200406 CRISPR-CAS9 GENOME EDITIN

All-purpose enzymes boost CRISPR’s powers

This Research Highlights mentioned an engineered Cas9 enzymes that can recognize a wide variety of PAMs, not just the NGG sequence. As we all known, conventioanl CRISPR complexes include an enzyme call cas9, which recognizes and cuts a target stretch of DNA by recognizing a special short genetic sequence known as NGG as a chemicval makeup, called a PAM (protospacer-adjacent motif). 

This new finding is cunducted by Benjamin and his collegues at Harvard Medical School. The recognizing improvement of PAMs would facilitate genome editing propabilities in some inaccessible regions defined before. The updated system could make the vast majority of the human genome editable and proved work in correction of some genetic diseases caused by gene mutations, such are type2 diabetes and chronic pain. 

https://www.nature.com/subjects/cas9-endonuclease

Vocabulary:

 cuts a target stretch of DNA n. 伸展，延伸

 To edit DNA sequences,

 protospacer 原型间隔区？ protospacer-adjacent motif

 a chemical makeup 化学组成