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The CRISPR controversy: faster, cheaper gene editing vs. bioethicists

Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPRs) technology employs a guide RNA to direct the Cas9 enzyme (light blue) to a target DNA sequence. Once there, Cas9 will bind when it finds a protospacer-adjacent motif sequence (red) in the DNA and cut both strands, priming the gene sequence for editing. (credit: Adapted from OriGene Technologies)

Within the past few years, a new technology has made altering genes in plants and animals much easier than before. The tool, called CRISPR/Cas9 or just CRISPR, has spurred a flurry of research that could one day lead to hardier crops and livestock, as well as innovative biomedicines.

But along with potential benefits, it raises red flags, according to an open-access article in Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society.

Ann M. Thayer, a senior correspondent at C&EN, notes that scientists have long had the ability to remove, repair or insert genetic material in cells. But the process was time consuming and expensive. CRISPR (“clustered regularly interspaced short palinodromic repeats”) streamlines gene editing dramatically. Its simplicity has enabled far more scientists to get involved in such work. In a short time, they have now used CRISPR to edit genes in insects, plants, fish, rodents and monkeys.

The potential agricultural and medical applications that could result from the tool in the future have attracted the interest of venture capitalists and pharmaceutical companies, the article says. While it seems CRISPR work is moving full-steam ahead, a couple of recent developments could check its growth.

In April, Chinese scientists reported that they had attempted to alter a gene in nonviable human embryos. The announcement sparked bioethicists to call for a more cautious approach to gene editing. The other wrench in the system is an ongoing dispute over who should be awarded the patent for inventing CRISPR. Until these issues are resolved, some investors and researchers will opt to wait on the sidelines.


McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT | Genome Editing with CRISPR-Cas9

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Magnetic solitons may lead to more energy-efficient computing

Schematic of the x-ray microscopy measurements. The x-ray spot size at the sample was 35 nm and the transmitted x-rays (from the zone plate) were detected by an avalanche photo diode. Images were recorded by raster scanning of the sample. (credit: R. Kukreja et al./Physics Review Letters)

A team of physicists has taken pictures of a theorized but previously undetected “magnetic soliton” that they believe could be an energy-efficient means to transfer data in future electronic devices.

The research, which appears in the journal Physical Review Letters, was conducted by scientists at New York University, Stanford University, and the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory.

Harnessing solitons to transmit data

Illustration of a water soliton wave. The blue line represents carrier (energy source) waves, while the red line is the envelope. (credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Solitons (solitary waves) were theorized in the 1970s to occur in magnets. They form because of a delicate balance of magnetic forces — much like water waves can form a tsunami. These magnetic waves could potentially be harnessed to transmit data in magnetic circuits in a way that is far more energy-efficient than current methods that involve moving electrical charges, the researchers suggest.

That’s because solitons are stable objects that overcome resistance, or friction, as they move. By contrast, electrons, used to move data today, generate heat as they travel, due to resistance and thus require additional energy, such as from a battery, as they transport data to its destination.

The scientists made the discovery using x-ray microscopy at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource. They observed an abrupt onset of magnetic waves with a well-defined spatial profile that matched the predicted form of a solitary magnetic wave, or magnetic soliton.

“This is an exciting discovery because it shows that small magnetic waves — also known as spin-waves — can add up to a large … wave that can maintain its shape as it moves,” explains Andrew Kent, a professor of physics at NYU and the study’s senior author.

“Magnetism has been used for navigation for thousands of years and more recently to build generators, motors, and data storage devices,” adds co-author Hendrik Ohldag, a scientist at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (SSRL), where the soliton was discovered. “However, magnetic elements were mostly viewed as static and uniform. To push the limits of energy efficiency in the future we need to understand better how magnetic devices behave on fast timescales at the nanoscale, which is why we are using this dedicated ultrafast x-ray microscope.”

Abstract of X-ray Detection of Transient Magnetic Moments Induced by a Spin Current in Cu

We have used a MHz lock-in x-ray spectromicroscopy technique to directly detect changes in magnetic moment of Cu due to spin injection from an adjacent Co layer. The elemental and chemical specificity of x rays allows us to distinguish two spin current induced effects. We detect the creation of transient magnetic moments of 3 × 10−5μB on Cu atoms within the bulk of the 28 nm thick Cu film due to spin accumulation. The moment value is compared to predictions by Mott’s two current model. We also observe that the hybridization induced existing magnetic moments at the Cu interface atoms are transiently increased by about 10% or 4 × 10−3μB per atom. This reveals the dominance of spin-torque alignment over Joule heat induced disorder of the interfacial Cu moments during current flow.

