scientific, ethical, and governance issues surrounding somatic and germline human genome editing. Major themes for discussion include recent developments in clinical trials and genome editing tools such as CRISPR/Cas9, as well as equitable access to somatic genome editing therapies.

A multidisciplinary committee, which includes representatives from eleven nations, was appointed to develop the Summit’s agenda, chaired by Professor Robin Lovell-Badge FMedSci FRS. 

Topics for discussion will include: 

• An update on genome editing regulation in China following the revelation at the 2018 summit that a scientist had carried out germline editing in a clinical setting, resulting in the birth of children with heritable genome edits.
• Ethical, societal and cultural considerations surrounding somatic and germline human genome editing.
• Clinical and patient perspectives on genetic editing treatments, with a particular focus on sickle cell disease.
• Hopes and fears for the future development and applications of genome editing technologies, for therapeutic and non-therapeutic uses.
• The state of the science for germline genome editing in embryos and gametes.
• Regulation and policy approaches to increase capacity and accessibility to somatic treatments for genetic diseases globally.
• The role of non-scientists, including the public, in setting the research agenda. 

The Summit agenda and speaker information is available on the Royal Society website and further details will be updated closer to the event -  https://royalsociety.org/science-events-and-lectures/2023/03/2023-human-genome-editing-summit/ 

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. Presentations for all the speakers are available on the event page. 

Those unable to attend in person will be able to view the Summit and participate via livestream.    

Follow the conversation on Twitter using #HGESummit

Journalists who would like more information should contact:

Alex Matthews-King
Press Office
The Royal Society 
press@royalsociety.org 
+44 (0)207 451 2510

Molly Galvin
Office of News and Public Information
U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
news@nas.edu
+1 202-334-2138

Gaby Richter
Media and News Officer
UK Academy of Medical Sciences
gaby.richter@acmedsci.ac.uk
+44 7944 023132