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What would a world with commercialized CRISPR technology look like? Will they just sit in the back and collect fees like the MP3 patent owners? Or will they spi

What would a world with commercialized CRISPR technology look like? Will they just sit in the back and collect fees like the MP3 patent owners? Or will they spin-off and became the Google of DNA editing?

Maxion 8y ago
It's good to keep in mind that CRISPR is but one technique to do gene splicing, it's not the concept itself. Different ways will be discovered now that it's proven to be viable.
- Eridrus 8y ago
  I think we've known it would be useful for a long time, we have had general editing capabilities for a long time, they have just been less precise/customizable. So I don't think a new one will be easily found.
- rotexo 8y ago
  It is also worth noting that TALENs were implemented for genome editing [0] before CRISPR/Cas9 [1]. And that there are ongoing trials in human subjects that use TALENs for editing instead of Cas9 [2]. Though I agree with a sibling comment that we might not find another system with the same advantages as CRISPR/Cas9 (ie, only having to generate RNAs to engineer site specificity, rather than the more intensive task of generating a protein coding sequence like you do with TALENs). [0] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21179091 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21179091 [1] https://www.broadinstitute.org/what-broad/areas-focus/project-spotlight/crispr-timeline https://www.broadinstitute.org/what-broad/areas-focus/projec... [2] http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/09/new-gene-editing-treatment-might-help-treat-rare-disorder-hints-first-human-test?utm_campaign=news_weekly_2018-09-07&et_rid=414499691&et_cid=2356431 http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/09/new-gene-editing-trea...
hprotagonist 8y ago
we’re about to find out. Editas Pharmaceuticals is, i believe, the sole commercial licensee by the Broad for CRISPR/Cas-9, and they are scheduled to begin human trials for a rare form of blindness in October.
- perl4ever 8y ago
  I would be very interested in knowing more about how Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals compares. The buzzword seems to be "RNA interference", but I don't really know what that means in context.
djsumdog 8y ago
Australian universities hold the patent on Wi-Fi. A fraction of sales of all hardware Wi-Fi devices goes to fund higher education in Australia. I find it odd that we have state run/non-profit universities fighting over this. Something about the funding model at the academic level is truly fundamentally broken.

Maxion 8y ago

It's good to keep in mind that CRISPR is but one technique to do gene splicing, it's not the concept itself. Different ways will be discovered now that it's proven to be viable.

Eridrus 8y ago
I think we've known it would be useful for a long time, we have had general editing capabilities for a long time, they have just been less precise/customizable. So I don't think a new one will be easily found.
rotexo 8y ago
It is also worth noting that TALENs were implemented for genome editing [0] before CRISPR/Cas9 [1]. And that there are ongoing trials in human subjects that use TALENs for editing instead of Cas9 [2]. Though I agree with a sibling comment that we might not find another system with the same advantages as CRISPR/Cas9 (ie, only having to generate RNAs to engineer site specificity, rather than the more intensive task of generating a protein coding sequence like you do with TALENs). [0] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21179091 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21179091 [1] https://www.broadinstitute.org/what-broad/areas-focus/project-spotlight/crispr-timeline https://www.broadinstitute.org/what-broad/areas-focus/projec... [2] http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/09/new-gene-editing-treatment-might-help-treat-rare-disorder-hints-first-human-test?utm_campaign=news_weekly_2018-09-07&et_rid=414499691&et_cid=2356431 http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/09/new-gene-editing-trea...

hprotagonist 8y ago

we’re about to find out. Editas Pharmaceuticals is, i believe, the sole commercial licensee by the Broad for CRISPR/Cas-9, and they are scheduled to begin human trials for a rare form of blindness in October.

perl4ever 8y ago
I would be very interested in knowing more about how Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals compares. The buzzword seems to be "RNA interference", but I don't really know what that means in context.

djsumdog 8y ago

Australian universities hold the patent on Wi-Fi. A fraction of sales of all hardware Wi-Fi devices goes to fund higher education in Australia. I find it odd that we have state run/non-profit universities fighting over this. Something about the funding model at the academic level is truly fundamentally broken.