Everything you need to know about CRISPR gene editing

CRISPR refers to unusual DNA sequences that help protect organisms by identifying threats – especially viruses – and attacking them…

…

When an organism encounters a new and dangerous virus, it doesn’t know how to protect itself…The CRISPR sequences steal key strands of DNA from the virus and keep them in those little Morse code messages. When a similar virus attacks again, CRISPR responds, “Oh, we recognize this: Here’s how to defeat it!” And it sends the relevant Morse code message [onto] the battlefield.

…

[W]e are currently at the start of a huge burst of CRISPR experimentation. Our medical devices and scientific knowledge have reached a point where we can…start running…effective experiments on gene splicing.

…

[I]t’s just a matter of time before we learn to use CRISPR well enough to bring applications into the medical world. When that starts to happen[,]…many of the theoretical questions we have about gene manipulation, designer babies, weaponized organisms, human augmentation, and pay-for-cure systems are going to become a much more than theoretical.

The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. Read full, original post: CRISPR 101: A crash course on the revolutionary gene editing tool that’s changing the world