28598 County Road 4, Pequot Lakes, MN 56472 View this property at 28598 County Road 4, Pequot Lakes, MN 56472
CRISPR/Cas9, a gene-editing technique that can target and modify DNA with groundbreaking accuracy, is both the newest darling and the newest villain of genetics research.Invented in 2012 by scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, CRISPR/Cas9 has received a lot of attention this year.f scientists are able to nail down the use of CRISPR/Cas9 in human germ cells, thereâs no question that it could confer major benefits. Namely, the technology could eradicate hereditary diseases such as cystic fibrosis, sickle-cell anemia, and Huntingtonâs disease from a family line altogether.
Think of it like a search-and-rescue mission for DNA. Crispr uses guide RNA as a homing device; it's designed in a lab to match up with a section of DNA designated for editing. In therapeutic uses, this could be a genetic abnormality that causes disease. That guide molecule is joined with an enzyme known as Cas9 (CRISPR's fuller name is actually CRISPR-Cas9). The enzyme acts like scissors, making a cut in the DNA where the RNA guided. By adding DNA with the correct sequence, scientists hope to be able to correct the underlying genetic defects that cause disease.