I asked some of those social thought leaders for their predictions of what we can expect from biotech and biopharma in the year ahead.
Genome editing could correct genetic mutations for future generations
C.S. Prakash, Ph.D., Professor, Tuskegee University
“CRISPR/Cas [a system used for genome editing that corrects errors in the genetic code] will be voted “Word of the Year 2015” and gene editing will go mainstream with the loosening up of regulations for gene silencing and genome editing. I would watch Editas Medicine as they have a patent on CRISPR/Cas technology, the hottest innovation in genomics to date.”
“More developing countries will allow genetically modified crops and food, and Europe will wake up and try to catch up with the rest of the world in the use of GMO crops.”
The expansion of GM crops has already begun in Europe, with the European Union ruling Tuesday to end the ban on growing genetically modified crops after a push by Britain and Spain. The new rules allow each country to decide for itself whether or not to grow a GM crop once it has been ruled safe by the EU’s food safety board. Like here in the U.S., there is very vocal real-world and social opposition in Britain and the rest of Europe to growing genetically modified foods, but it appears they will be moving forward in the U.K. starting in the Spring.
Read full, original article: 5 Biotech Trends to Watch in 2015, According to Five Top Biotech Experts
