CRISPR / Cas9 Technology
CRISPR / Cas9 is a type of gene-editing technology which offers a simple, comprehensive and increasingly accessible method for editing DNA. CRISPR technology allows scientists to edit the genetic sequence of an organism by inserting a single base pair into the genome where they want to change, essentially replacing that area with a new configuration. Traditionally, scientists have used viruses to carry their genetic instructions and deliver them to specific cells within the body; however, CRISPR is more precise than this model because it has been engineered to target only the gene you are interested in modifying.
Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats
These repetitions are present in the DNA of bacteria. They are really duplicates of tiny viral fragments. Bacteria utilise them to detect harmful viruses in the same way that mug photographs are used. Cas9 is a DNA-severing enzyme. Bacteria combat viruses by sending the Cas9 enzyme to sever viruses with mug shots in the collection. Scientists have just discovered how microorganisms accomplish this. This technique may modify practically any gene in any plant or animal within a short period of time. Researchers are now using a similar strategy in the lab to convert the microbe's virus-fighting capability into a formidable new lab tool.
The Process
Researchers begins with RNA. That is a molecule that can read the genetic information in DNA. The RNA locates the location in a cell's nucleus where editing activity should occur. (The nucleus is a compartment in a cell that contains the majority of the genetic material.) This guide RNA directs Cas9 to the exact location on DNA where a cut is required. Cas9 then latches to the double-stranded DNA and unwinds it. This enables the guide RNA to bind to a specific area of the DNA. Cas9 slices the DNA at this point. This induces a break in both strands of the DNA strand. The cell, detecting a difficulty, fixes the break.
The Application
A break in a cell's DNA is normally repaired by glueing the loose ends back together. That is a shoddy procedure. It frequently results in an error that inhibits a gene. That may not sound beneficial, but it is at times. Experts use CRISPR/Cas9 to cut DNA to generate gene alterations, or mutations. They can occasionally find out what a protein's normal job is by comparing cells with and without the mutation. Alternatively, a novel mutation may aid in their understanding of genetic illnesses. CRISPR/Cas9 can also be beneficial in human cells by silencing certain genes, such as those involved in hereditary disorders.
The Conclusion
The Preciseness of this technology makes it more powerful in the field of research. It carries the capacity to replace a single neucleotide base from the double strand. Thus making it the most accepted and needed tool in genetics.
The Ethical concerns
Can this technology cause mutations, unintended changes, cancer, other diseases, birth defects?
