What next for He Jiankui, the human gene editor locked in limbo?

He Jiankui looked a little tired and worn as he contemplated his future.

With no home and no institution to host his research, the 41-year-old biophysicist and self-proclaimed “pioneer of gene editing” was weighing up what to do next while staying at an upmarket hotel in Beijing late last month.

He, who caused a global uproar in 2018 with his announcement of the world’s first gene-edited babies, planned to move to the United States to continue his research into gene-editing embryos to combat diseases such as Alzheimer’s and cancer.

“My new lab in Austin, Texas is being prepared and I’ll be settling down there,” he said.

But with his wife barred from entering China and He banned from leaving it, those plans were in disarray.

Nevertheless, the scientist was unbowed and determined to continue the work he had started.