China is increasing its control over the use of genetic data by locals, including scientific research. Researchers say that this approach makes it difficult for scientists to work with international peers.The draft set of guidelines, released by the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) in March, is the latest in a series of government-regulated genetic guidelines – including biological samples, such as organs, tissues and blood, that produce DNA, and data obtained from tracking them.
The guidelines provide detailed instructions on how to interpret and apply existing laws. These include the 2019 and 2021 laws that prohibit Chinese organizations from collecting certain types of genetic information and sharing genetic resources with foreign groups. The guidelines “paint a picture of increasing control”, said Jonathan Flint, a geneticist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who in 2015 published the results of a major collaborative analysis of genetic data on Chinese people. “The control area has changed since then.”
Government officials say restrictions on the use of genetic data are designed to increase the protection of this device. They were developed as a result of companies sending unauthorized genetic data, as well as other cases, including the explosion of Chinese researcher He Jiankui’s creation of the first genetically engineered children in 2018.
Many countries control how citizen DNA data can be shared, but many rich countries help share data for research, says Arcadi Navarro, a geneticist at Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, ​​Spain. In contrast, the history of exploitation of science in low-income and low-income nations has led some countries to introduce stricter data-sharing laws similar to those of China, he says.
Recent guidelines severely limit scientists in performing genetic work
Shuhua Xu, a geneticist at Fudan University in Shanghai, China, says he supports the legal regulation of human genetic resources, but thinks some of the requirements under recent guidelines are too restrictive and would prevent scientists from doing genetic work. This includes the need to conduct ‘safety reviews’ to share data covering more than 500 groups of people, which is a small amount compared to genetic studies.
Under Chinese law, foreign organizations can collect and store genetic information from Chinese citizens only if they cooperate with a Chinese institution – and require a service permit to do so. The researchers said these requirements made it difficult for Chinese scientists to collaborate with international peers and publish work in international journals that required data to be stored in public archives.
Xu says applying for a permit at MOST is complicated and time consuming. And often it is not clear why permission is granted in some cases and not in others. Last year, he published a study with US colleagues about the ancient origins of the genetic material found in Tibetans, after being granted permission to share data. But MOST has rejected its requests to share data with international participants for studies on genetic variation and genealogy, and has heard of the rejection of its colleagues.
The process is likely to improve since Xu’s final application in early 2021. MANY websites report that, every month this year, it has approved several hundred applications for data sharing in international science collaborations – but it is unclear how many have been rejected.
Ultimately China’s limited data sharing policies will hurt local researchers
Navarro is concerned that China’s growing regime will make it difficult for Chinese scientists to put genetic data in public places that are publicly accessible for researchers outside China. But so far, he has not noticed a decline in the number of applications from Chinese institutions in the European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA) – the group’s genetic and phenotypic data group.
Ultimately China’s limited data sharing policies will seriously hurt local researchers because they will be isolated and “left without human genetics”, Flint said. “It’s a great disgrace.” In August 2021, he received funding from the US National Institutes of Health to study the genetic causes of depression in South Korean people, who did not behave in China because of strict rules there.
Xu says he was reluctant to join international genome organizations, such as the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative, over the past few years because of potential problems with data sharing. He thinks other Chinese researchers have probably made a similar decision.
But regulations may not apply to all areas of human genetics. Choongwon Jeong, a geneticist and evolutionist at Seoul National University, who specializes in ancient genetics, says that the regulations have not yet affected his relationship with Chinese researchers. But he is concerned that China’s tight control could threaten the future.
Source Journal Reference: Smriti Mallapaty, China expands control over genetic data used in scientific research, Nature News (2022), doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-01230-z
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