DroNc-Seq — a technology that merges single-nucleus RNA sequencing with microfluidics — brings new scale to gene expression studies in complex tissues. Last year Broad researchers described a single-nucleus RNA sequencing method called sNuc-Seq. This system enabled researchers to study the gene expression profiles of difficult-to-isolate cell types as well as cells from archived tissues. …
Clinical trials of CRISPR gene editing, when they start this year (2017), will edit existing cells in adults using an injection of a viral vector. It seems likely that CRISPR, or some improved version of it, will be established to be both safe and effective in the near future. Professor Stephen Hsu provides an analysis …
Recently the University of California, Berkeley welcomed about 300 people—scientists, CEOs, farmers, regulators, conservationists, and interested citizens to discuss CRISPR-CAS9 genetic modification. Agricultural Genetic modifications of the past were to commodity crops like corn and soy to improve their pest resistance or boost yields. It was a convenience item for farmers and a profit center …
CRISPR DNA editing is allowing correction of many diseases. But many other diseases are linked to RNA. Biotech startup Locana is using the power of CRISPR to develop treatments for disease caused by RNA. They use a technique for tracking RNA in live cells called RNA-targeting Cas9 (RCas9). In a new study, published August 10 …
Gene-edited piglets have been cleaned of viruses that might cause disease in humans. There were 33,600 organ transplants last year in the USA, and 116,800 patients on waiting lists and there are around one billion pigs in the world. 100 million pigs are killed each year in the USA for food. A few tens of …
AquaBounty Technologies in Maynard, Massachusetts, announced last week that it has sold about 4.5 tonnes of GM salmon fillets to unnamed customers in Canada – where the authorities last year gave approval for the produce to be sold as food. Aquabounty received regulatory approval from Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency last year, …
Synthetic Genomics Inc. (SGI) has a cartful of equipment which they call a biological teleporter. The equipment can print out the entire DNA for a virus or a bacteria in a completely automated process. SGI’s BioXP 3200, a commercial DNA printer, forms the heart of the digital-to-biological converter. When Gibson, sitting in his office, sends …
The first known attempt at creating genetically modified human embryos in the United States has been carried out by a team of researchers in Portland, Oregon. Three previous reports of editing human embryos were all published by scientists in China. The US work is believed to have broken new ground both in the number of …
A novel screening method developed by a team at Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center — using CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing technology to test the function of thousands of tumor genes in mice — has revealed new drug targets that could potentially enhance the effectiveness of PD-1 checkpoint inhibitors, a promising new class of cancer …
Silicon Valley startup Helix will sequence your genes for $80 and lure app developers to sell you access to different parts of it. For an initial $80, Helix sequences the most important part of the genome—about 20,000 genes plus some other bits—called the exome. That information is digitized and stored by Helix, which doles out …
DARPA created the Safe Genes program to gain a fundamental understanding of how gene editing technologies function; devise means to safely,A responsibly, and predictably harness them for beneficial ends; and address potential health and security concerns related to their accidental or intentional misuse. DARPA announced awards to seven teams that will pursue that mission, led …