Genetics Assignment #5

Writing Assignment #5

In the genetics related news article entitled “First CRISPR Gene Editing Done Inside Human Body, Scientist Say”, news reporter and author Bradford Betz of Fox Newsinforms that the first human patient has been treated using the gene editing tool CRISPR in hopes to correct a genetic mutation in the patient. Bradford Betzs discusses how the patient is suffering from a genetic mutation called Leber Congenital amaurosis which keeps the body from making a protein needed by the brain to convert light into signals causing blindness. The article continues with discussion that the doctors are hopeful that it will be a success and if so, they can continue to test on another 18 patients waiting for the experimental treatment. The article also discusses that only a ten to thirty percent of the cells need to be altered to affectively give vision to the patients and ends the article with the potential risks of using CRISPR such as unintended gene editing. 

Drawing from the scientific review article “Cas9 as a Versatile Tool for Engineering Biology”, written by authors and scientists Prashant Mali, Kevin M Esvelt, and George M Church, I would say that the news article written by Bradford Betz is accurate. The article “Cas9 as a Versatile Tool for Engineering Biology” supports Bradford’s report of CRISPR’s attempted use to alter genetics in humans because the scientific article discusses what CRISPR is and its current uses. The article “Cas9 as a Versatile Tool for Engineering Biology” backs up the reporters claim that doctors have the potential ability to cure certain diseases such as some forms of blindness through the use of CRISPR gene editing technology. The reporter also discussed that the potential risk of using CRISPR is that in can cause the wrong genes to be edited. This claim is also substantiated by the review article “Cas9 as a Versatile Tool for Engineering Biology” because this review article also discusses such concerns with crisper and the ability for it to damage cells by causing unintended gene alterations. The news article is a genetics related article because it talks about CRISPR gene editing technology and editing genetics.

Reference

1.  Betz B. First CRISPR gene editing done inside human body, scientist say. 4 March 2020. Fox  

     News https://www.foxnews.com/health/first-crispr-gene-editing-human-body

2.  Mali P, Esvelt KM, Church GM. 2013. Cas9 as a versatile tool for engineering biology. Nat

     Methods 10, 957–963. https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth.2649