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Why human genome editing research is essential

(credit: NIH)

Research involving editing the human genome, including research with human embryos, is essential to gain basic understanding of biology and germ cells and should be permitted, according to one of the first global meetings to debate the controversial new techniques.

The bold statement was published today (Thursday, Sept. 10) by the Hinxton Group, a global network of stem cell researchers, bioethicists, and experts on policy and scientific publishing, who met in Manchester, England, September 3–4.

Not ready for clinical applications

“We believe that while this technology has tremendous value to basic research and enormous potential for somatic clinical uses, it is not sufficiently developed to consider human genome editing for clinical reproductive purposes at this time,” the consensus statement reads.

Discussions at the meeting included the most contentious aspects of these new technologies — the implications for any children born with engineered genetic modifications, and also successive generations who would inherit those genetic changes, according to Debra Mathews, a member of the Hinxton Group steering committee.

“While there is controversy and deep moral disagreement about human germline genetic modification, what is needed is not to stop all discussion, debate and research, but rather to engage with the public, policymakers and the broader scientific community, and to weigh together the potential benefits and harms of human genome editing for research and human health,” says Mathews, the Assistant Director for Science Programs at the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics.

The consensus statement addresses these ethical concerns, with the group agreeing that, “given all safety, efficacy and governance needs are met, there may be morally acceptable uses of this technology in human reproduction, though further substantial discussion and debate will be required.”

Basic research with human embryos

In the meantime, knowledge gained through basic science research is essential to human understanding of both ourselves and other life, the group says. “Much of our knowledge of early development comes from studies of mouse embryos, yet it is becoming clear that gene activity and even some cell types are very different in human embryos.”

Genome editing techniques could be used to ask how cell types are specified in the early embryo and the nature and importance of the genes involved,” says Robin Lovell-Badge, a member of the Hinxton Group steering committee and Group Leader, and head of the Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Developmental Genetics, The Francis Crick Institute.

The statement emphasizes the importance of “meaningful and substantial public engagement” to decision-making about genome editing, stating that policy restraints on science should have justification that “that reaches beyond disagreements based solely on divergent moral convictions.”

“The relevant regulatory distinction should be not between using genome editing in somatic cells and using it in embryos, but between research and reproduction: whether those embryos are ever destined to be implanted, says Sarah Chan, another steering committee member and a Chancellor’s Fellow at the Usher Institute for Population Health Sciences and Informatics, University of Edinburgh.

“Restricting research because of concerns that reproductive application is premature and dangerous will ensure that it remains forever premature and dangerous, for want of better knowledge,” Chan says.

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New video series ‘Beyond the Desktop’ explores potential of 3-D printing

A five-episode video series called Beyond the Desktop that explores how additive manufacturing could affect the fields of medicine, aerospace, space technology and more has been released by the Wilson Center’s Science and Technology Innovation Program (STIP). The first episode was posted yesterday (Sept. 9); a new episode will be released each Wednesday through early October.

“Desktop 3-D printing has received significant media coverage, but this hides the larger story happening in industry, where the technology will change everything from prototyping to the production of complex parts and the design of supply chains,” says David Rejeski, director of the Science and Technology Innovation Program at the Wilson Center and executive producer of the series.

The series looks at how doctors are already incorporating 3-D printing into their surgical work, how aerospace manufacturers are finding cost savings in using additive manufacturing to build critical parts, and how startups are using 3-D printing to enable longer supply chains into space.

Beyond the Desktop builds upon other STIP work focused on additive manufacturing. Last month, the program released the results of a workshop that examined the environmental and human health implication of additive manufacturing. Sponsored by the National Science Foundation, the workshop was conducted in conjunction with the Center for Manufacturing Innovation at the University of Florida.

Beyond the Desktop was filmed on location in California, Illinois, and Washington, DC in 2013–2015.


Wilson Center | Beyond the Desktop: The Potential of Additive Manufacturing (Episode 1)