WBUR's Carey Goldberg profiles Prof. Feng Zhang, a “sunny science superstar” whose discoveries include major advances in optogenetics and CRISPR. "Feng is a one-in-a-generation scientist who sees connections that the rest of us have overlooked," says Prof. Robert Desimone, director of the McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT.
Researchers at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard have programmed CRISPR to “in essence, make edits when significant cellular events occur,” writes Kristin Brown for Gizmodo. “All this adds up to the potential of CRISPR as not just a gene-editing powerhouse, but a multifunctional tool that also works as a biosensor, a medical detective, and an invaluable instrument for basic research.”
Originally created by the Zhang Lab in 2017, CRISPR tool SHERLOCK has been improved upon to be three times more sensitive for detecting viruses and infections using an inexpensive test strip. Sharon Begley writes for STAT News, “A paper strip, like in a pregnancy test, is dipped into a sample, and if a line appears, the target molecule was detected — no instruments required.”
A gene-editing tool called SHERLOCK, developed in Prof. Feng Zhang’s lab, allows for faster detection of infections and viruses, such as Zika and Dengue fever. “It does this by combining different types of CRISPR enzymes, which are unleashed together to target distinct bits of DNA and RNA, another of the major biological molecules found in all forms of life,” writes Alessandra Potenza for The Verge.
Co-founded by three alumni and a former professor, startup Ginkgo Bioworks uses genetic engineering to create an array of consumer and corporate products – all relying on socially conscious GMOs. The company, which is now partnering with Bayer, is “trying to reset the conversation around biotechnology: by foregrounding the benefits to consumers and advocating for transparency,” writes Sarah Zhang for The Atlantic.
Prof. Kevin Esvelt speaks with Scientific American reporter Elie Dolgin about his work applying genetic engineering to eradicate diseases like malaria. Esvelt explains that one day researchers could potentially, “engineer an organism that would confer disease resistance to an entire species. Ideally, we’d want to start small and local, see how well it works, and only then scale up if it’s warranted.”
Using nanotechnology and CRISPR, Prof. Daniel Anderson has turned off a cholesterol-related gene in mouse liver cells, reports Julie Steenhuysen for Reuters. This new development “could lead to new ways to correct genes that cause high cholesterol and other liver diseases,” Steenhuysen writes.
MIT scientists have developed a technique that could potentially be used one day to treat diseases of the brain, muscles, liver and kidneys by using CRISPR to edit RNA, writes Melissa Healy for The Los Angeles Times. Making edits to the chemical message of RNA, “doesn’t effect a permanent change in a cell’s architectural plan; rather, it essentially alters the implementation of that plan,” explains Healy.
Prof. Feng Zhang and his colleagues have created a CRISPR-based system that can edit RNA in human cells, reports Amy Dockser Marcus for The Wall Street Journal. “The new RNA-editing system, which the scientists have dubbed Repair, allows the editing of individual RNA letters, correcting a common mutation known to play a role in a number of diseases.”
Financial Times reporter Clive Cookson writes that Prof. Feng Zhang and his colleagues have engineered CRISPR so that it can edit single RNA letters in human cells. Cookson explains that the researchers believe that, “RNA editing offers a safer and more flexible way to make corrections than the permanent changes involved in DNA editing.”
Prof. Feng Zhang has been awarded the Lemelson-MIT Prize, reports Sharon Begley for STAT. Zhang was honored for his, “track record of innovations and of coming up with big ideas that change fields,” explains Prof. Michael Cima, faculty director of the award. “Zhang is one of those individuals who move through groups of talented people sparking new ideas.”
In an attempt to curb the increase in Lyme disease on Nantucket, Prof. Kevin Esvelt has proposed using gene-editing technology to engineer mice that can combat the spread of the disease, reports Cristina Quinn for WGBH. The idea is to, “genetically engineer these mice so that they are immune to the bacteria that causes Lyme disease.”
Prof. Feng Zhang has been honored as one of the recipients of this year’s Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research for his work contributing to the development of the gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9, according to the AP. The AP notes that CRISPR-Cas9, “has sparked a boom in research over the past five years.”
MIT researchers have genetically engineered E.coli bacteria to replicate light and create images in a range of different colors, reports Alexandra-Simon Lewis for Wired. In the future, the technique could be used to make “bacteria produce more complex molecules on-demand by using light to stop and start chemical reactions.”
Prof. Kevin Esvelt has been honored as a 2017 Boston Globe “Game Changer” for his work with genetic engineering. Ike Swetlitz notes that, “As biology advances at breakneck speed and international debate rages about the ethics and politics of releasing genetically engineered animals, Esvelt has emerged as a respected leader.”