Here are some weekend science reads for you. A new type of “magic” mushroom? MIT Tech Review on lack of oversight of new GMO foods coming to your plate. DrugMonkey’s piece on lab labor and specifically whether undergrads “count” drew a lot of comments there. Of course they count in my view.
Weekend science reads: lab labor, pubs, CRISPR shrooms, money & more Read More »
I talked last year about human genetic modification by CRISPR with George Church a year ago. Now we’ve followed up with a long chat on this topic going into much more detail and with questions on recent developments. Each question is listed numerically and then there is a back and forth on that question with George
George Church chat: CRISPR people, Zika, weapons Read More »
It’s been a busy few weeks for the CRISPR arena so I’ve made a CRISPR Update. I’ve listed below links to some commentaries and key developments. Fun Video interview on Read Science! with Joanne Manaster on my new book on CRISPR in humans, GMO Sapiens. CRISPR: Pursuit of profit poisons collaboration, Nature piece by Jacob Sherkow
CRISPR Update: Patents, Embryos, & IPOs, oh my Read More »
A new paper was recently published on CRISPR of human embryos for genetic modification. I’ve got to read this publication more carefully, but here’s a quick initial take on this human CRISPR 2.0 study. The paper is Kang, et al. and is entitled “Introducing precise genetic modifications into human 3PN embryos by CRISPR/Cas-mediated genome editing”.
New Paper on CRISPR of Human Embryos Highlights Serious Tech Problems Read More »
Several of us here at UC Davis and other Northern California institutions have worked together to organize a unique symposium on CRISPR and genetic modification. You are invited to attend the free meeting, which will take place on May 26th. You can register here. We will cover CRISPR ethics, policy, and law as they relate both
Invitation to attend novel CRISPR ethics & policy symposium Read More »
There’s a lot going on in the world of stem cells making for many striking headlines lately. Here are some stem cell headlines that caught my attention. Haploid Stem Cells Created. Could these cells be used to make germ cells? Charlatans and snake-oil salesmen ‘hijacking stem cell therapies’ in Australia In the CRISPR patent fight, the Broad Institute gains edge. The CRISPR-Cas9 patent
Stem cell headlines: half a genome, Australian snake oil, CRISPR patent battle Read More »
There’s a questionable notion floating around out there in the numerous discussions over heritable human genetic modification. This idea goes that if germline human gene editing goes awry for any number of reasons, scientists could simply reverse it by applying genetics again. The reversal notion does not fit with the reality of science as we
You can’t retract a designer baby: #CRISPR, social justice, & risks Read More »
Back in December, the US National Academies held a first of its kind meeting on human gene editing. Keeping the dialogue going, there is a follow up meeting planned for April 29 in Paris, France. The Paris meeting is described this way: “Upcoming Public Meeting in Paris The consensus committee will host a public meeting
Follow up Gene Editing Meeting to be Held in Paris in April on Human CRISPR Read More »
Who really invented CRISPR? If it was many people and labs, who did it first and who deserves the credit? When things like Nobel Prizes and Patents get decided on CRISPR-Cas9, who will be for lack of a better way of putting it, the winners and the losers? It’s not a trivial question and despite
A hunch on that CRISPR patent battle as it heats up Read More »
We just ran a CRISPR backronym contest here at the Niche blog. What were we looking for in terms of CRISPR backronyms? We were hoping to see backronyms that were in a sense clever explanations using the letters C, R, I, S, P, R for what CRISPR might “really” stand for if it weren’t Clustered, Regularly,
Winner of CRISPR backronym contest Read More »