Human imagination is the only limit when it comes to the potential of genetic engineering — especially after the breakthrough of CRISPR technology.
A new Danish research project can help refine the method and is a step towards a more precise and effective use of ‘genetic scissors’.
“Our study shows that, by better understanding the CRISPR/Cas9 protein and its gRNA component, we can more accurately hit and cut the DNA and thereby optimise the effectiveness of gene modification,” says Yonglun Luo, associate professor at the Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University.
Revolutionary technology
Ten years ago, researchers identified a protein in bacteria that can cut DNA, and which uses a so-called guide RNA to recognise where DNA needs to be cut. The CRISPR method has been hailed as a revolution within gene technology ever since.
CRISPR makes it possible to remove or insert the exact genes you want in any living organism — from bacteria to plants to humans.
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