For editing the genome
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded for the CRISPR/Cas genome editing method
Mikhail Petrov, Polina Loseva, N+1
Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna became laureates of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2020.
The prize was awarded to them for the development of the CRISPR/Cas genome editing method. The ceremony of announcing the winners can be followed live on the website The Nobel Committee. You can read more about the scientists' research and their achievements in a press release on the same website.
Until recently, there were two ways to make changes to the genome of a living organism: to assemble it from scratch (as was done with some bacteria) or to embed a viral vector inside. The second method helped to obtain the first genetically modified organisms, but remained rather complicated and inaccurate: to make sure that the vector was in the right part of the genome, it was necessary to put a lot of samples at once and select the only successful one. In addition, with the help of a viral vector, it is difficult to make subtle changes to the genome – for example, to replace one "letter" in the DNA text or to delete a sequence of several nucleotides.
These problems were solved by genetic editing systems – the so-called "molecular scissors". These are systems of enzymes that target a specific DNA sequence and cut it at an agreed place. They made it possible to selectively remove a site from the genome or replace it with another one – if you previously provided the cell with a template for replacement.
CRISPR/Cas9 was not the first genome editing system, but it overtook all others in accuracy and cheapness. The fact is that in other editing systems – TALEN or "zinc fingers" – accuracy is achieved by selecting an enzyme. In other words, before editing a gene, scientists need to obtain a nuclease – an enzyme that cuts DNA – that will bind to the desired sequence. It's quite long and expensive.
In the case of CRISPR/Cas9, the nuclease always works the same way, and specificity is achieved due to the guide, or guide RNA – which leads the nuclease to the desired site. This is due to the fact that CRISPR/Cas9 is a system of bacterial origin, it is a mechanism by which bacteria get rid of viral inserts in their genome (in 2016 we wrote about it in the material "Remember these letters" – now is the time to remember them).
CRISPR/Cas9 appeared in the headlines of scientific articles for a long time, but captured the attention of the scientific community less than 10 years ago – when Emmanuel Charpentier and Jennifer Dudna found out exactly how this system works in bacteria and learned how to use it to make the necessary changes to the genome. Since then, this system has become the most popular method of genetic editing. It has generated many modifications: now we can not only cut sequences from DNA, but also edit RNA and replace individual nucleotides without damaging the genome.
CRISPR/Cas9 began to be used to create a new generation of GMOs and treat rare diseases, this system participated in the loudest scientific scandal of recent years – the appearance of genetically modified children in China. The debate about in which case the use of this system on humans is justified and ethical continues even now. But it is all the more significant that the Nobel Prize for it was awarded not in the field of physiology or medicine, but in the field of chemistry. Today, the Nobel Committee has evaluated the genetic editing system as a method. Perhaps this is not the last Nobel Prize related to CRISPR/Cas9 – but, apparently, the time has not yet come to assess its significance for medicine.
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