4 ms·
Gene drive gives scientists power to hijack evolution
- nonbel 11y agoAfter reading the paper[1], AFAICT the phenotype results can also be explained by selecting for pre-existing mutants (the cells of the embryo containing the targeted sequence are killed off) followed by transvection[2]. They assume a simple dominant-recessive relationship between alleles of the yellow gene and pigmentation, which is not true[3]. Also, the primers they used for PCR shown in Fig 2D don't look like they span the genome-insertion junction... [1] http://www.sciencemag.org/content/348/6233/442 http://www.sciencemag.org/content/348/6233/442 [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transvection_%28genetics%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transvection_%28genetics%29 [3] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2766311/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2766311/
- nonbel 11y agoAlso, their description and figure 1 says a cas9/etc sequence should be inserted at the target site, but the sequences in Fig S1 don't seem to show this. I don't get that.
- pontifier 11y agoThis is perhaps the most disturbing use of genetic engineering I have heard about. I was just talking to someone last night about the Fermi Paradox, and the idea that the great filter was ahead of us. This is strangely appropriate.