Author: Reyam el Haddad, Y12
Genome editing, which is also referred to as gene editing, is a variety of technologies which have allowed scientists to alter the DNA of a living organism. This means that genetic material could be added, removed or even modified at a specific locus. One of the approaches to genome editing is called CRISPR or CRISPR-Cas9. The term ‘CRISPR-Cas9’ was first published in 2002 however, the term CRISPR was published in 1987.
CRISPR is an abbreviation which stands for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats. The CRISPR ‘palindromic repeats’ play an important role in microbial immunity. When a virus infects the microbial cell, the microbe uses a special CRISPR-associated nuclease called Cas9 in order to cut off a piece of the viral DNA. Therefore, we can say that the CRISPR-Cas system codes for adaptive immunity in prokaryotes in order to fight off things such as viruses. However, scientists are now using CRISPR-Cas9 to alter any gene in living organisms. This means that this tool could be used to: prevent diseases, fight off viruses, make transplants easier or even alter the appearance of an organism. A developmental biologist at Cornell University had even compared CRISPR to a computer mouse by saying, “You can just point it at a place in the genome and you can do anything you want at that spot.”
This tool has created a simple way to manipulate DNA which could be the change needed in genome engineering. Scientists have started researching ways to cure various diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s diseases using CRISPR. In addition, it is also being used to improve food crops which could help solve the issue of global hunger. Various industries, other than the medical industry, are now investing in this tool.
In 2018, a scientist named ‘He Jiankui’ had used CRISPR to produce genetically altered babies. His actions were deemed unethical and he had been found guilty of “illegal medical practices”. However, is this what the future will be like? Will parents plan their children’s appearances? Or could this be the way to cure COVID-19?
CRISPR has been used to alter genes in organisms to make them resistant to infection, so wouldn’t this be able to help solve the problem of COVID-19? As we all know, this pandemic has affected everyone’s lives around the world and scientists are rushing to find a cure. Vaccines and treatments are being developed by various researchers and pharmaceutical companies. However, researchers are now using CRISPR to accelerate this process. Since CRISPR can be used to target any genetic sequence, it can be used to recognise the ‘SARS-CoV-2 RNA’ in patient testing. On the other hand, researchers have seen the consequences ‘He Jiankui’ dealt with so would they take the risk to find a cure for this virus?
As we all know medicine is constantly reinventing itself: and as a result, CRISPR could be recognised as the future of medicine, a future where scientists utilise the tools to make adaptations in the human genome creating safer and possibly easier lives for the generations to come.
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