NO MORE CARELESS GENE ERRORS
3 NEW METHODS
PRINTER
KNIFE
LAWN MOWER
OLD METHOD
Popular method is inaccurate
The CRISPR gene tool can alter your DNA, and has been hailed as a potential miracle cure against hereditary diseases. But the popular method is inaccurate and can cause gene errors.
Gene scissors cut DNA in two
1 The CRISPR method typically includes the Cas9 enzyme and a short RNA sequence. The RNA guides the enzyme to a specific place in a gene, and the enzyme cuts the gene in two.
Scientists lose control
2 The cell repairs the open wound itself by adding or removing DNA bases from the wound and gluing the ends together. Scientists cannot control the repair, and errors might easily occur.
Only a few years ago, the idea of genetically-modified humans was pure science fiction. Now it is reality, because of CRISPR – a simple gene technology that has caused a scientific revolution over a period of less than 10 years.
CRISPR consists of molecular scissors that scientists can program to seek out a specific gene and then cut it in two – altering our DNA permanently. The method first saw serious application only in 2012, but so powerful did the technique prove
