Cheap, Easy Technique to Snip DNA Could Revolutionize Gene Therapy

Cheap, Easy Technique to Snip DNA Could Revolutionize Gene Therapy

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A simple, precise and inexpensive method for cutting DNA to insert genes into human cells could transform genetic medicine, making routine what now are expensive, complicated and rare procedures for replacing defective genes in order to fix genetic disease or even cure AIDS.

Jennifer Doudna, Martin Jinek, and Emmanuelle Charpentier published a paper in Science last June, describing a new method of precisely targeting and cutting DNA in bacteria. Two new papers recently published in the journal Science Express demonstrate that the technique also works in human cells. A paper by Doudna and her team reporting similarly successful results in human cells has been accepted for publication by the new open-access journal eLife.