[foo101]

> The investigation also found that He’s experiment ran counter to national regulations forbidding people with HIV from using assisted reproduction — an allegation reported for the first time in the Xinhua article.

What is the rationale behind this regulation? Is it that the baby is likely to be infected with HIV or is there some other reason?

[rqs]

Well, if you want to dig more, I've found one regulation[0](technical standard rather) mentioning something maybe related. It says, I quote:

> 2、禁忌症

> （1）有如下情况之一者，不得实施体外受精-胚胎移植及其衍技术

> ① 男女任何一方患有严重的精神疾患、泌尿生殖系统急性感染、性传播疾病；

> ② 患有《母婴保健法[1]》规定的不宜生育的、目前无法进行胚胎植入前遗传学诊断的遗传性疾病；

> ...

Translated to English and overly sum up: IVF-ET is forbidden if:

1, The donor or the receptor is currently carrying STD (Or genitourinary infection, or severe mental illness);

2, The patient not recommended to be pregnant according to the 《母婴保健法[1]》(Mother and child health-care law);

3, The patient is suffering from hereditary diseases that cannot be diagnosed with Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis.

The rationale that you are curious about is still unknown here, but I do think this document and the law mentioned can be a good start if you want to figure it out. Sadly though, this field is far out of my range of knowledge, I can't even translate most of them for you (And That page on npc.gov.cn is still loading after 5 mins of waiting).

[0] http://www.moh.gov.cn/open/uploadfile/2005112816435508.doc (人类辅助生殖技术规范)

[1] http://www.npc.gov.cn/wxzl/gongbao/2000-12/05/content_500462... (母婴保健法)

[jrumbut]

I have no idea what their actual rationale is, but many STIs including HIV can be passed from mother to newborn.

With an intensive treatment regimen the risk can be made very low: https://aidsinfo.nih.gov/understanding-hiv-aids/fact-sheets/...

[stupidprizes]

>What is the rationale behind this regulation?

Unknown to me

>Is it that the baby is likely to be infected with HIV or is there some other reason?

With modern medicine the baby can survive birth without getting infected.