Study Will Test CRISPR Gene Editing Inside the Body for the First Time

Notes from NCER:

In hopes of receiving sight, adults and children with an inherited form of blindness will have their genes edited in the first ever treatment that will alter patients’ native DNA using CRISPR. The specific condition, Leber congenital amaurosis, is rare (3 out of 100,000), and occurs when a child inherits two flawed genes, one from each parent. This is a stellar example of the ethical use of gene editing in humans in …

As a genome editing summit opens in Hong Kong, questions abound over China, and why it quietly bowed out.

Due to the generosity of supporters, a representative of NCER was one of only 400 attendees at the Second International Genome Editing Summit in Hong Kong, 11/2018. There, a bombshell report broke that one of the Chinese scientists scheduled to speak at the Summit announced he used the CRISPR gene tool to edit the DNA of twins that were then born in October, hence breaking the international moratorium on clinical Genome Editing in human embryos. …

REVEALED: More than 70 PERCENT of Americans are in favor of gene editing to protect children from deadly diseases

Are you part of the 70% of Americans who are in favor of creating babies who would be protected from diseases? No one would wish illness upon humans, let alone babies, so upon first reflection, this seems to be a compassionate route to take in medicine. However, there are many dire complications to consider: What if unintended, harmful mutations are made to these babies? What if the technology is abused by using it to modify …

CRISPR cures inherited disorder in mice, paving way for genetic therapy before birth

CRISPR cures inherited disorder in mice

On a very positive ethical note, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have utilized CRISPR to cure mice of a fatal liver disease while in utero! This “proof of concept” trial will pave the way to potentially curing genetic diseases in humans while the fetus is still in the mothers womb. Using a newer form of CRISPR which doesn’t need to cut out damaged DNA to replace it, CRISPR …

WITH EMBRYO BASE EDITING, CHINA GETS ANOTHER CRISPR FIRST

from NCER: In a breakthrough first, Chinese scientists have just boldly used CRISPR to edit diseased genes in viable human embryos created through IVF. Because international ethical guidelines for research are not followed in China, they are comfortable with editing IVF embryos so as to affect future generations, referred to as germline gene editing. Any changes, whether beneficial or harmful, would be inherited by future generations, and therefore would not only violate the rights of …

How the immune system could stymie some CRISPR gene therapies

Nature   NEWS EXPLAINER 08 JANUARY 2018

Researchers hoping to use a gene-editing technique to treat diseases may have to seek alternative enzymes.

The body’s own immune system could thwart some efforts to develop gene therapies based on the trendy genome-editing tool called CRISPR-Cas9, according to a study released on 5th January.
Hopes are high that CRISPR–Cas9 could one day be used in people to correct mutations that cause disease. But the new study, which was …

U.S. doctors plan to treat cancer patients using CRISPR

MIT Technology Review by Emily Mullin January 17, 2018

Gene-edited immune cells could help wipe out deadly tumors.

The first human test in the U.S. involving the gene-editing tool CRISPR could begin at any time and will employ the DNA cutting technique in a bid to battle deadly cancers.

Doctors at the University of Pennsylvania say they will use CRISPR to modify human immune cells so that they become expert cancer killers, according to plans …

What is CRISPR gene editing, and how does it work?

by Merlin Crossley | 3 Feb 2018

What is CRISPR gene editing, and how does it work?

You’ve probably read stories about new research using the gene editing technique CRISPR, also called CRISPR/Cas9. The scientific world is captivated by this revolutionary technology, since it is easier, cheaper and more efficient than previous strategies for modifying DNA.

The term CRISPR/Cas9 stands for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats/CRISPR associated protein 9. The names reflect important features …

The Ethical Issues of CRISPR/Cas9 Technology:Aspiring Towards Perfection or Annihilation?

NCER President Carol Szczepaniak, recently had the opportunity to present at the 4th Annual Biopharmaceutical Research & Development Symposium at the University Nebraska Medical Center for the Department of Pharmceutical Sciences: College of Pharmacy.

Following is the abstract for her presentation on this widely debated topic making news across the world. If you would like to learn more about this or any other topic that NCER reports please contact us to speak for your group.…