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dCas9 Shoots Down Microsatellite Repeat Expansion

November 22, 2017

Dealing with microsatellite disorders has been as difficult as shooting down actual satellites, but thanks to dCas9 its gotten a lot easier. The CRISPR/Cas9 system has proven to be much more than just a pair of scissors. For instance, CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) uses deactivated Cas9 (dCas9) to create site-specific steric hinderance to perturb gene expression. […]

Gimme Shelterin! – TRF1 Gene Therapy Promotes Healthy Aging

October 3, 2017

One of the eternal anthems by The Rolling Stones proclaims “Gimme Shelter”, but given the band members apparent immunity to aging combined with a new article from the lab of Maria A. Blasco (CNIO, Madrid, Spain), should the song now proclaim, “Gimme shelterin”? The shelterin complex regulates telomerase activity and protects the telomeric regions at […]

CRISPR-Cas9 Embryo Editing…….Of Mice and Men!

September 27, 2017

Presumably after a day spent in a local tavern instead of writing and editing verse, the famous Scottish poet Robert Burns noted that “The best laid schemes of mice and men, Often go awry”. However, a new study of genome editing in the embryos of mice and men led by Kathy K. Niakan (Francis Crick […]

dCas9-SunTag-DNMT3A Causes a Total Methylation Eclipse

September 26, 2017

While it’s never a great idea to stare directly into the sun, a DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) eclipse brought to you by the SunTag system may just steal your eyes during its totality. This designer epigenome editing system comes to you from the labs of Margaret A. Goodell and Wei Li at Baylor College of Medicine […]

Targeted and Reversible Chromatin Conformations Crafted by CLOuD9

August 27, 2017

Imagine a world where you could create chromatin loops where and when you want. You’d feel like you’re on cloud nine. Well, get your head out of the clouds, because you’ve got to thank the lab of Kevin Wang at Stanford for targeted and reversible chromatin loop reorganization using deactivated Cas9 (CLOuD9). The CLOuD9 system […]

dCas9 Epigenome Editing Toolbox Smashes Histone Methylation Dogma

August 14, 2017

Tools are great for building, but sometimes it’s more fun using them to break things down. While we’ve applied deactivated Cas9 (dCas9) tools to build our knowledge of DNA methylation, this time it takes an entire toolbox to break the connection between histone methylation and gene repression. This constructive deconstruction comes at you from the […]

HDACking Histone Acetylation With dCas9-HDAC3

June 12, 2017

Hacking the epigenome is no easy task. Each deactivated Cas9 (dCas9) system boasts its own nuances that must be teased apart before we can crack the histone code with its suite of effector domains. When it comes to histone acetylation, we’ve seen the histone acetyltransferase construct dCas9-p300, which writes H3K27ac to activate gene expression. However, […]

Optogenetics and Smartphone Technology Combine to Provide Personalized Diabetes Treatment

May 2, 2017

They help organize our schedules, they keep us in touch with good (and bad) friends, and they barely leave our sides throughout the day. But can we exploit the ubiquitous nature of smartphones to facilitate personalized treatment of human disease? This is the hope of researchers from the laboratory of Haifeng Ye (East China Normal […]

Cyborg Sperm Target Cancer

April 19, 2017

Yes, you read that correctly, researchers from the lab of Oliver G. Schmidt (IFW Dresden, Germany) have developed a half-biological, half-mechanical cancer-killing cyborg based on the humble spermatozoa. Specifically, the extremely virile research team loaded sperm with a cargo of chemotherapeutic drugs and provided each wriggler with a specially designed metallic harness to allow magnetic […]

Engineered Cells Treat Diabetic Mice

February 23, 2017

Mmm… post-lunch blood glucose spike! Sitting down at my quiet computer, I can nearly hear my pancreatic islet cells working away, pumping out insulin to keep my blood glucose levels in check. Unfortunately, millions of people are not so well-protected from the glycemic havoc so mercilessly wreaked by chocolate cake. For people with type 1 […]