A Chinese scientist who claims to have created the world's first genetically edited babies has defended his work.
Speaking at a genome summit in Hong Kong, He Jiankui said he was "proud" of altering the genes of twin girls so they could not contract HIV.
His work, which he announced earlier this week, has not been verified.
Many scientists have condemned his announcement. Such gene-editing work is banned in most countries, including China.
Professor He's university - the Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen - said it was unaware of the research project and would launch an investigation. It said He had been on unpaid leave since February.
Prof He confirmed the university was not aware, adding he had funded the experiment by himself.
On Wednesday, he spoke at the Human Genome Editing Summit at the University of Hong Kong for the first time about his work since the uproar.
He revealed that the twin girls - known as "Lulu" and "Nana" - were "born normal and healthy", adding that there were plans to monitor the twins over the next 18 years.
He explained that eight couples - comprised of HIV-positive fathers and HIV-negative mothers - had signed up voluntarily for the experiment; one couple later dropped out.
Prof He also said that the study had been submitted to a scientific journal for review, though he did not name the journal.
He also said that "another potential pregnancy" of a gene-edited embryo was in its early stages.
But he apologised that his research "was leaked unexpectedly", and added: "The clinical trial was paused due to the current situation."
No-one really knew if he was going to show. The auditorium was packed by the time He Jiankui walked on stage. This is the man who says he has given China a world first.
The handful of experts I spoke to, after they'd sat and listened to him, said they believed him. They believe this happened. But the big, big problem was that his speech and answers afterwards were scant on detail.
At times he was evasive, failing to give anything like the detail about his work - what he did, how he did it, who knew - that is required of any scientific project wishing to be regarded as credible.
He talked about the stigma attached to HIV/Aids in China and how important the family is to society, but he didn't give the names of "some experts" he claimed had reviewed his work and offered feedback.