New Genome Editing Method Helps Scientists Rewrite Whole Sections of the Code of Life
Genome Find and Replace MIT/Christine Daniloff A new "find-and-replace" genome editing method enables scientists to make large-scale changes to the genetic code of a living cell, faster than previous editing technology by a factor of two. The new method could be used to engineer cells that produce new proteins, or to design genetic "firewalls" that would prevent engineered cells from spreading their DNA. Using a new genome engineering method, researchers from Harvard University and MIT were able to systematically replace one three-letter DNA "word," or codon, with another one, throughout the entire genome. Their method reimagines genomes as editable templates, allowing entire sections to be rewritten without interrupting the overall organizational structure. Ever since genome sequences were unraveled, scientists have been experimenting with ways to edit them, to give cells new capabilities and to cure diseases. But progress has been slow, in part because the editing job must be incredibly precise -...