Melinda Moyer of Scientific American reports that researchers have found that people who used acid blockers to treat heart burn are at increased risk for developing intestinal infections. Moyer explains that the blockers “may limit the gut's diversity by reducing its acidity and thus creating an environment that is more or less amenable to certain microbes.”
Prof. Feng Zhang has been named a recipient of the 2016 Canada Gairdner International Award for his work on the development of the CRISPR gene-editing system, reports CBC News. CRISPR "may prove to be a ‘powerful therapeutic’ for treating human diseases by editing out harmful genetic mutations.”
Globe and Mail reporter Ivan Semeniuk spotlights Prof. Feng Zhang and his role in developing the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing system, for which he was honored as a recipient of the 2016 Canada Gairdner International award. “CRISPR genome editing technology is a really powerful platform,” says Zhang. “It think it will advance both our ability to understand disease and to develop treatments.”
Broad Institute researchers have been developing a treatment for schizophrenia, writes Haroon Siddique for The Guardian. “Understanding schizophrenia will similarly accelerate progress against this devastating disease that strikes young people,” says Broad Dir. Eric Lander.
Scientists at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard have “identified key genetic traits that for the first time point to a biological mechanism behind schizophrenia,” writes Shirley Wang of The Wall Street Journal.
In an article for The Boston Globe’s special section about the 2015 Bostonians of the Year, Sharon Begley writes about the work of Prof. Feng Zhang. Begley writes that Zhang, "is one of the world’s most creative and influential biological engineers, able to see possibilities where others don’t.”
BBC News reporter Michelle Roberts writes that MIT researchers have fine-tuned the CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing system to make it safer and more accurate. This development is "vital if it [CRISPR] is to be used in humans to cure inherited diseases or inborn errors,” explains Roberts.
In an article for The New Yorker, Michael Specter writes about Prof. Feng Zhang and his work with CRISPR. Specter writes that Zhang was first inspired to pursue a career in science when he attended Saturday morning molecular biology classes as a middle school student. Zhang recalls that the class, “really opened my imagination.”
STAT reporter Sharon Begley profiles Prof. Feng Zhang. Begley writes that Zhang’s “discoveries could finally bring cures for some of the greatest causes of human suffering, from autism and schizophrenia to cancer and blindness.”
Juan Enriquez writes for Wired that the intersection of Vassar and Main Streets is one of the most innovative areas in the world, highlighting how MIT plays a leading role in sparking innovation. Enriquez writes that this area “may generate one per cent to two per cent of the future global economy.”
The Broad Institute Foundry, a synthetic biology lab, has been awarded a new grant from DARPA to pursue research on engineering cells in an effort to “find better treatments for disease, make new biofuels, or create fabrics woven with life,” reports Alexandra Ossola for Popular Science.
Alexandra Ossola writes for Popular Science that MIT researchers have found a molecule that could make the CRISPR gene-editing technique more precise. The new molecule “makes the editing process easier to control and could create new possibilities for how scientists can edit DNA in the future.”
Boston Globe reporter Sharon Begley writes that Prof. Feng Zhang has uncovered enzymes that could be used to edit genes more precisely than the proteins currently used by CRISPR. Begley explains that the discovery means that CRISPR could become an “even more powerful tool to reveal the genetic defects underlying diseases and to perhaps repair them.”
In an article for Wired, Sarah Zhang writes that MIT researchers have identified a new gene-editing system that could prove more effective than current techniques. The new system involves, “a different protein that also edits human DNA, and, in some cases, it may work even better than Cas9,” the protein used for DNA editing.
Lloyd Mallinson reports for Boston.com that researchers from MIT and Harvard have discovered the link between obesity and genetics. “The uncovered cellular circuits may allow us to dial a metabolic master switch for both risk and non-risk individuals, as a means to counter environmental, lifestyle, or genetic contributors to obesity,” explains Prof. Manolis Kellis.