All articles tagged with #crispr
Researchers at Southern Illinois University Carbondale used CRISPR-edited yeast to convert PET plastic and plant byproducts into edible components, which are then 3D-printed into cookies called μBites. While the approach could aid food security and long-duration space missions, it remains expensive and far from scalable as a solution to global plastic waste.
Researchers used CRISPR to disable the gene that drives allergy-causing proteins in dog saliva and fur, creating two hypoallergenic beagles, Bailey and Alfie. Early tests showed no allergy protein in their saliva or hair, and a skin-prick test on a human volunteer suggested reduced reaction. While the method is a first for dogs, experts warn it will be years before any pet becomes available, and long-term safety, cost, and ethical implications—such as potentially dampening adoption of shelter animals—must be addressed before commercialization.
A large, open organoid biobank derived from colorectal, oesophageal, ovarian, pancreatic and gastric cancers (256 organoids from 878 donors) was established with linked clinical data and extensive genomic profiling (WGS and RNA-seq). CRISPR–Cas9 screens on 162 organoids mapped gene dependencies, revealing organoids faithfully recapitulate tumor genomics and heterogeneity, identifying organoid-specific essential genes and context-driven vulnerabilities (notably along the EGFR–RAS–MAPK axis) and observing treatment-driven evolutionary changes in paired pre/post samples. The resource, with data publicly accessible via Cell Model Passports and DepMap, advances precision oncology by enabling systematic, functionally informed cancer maps.
Kindred Companion Sciences used CRISPR to knock out the Can f 1 allergen gene in beagles, producing Bailey and Alfie. Edited dogs showed no detectable Can f 1 in saliva or dander, and a skin-prick test on a volunteer who lived with Bailey produced no reaction (non-edited dog samples did). The team used a cloning-like method (somatic cell nuclear transfer) to create the embryos and plans to expand to other breeds and service dogs, though a public timeline and broader safety checks remain ongoing.
Researchers used an RNA-targeting CRISPR-Cas13 tool to lengthen the SPSB1 mRNA in prostate cancer cells, lowering SPSB1 protein levels and restoring the MHC-I immune signal. This made tumors more recognizable to T cells, enhancing immune checkpoint therapy in mice with no detectable off-target effects, and potentially extending to other immune-cold cancers.
A six-year-old girl in China died a week after receiving an experimental spinal infusion of viruses designed to reach the brain and correct a rare non-life-threatening genetic condition, in a trial funded by her parents who paid more than $800,000. Investigators say the risks were downplayed and that researchers proceeded with low odds of success, prompting calls for a full data review and raising questions about testing such therapies in non-fatal conditions and the path from preclinical work to clinical use.
An FDA panel narrowly approved allowing compounding pharmacies to produce certain unregulated peptides—a win for RFK Jr.—while Science reports a six-year-old girl's death in China after an experimental brain-directed CRISPR therapy, prompting ethics and oversight concerns; Sanofi insulin pens are in short supply, underscoring ongoing biotech and pharmaceutical tensions.
Researchers used AlphaFold to map Cas9’s interactions with on- and off-target DNA and pinpoint amino acids responsible for mispairing. By swapping 23 residues at 10 key positions, they produced Cas9 variants with substantially lower off-target editing (down from 28% to 5%) without sacrificing on-target activity, demonstrating a general approach to tailor gene-editing tools and potentially guide broader protein-DNA engineering.
Researchers used AI to design synthetic CRISPR nucleases not seen in nature, aiming to edit genes more efficiently. By reverse-engineering DNA templates to preserve the proteins’ final shape, the team generated thousands of candidate enzymes from TnpB precursors, suggesting a faster path to novel genome-editing tools with potential applications in medicine and agriculture.
Researchers are using CRISPR-based epigenome editors to add or remove chemical marks on DNA and histones, enabling precise, multi-site control of gene expression without changing the DNA sequence. This tunable approach can produce temporary or lasting effects and is being explored in basic research, crops, and therapies, with early clinical strides and notable animal data—for example, long-term suppression of PCSK9 in mice and substantial reductions in PCSK9 and LDL in monkeys—alongside companies pursuing hepatitis B therapies and CAR-T enhancements that couple epigenetic editing with gene editing.
Researchers developed the CRISPR-KOALA platform to perform high-throughput bidirectional gene screens on recurrent arm-level copy-number alterations in immunocompetent mouse models of basal-like breast cancer. Screening 3,752 genes, they identified 90 cancer driver genes across signaling pathways such as MAPK, HIPPO and WNT, showing that arm-level CNAs can selectively recruit diverse drivers and that manipulating these genes can bypass the requirement for aneuploidy in TP53-mutant BLBC. Notably, PLGRKT on chromosome 9p emerged as a potent oncogene linked to stress-resistant mitochondria and enhanced ROS detox, illustrating how specific drivers may shape tumor heterogeneity driven by aneuploidy.
New studies using base editing in early human embryos show precision editing with fewer chromosomal errors but still face mosaicism and off-target effects. While these results advance understanding of embryo development and disease-related genes, experts warn that safety, ethical, and regulatory hurdles remain, keeping the door to germline editing and “designer babies” firmly closed for now rather than opened.
Researchers developed a high-throughput CRISPR prime-editing platform to mutate all canonical histone H3 genes in mouse embryonic stem cells and map lysine requirements for cell fitness. The screen pinpointed key residues (H3K4, H3K9, H3K14, H3K18, H3K79) whose disruption reduces fitness, with H3K56 playing a conserved role in genome stability; combinatorial edits reveal functional crosstalk (for example, H3K27R + H3K36R impairs self-renewal and transcription). The approach can occasionally generate kilobase-scale deletions in histone clusters when nicking is used, but careful screening yields clean clones, establishing a functional map of H3 lysines and a versatile toolkit for studying chromatin regulation in mammals.
A new wave of biotech startups is pursuing targeted epigenetic editing—modifying DNA-associated chemical markers to turn genes on or off—aiming to treat diseases from muscular dystrophy to hepatitis B; companies like Epicrispr and nChroma are leading with dead-Cas9/Cas12F tools and refined methyltransferases, reporting preclinical success and early human dosing, while researchers caution that long‑term safety and off‑target effects remain critical as this approach moves toward the clinic.
A Nature Communications study shows the vgll3 gene influences how fast African turquoise killifish grow and reach reproductive age, with CRISPR edits accelerating growth and puberty but increasing late-life tumors and shortening lifespan, providing rare in-vertebrate evidence for antagonistic pleiotropy and suggesting a trade-off between early-life benefits and later-life disease; the findings hint that similar mechanisms could partly explain aging in humans and motivate research to separate growth benefits from cancer risks.