CRISPR-Cas9

CRISPR-Cas9 is a genome-editing system in which a guide RNA directs the Cas9 enzyme to a complementary DNA sequence, where Cas9 can cut the DNA.

Guide RNA: An RNA molecule that directs a protein to a target by pairing with a complementary nucleic-acid sequence. Its sequence guides Cas9 to the matching DNA target.
CRISPR: A family of DNA sequences in many bacteria and archaea that records fragments of genetic material from past infections. CRISPR arrays supply the sequence information that guides this editing system.
Gene knockout: The disruption or removal of a gene so that it loses its normal function. Cas9-induced mutations can disable genes and test their functions.
CRISPR-Cas9 in human embryos: The use of CRISPR-Cas9 to alter DNA in human embryos or reproductive cells. Embryo editing made the distinction between somatic and heritable changes urgent.
Francisco Mojica: A Spanish microbiologist who helped identify and investigate repetitive DNA sequences later named CRISPR. His work helped establish that CRISPR arrays record fragments of invading genetic material.
Cas9: A CRISPR-associated enzyme that binds guide RNA and cleaves target DNA. This is the DNA-cutting enzyme at the center of the system.
CRISPR-associated protein: A protein encoded near CRISPR sequences that participates in microbial defense against invading genetic material. Cas9 is one member of this broader family of defense proteins.
Base editing: A genome-editing approach that changes one DNA base into another without making a double-strand break. It can make certain precise substitutions without the standard Cas9 cutting step.
He Jiankui affair: The 2018 case in which researcher He Jiankui announced gene-edited babies in China. The case exposed major ethical and governance failures around human germline editing.
Emmanuelle Charpentier: A French microbiologist whose research helped reveal how tracrRNA and Cas9 function in bacterial defense. Her collaboration helped define the natural RNA components adapted for editing.

Linked from 21 pages