WHAT IS GENOME EDITING

GENOME EDITING

WHAT IS GENOME EDITING?

Definition of genome editing Genome editing also known as gene editing is a group of technologies that give scientist and researchers the ability to change an organism's DNA. All of these tools have the capacity to add, remove or change genetic material at a specific site in an organism's genome. Generally, there are few types of genome editing and the methods by which these edits can be repeated over time on targeted genes relies upon a few key concepts for placing tools list of tools For precise snipping of DNA. pair endonucleases GUIDE RNA is used to make analogous sequence-specific cleavage.

TOOLS FOR GENOME EDITING:

CRISPR-CAS9:

CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) is a naturally occurring bacterial immune system that helps bacteria defend against viruses.

Cas9 (CRISPR-associated protein 9) is an enzyme with cutting ability of molecular scissors that cut the DNA double strand.

Scientists have modified this system to edit the DNA of living organisms very specifically.

ZINC FINGER NUCLEASES (ZFNS):

CRISPR - Proteins engineered to create DNA breaks at exact locations in the genome, enabling precise editing. ZFNs consist of a fusion between synthetic DNA-binding zinc finger proteins and the cleavage domain from fokI nuclease.

TALENs - Transcription Activator-Like Effector Nucleases

Like ZFNs, TALENs are proteins that have been designed to bind specific DNA sequences and introduce breaks in the genome at these locations for precise genetic editing.

MEGANUCLEASES:

These enzymes are also called homing endonucleases, because they recognize and cut long DNA sequences (especially in genes), which could provide yet another approach to edit the genome.

IMPLEMENTATION OF GENOME EDITING

(I) AGRICULTURAL APPLICATIONS;

A. Crop Improvement:

Improved Nutritional Value: Increase vitamin and mineral content in crops (e.g., Golden Rice fortified with Vitamin A).

Resilience to DISEASE: create crops that suffer less from fungi, bacteria and viral BLIGHTS (e.g. blight-resistant potatoes);

Herbicide tolerance: Develop crops that can survive.exposure.to specific herbicides, enabling more effective weed control without harming the crop.

Drought and Stress Tolerance - These are important for improving the ability of crops to tolerate harsh environmental conditions such as flooding, drought, salinityandor extreme temperatures.

Yield and Quality Improvement - Increase the performance of crops e.g., yield, growth rates & quality (e.g., more mass produce or tastier fruit)

B. Livestock Improvement:

Designer Livestock Animals They Can Breed And Clone Right now, and in the future once we have further modified livestock animals to be more valuable as a source of food University Of Melbourne6.DisconnectSome Reasons Why We Shouldn't Play God With Our FoodA few can breed how many ?No farmer would seriously suggest that designer crops should not mix their pollen up with other varieties or non-GM strains reduced consumer choice.

Complex traits: Increase productivity, growth rate, muscling up in beef cattle etc.

Decreasing Environmental Footprint: Editing livestock traits to enhance feed efficiency and lower GHG emissions.

II . Use in Pest Control applications:

1. Gene Drives:

Population Control: Utilize gene drives to spread genetic modifications quickly through pest populations with the aim of controlling or eliminating pests (e.g., lowering mosquito vector populations that cause malaria).

Developing Resistance: Construct pest resistant plants to fight against insect and nematodes infection, thereby reducing the use of chemical pesticides.

2. Beneficial Insects:

Goal 9: Pollinator Health - Increase the resilience of pollinators, particularly bees, to environmental and emerging disease stressors.

(iii) Medical Applications

1. Gene Therapy:

Monogenic Disorders: Identifiable mutations in genes and are responsible for single-gene disorders such as cystic fibrosis, sickle cell anemia, muscular dystrophy.

Cancer Treatment- EDIT immune cells (e.g., CAR-T Cells) to less off-target, reduce side-effects and increase efficiency at killing cancer-active NCI-Frederick PMPsuite . Drop Down Style .

Infectious Diseases: Create therapies that can treat and clear viral infections such as HIV.

2. Pharmacogenomics:

This is individualized medicine, that treatments can be tailored to the DNA of an individual patient so they work better with fewer side effects.

Regenerative Medicine:Repair Tissues and Organs: Develop tissues or organs for transplantation, using genome editing to create them

(iv) Application in Environmental:

A. Bioremediation:

Eliminate pollutants >Pollutant Degradation> Engineer microbes/plants to break down environmental contaminants such as heavy metals, plastics or toxins

Nitrogen Fixation: help Plants fix more nitrogen, so that less chemical fertilizer is needed and the pollution of waterways decreases.

B.Conservation:

Safeguard Biodiversity: Apply genome editing to protect biodiversity by enhancing the ability of endangered species combating against diseases and alterations in environment.

Invasive Species Control - Tweaking organisms so that they control or eliminate invasive species, ensuring the conservation of native ecosystems.

3. Climate Change Mitigation:

Carbon Sequestration: Use Synthetic Biology to engineer plants and micro-organisms capable of capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it.

Resilient Ecosystems: Create new resistant plant and animal species that could survive in the upcoming climate change related disaster paving way towards predictable ecosystems.

CONCERNS RELATED TO GENOME EDITING: -

This area of life sciences, genome editing (e.g. CRISPR-Cas9), has great potential for medical and biotechnological advances. But there are many if's having it:

Ethical Implications: Gene editing could also lead to new ethical questions, the biggest being concerns over creating designer babies - choosing specific genetic qualities not based on medical need. It could result in social imbalancesand new types of discrimination.

Off-Target Effects: occasionally, genome editing could cause undesired changes in the DNA somewhere outside of the target region. Any mutations or negative impacts in the edited cells-if missed-can be passed on (off-target effects), causing harmful mutations that may have unintended outcomes.

Potential Effects on Future Generations: For now, we do not know what the long term effects of changes to our genes might be. Germline Editing such Indelible Ethical Impacts The editing or changes made will be impacting future generations if we are talking about modifications in germline cells.

Consent: Where genome editing is being performed on embryos or germline cell, the person whose genome is edited cannot give consent. These are major ethical violations in whether these may or should be allowed,

Access and inequity: The implications of advances in genome editing may not be accessible to all, as the new technology could widen existing healthcare disparities cause socio-economic disruptions.

Environmental Risks: Modifying the genes of plants and animals may easily cause ecological impacts. Including introducing genetically modified organisms to non-native environments, and disturbing native species (& ecosystems!

Regulatory Challenges: World over, there exist different levels of regulation and oversight when it comes to genome editing Influence, and using power) in a responsible or developed manner is one of the biggest challenges.

Dual-Use: The same tools that may provide benefits and serve the common good could also be utilized for harmful intent (i.e. bio-terrorism).

REGULATPRY SCENARIO IN INDIA AND WORLD OF GENOME EDITING

INDIA:

1. Genome editing in India is currently being regulated under the Rules for Manufacture, Use/Import/export & Storage of Hazardous Microorganisms/ Genetically Engineered Organisms or Cells (Rules 1989).
2. In India, the DBT and ICMR act as two pillars of regulation for research in genome editing.
3. All the research or studies related to genome editing in India needs approval from Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBSC) and Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM).

GLOBAL REGULATIONS:

1. There are various guidelines and regulations on genome editing varies in different countries globally - the USA [20], UK[21], China [22] and European Union (Directive 2001/18) has specific guideline/regulation for it.
2. Applications in medicine, agriculture and research are regulated by the food and drug administration (FDA) of USA.
3. The European Medicines Agency of the European Union has recommendations for gene editing in medical science
4. China has the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) regulations on trait genome edited crops.
5. There are guidelines for genome editing in assisted reproduction by the UK's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA).