May 8, 2023 marks the 30th World Thalassemia Day. In order to further improve the prevention and treatment of Mediterranean anemia (hereinafter referred to as "thalassemia"). On May 7, 2023, the Beijing Angel Mom Charity Foundation, in collaboration with 923 Hospital, jointly organized the 2023 Mediterranean Anemia Gene Therapy Summit Forum that was co-sponsored by the Guangxi Eugenics Association and the Shenzhen Mammoth Foundation. At the forum, Shenzhen Hemogen Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Hemogen") was honored with the title of "Compassionate Technology Enterprise for Thalassemia Treatment," and Dr. Chao Liu, CEO of Hemogen, was awarded the title of "Outstanding Scientist in Thalassemia Prevention and Treatment in China". This award marks the industry's high recognition of Hemogen's outstanding contributions and excellent performance in the field of thalassemia gene therapy.

Today, May 8, marks the 30th "World Thalassemia Day." Thalassemia, a recessive genetic and chronic hemolytic disease, is first discovered in the Mediterranean region, hence the name Mediterranean anemia. According to statistics, there are over 350 million carriers of thalassemia genes worldwide, and the number of newborns with thalassemia per year is approximately 250,000 to 300,000. Thalassemia is mainly distributed in coastal areas of the Mediterranean, the Middle East, southern Asia, northern Africa. In China, mainly in 10 provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the central government) south of the Yangtze River, including Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Fujian, Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, Hunan, Jiangxi, and Chongqing. There are two main types of thalassemia: α-thalassemia and β-thalassemia. α-thalassemia is caused by deletion or mutation of the α-globin gene, while β-thalassemia is caused by deletion or mutation of the β-globin gene. Thalassemia patients often present symptoms such as anemia, fatigue, and jaundice. In severe cases, complications such as heart disease and liver disease may occur. Currently, the main treatment for thalassemia is through transfusions and iron chelation therapy, but these methods cannot cure the disease completely. Although allogeneic bone marrow transplantation can free patients from transfusions, it also faces challenges such as the scarcity of suitable donors and the risk of immune rejection; therefore, clinical translation of gene therapy based on autologous hematopoietic stem cells will bring hope of cure to a large number of patients with genetic diseases.

Hemogen has two major technological platforms: vector gene delivery and CRISPR/Cas gene editing. The company's first-line product "Encoded T87Qβ-Globin Hematopoietic Stem Cell Injection (HGI-001 Injection)" has successfully conducted investigator-initiated clinical studies and helped five transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia patients free themselves from transfusions. The second-line product, "Encoded α-Globin Autologous Hematopoietic Stem Cell Injection (HGI-002 Injection)," has also successfully conducted investigator-initiated clinical studies and helped the first patient successfully free themselves from transfusion dependence. This is the first case globally in which a transfusion-dependent α-thalassemia patient has been successfully freed from transfusion dependence through gene therapy.

Dr. Chao Liu, head of Hemogen, stated that the receipt of these two awards is a recognition of Hemogen team's years of unremitting efforts and innovation spirit, as well as an encouragement and inspiration for their future work. Hemogen will continue to devote itself to scientific research and technological innovation in the field of thalassemia treatment, continuously improving the quality of life and happiness of thalassemia patients. Of course, Hemogen is not fighting alone. BGI has been deeply engaged in thalassemia screening and prevention for many years. In 2016, it announced permanent free high-resolution HLA typing for critically ill thalassemia children in China. In 2022, BGI officially established the "No Thalassemia in the World" public welfare project to provide more professional, systematic, and effective hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and gene therapy assistance for thalassemia patients, jointly achieving the great goal of "No Thalassemia in the World."