A decade ago I wrote an article in the journal Nature Biotechnology about the rise of a new gene editing technology called zinc finger nucleases (ZNF). It was one of those “drumbeat” discoveries: at the time, my sense was it would revolutionize how we deliver genes to cells and tissues, and profoundly change the way […]
Guest Post by Chris Scott–The Great CRISPR Controversy: What’s Next? Read More »
Last Thursday I participated in a meeting at Stanford Law School on human germline genetic modification hosted by Hank Greely (pictured at left), Professor of Law and Genetics at Stanford. The meeting was entitled, “Human Germline Modification: Medicine, Science, Ethics, and Law”. The panel included in addition to Hank and me, the following speakers: Marcy Darnovsky, Executive Director of
Stanford Human Germline Modification Meeting: Medicine, Science, Ethics, & Law Read More »
There is no hotter technology than CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tools. Perhaps it is not surprising then that there is a patent dispute over it, which falls into two camps: (1) Jennifer Doudna & Emmanuelle Charpentier, and (2) Feng Zhang. Who deserves the intellectual property for use of CRISPR-Cas9 in human cells? Take our poll.
Who deserves patent for CRISPR-Cas9 in human cells? Take our poll Read More »
Practical Plan for Managing Human Germline Genetic Modification CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing technology is a game changer on many levels both inside and soon outside the lab. There is a growing sense of urgency amongst biomedical scientists to take a proactive approach to current and future use of CRISPR technology in human germ cells and embryos.
CRISPR Cas9 gene editing technology is a game changer on many levels both inside and soon outside the lab. There is a growing sense of urgency amongst biomedical scientists to take a proactive approach to current and future use of CRISPR gene editing technology in human germ cells and embryos. These concerns have been heightened
Practical Plan for Managing Human Germline CRISPR Read More »
On Monday, I’ll be doing another Reddit AMA, this time on 3-person IVF also known as 3-parent IVF, mitochondrial transfer, 3-parent babies, etc. You can see the upcoming AMAs including mine listed in the right sidebar here. Mine will start at 10AM PST/1PM EST. I hope to discuss with a wide audience all the key
Monday, March 2: My Reddit AMA on 3-Person IVF – Mitochondrial Transfer Read More »
What’s Cambrian Genomics? With rapid advances in genomics, gene editing, and methods to reproduce life in the lab such as cloning, today creating genetically modified organisms (GMOs) has never been easier. While there have been of course loads of discussions of GMOs in the past, we are entering a new era of what one might
Austen Heinz of Cambrian Genomics Interview: GMO creatures & people Read More »
One of the most exciting developments in the biomedical sciences in 2014 was the announcement of the new Allen Institute for Cell Science. This new institute, which will be focused on cell biology, received $100 million in funding from high-tech pioneer and philanthropist, Paul Allen. I am very curious about how the institute will tackle cell
Horwitz Interview Zooms in on Allen Cell Institute: the GoogleMaps of Cells Read More »
A lot has happened in 2014 in the stem cell and regenerative medicine field and so much of it has been good news so let’s focus on the positive. These positive developments are often the result of many years of creative, hard work by amazing teams of researchers. Here is my top 10 list of
Positive Stem Cell Developments in 2014 Read More »
The Niche is the top, most authoritative stem cell and regenerative medicine blog on the web and the only one to our knowledge written by a professor. It is mainly written by Professor Paul Knoepfler of UC Davis School of Medicine, an internationally respected stem cell biologist and educator. Knoepfler is an advocate of rigorous
About Us, The Niche and Knoepfler Lab Read More »