The possible risks in applying genome-editing technology to human beings

Over the last decade, the exited development of genome editing technology has revolutionized research on the human genome, which has enabled investigators to better understand the role of a single-gene product to a disease in an organism. In the 1970s, the development of genetic engineering (manipulation of DNA or RNA) established a novel frontier in genome editing. Based on engineered or bacterial nucleases, genome editing machinery have been developed at a rapid pace over the past 10 years and have begun to show extraordinary utility in various fields, ranging from basic research to applied biotechnology and biomedical research.

 

 Figure source: BioEdge, February 04, 2019

Redesign of Terpenoid Biosynthetic Pathway in Plant by Genome Editing toward Human Health

I would like to share with all of you my experience when I joined a student exchange program at Bioengineering, Osaka University, Japan. I was there for a month and attended some lectures which were very exciting to share with all of you.

The first topic was presented by Prof. Dr. Toshiya Muranaka

Topic 1: Redesign of Terpenoid Biosynthetic Pathway in Plant by Genome Editing toward Human Health

Figure source: National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), December 08, 2015

CRISPR/Cas Systems and Their Application for Genome Editing

            1.     Introduction

CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) is an array of short repeated sequences separated by spacers with unique sequences. CRISPR can be found on both chromosomal and plasmid DNA of bacteria. The spacers are often derived from nucleic acid of viruses and plasmids, and are used as recognition elements to find matching virus genomes and destroy them. These sequences play a key role in a bacterial immune system, and form the basis of a genome editing technology known as CRISPR/Cas9 which allows permanent modification of genes within organisms.