CRISPR Chardonnay – Italy Doubles Up

The University of Verona’s edited vines are already in the field, and soon it could be the turn of the Edmund Mach Foundation and CREA-CNR. Once again, the focus is on Chardonnay, edited to resist downy mildew (with a double knock-out approach) or powdery mildew. I spoke with the key figures of this new chapter in Italian research: Mario Pezzotti, Sara Zenoni, Umberto Salvagnin, Riccardo Velasco, and Vittoria Brambilla. Returning to write for Nature Biotechnology is a joy for me, especially because this time, Italy is leading the way in innovation rather than holding it back, as in the past. Prosit!

CRISPR in Trump’s time

A wait-and-see atmosphere lingers in the biotech and pharma sector. Vice President-designate J.D. Vance recently spoke with enthusiasm on Joe Rogan’s podcast about the first CRISPR treatment to hit the market—the one for sickle cell anemia. However, there’s rising concern about RFK Jr., who could exert significant influence over health and food policies. His broad “natural = good” ideology is both philosophically and scientifically dubious, and his clear anti-GMO positions are worrisome. Listening to his conversation with anti-biotech activist Jeffrey Smith on the RFK Jr. podcast reveals a revival of the classic 1990s narrative—corporations as villains, a corrupt establishment, suppressed scientists, concealed health risks—all now repurposed to criticize CRISPR technology, which is portrayed as unreliable and uncontrollable.

It takes two to think

Watson & Crick for the double helix. Doudna & Charpentier for CRISPR. Karikó & Weissman for RNA vaccines… Do two people think better than one or even many? Itai Yanai and Martin J. Lercher suggest so in Nature Biotechnology.

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CRISPR revolution on hold?

It’s been about a year since the first CRISPR-based treatment was approved in the United States and Europe. However, those expecting a surge in approvals of new gene-editing therapies may be disappointed. Next in line will likely be another approach to treating sickle cell disease, followed by therapies for TTR amyloidosis and hereditary angioedema around 2026-27. According to The CRISPR Journal, that’s all we can expect over the next 3-5 years. Is Casgevy destined to stand out like a cathedral in the desert? We have a super-versatile platform capable of fixing a myriad of genetic defects, so why is the CRISPR revolution slowing down? To understand the looming crisis and the countermeasures needed, don’t miss Fyodor Urnov’s in-depth editorial entitled “Give Cas a Chance: An Actionable Path to a Platform for CRISPR Cures.”

Wishing you the best, Kendric!

This photo shows the first American “non-experimental” patient leaving the hospital after completing the CRISPR-based treatment for sickle cell anemia (Casgevy). The New York Times detailed this “official first,” which followed the success of a clinical trial involving dozens of patients like Victoria Gray. We still know little about the first person who is beginning treatment in Europe since this therapy became an “approved drug”. According to Osservatorio Terapie Avanzate he is a young adult (23 years), who arrived in Italy in 2014 and living in the Umbria region, where is being also treated. Undergoing cell extraction and reinfusion of edited cells is an invasive and exhausting process, but now the American Kendric Cromer (12 years old) and other “first patients” can hope to lead full lives—without painful crises or blood transfusions. Best of luck!

The latest twist in the battle to control CRISPR

Credit: Cal Alumni Association

Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna won the Nobel Prize but not the intellectual property dispute and are now ready to give up two patents granted in Europe. The scoop once again comes from Antonio Regalado, who gained fame a few years ago for breaking the CRISPR babies scandal.

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MicroRNAs and the traffic flow in Manhattan

MicroRNAs won Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun the 2024 Nobel Prize in Medicine. Thomas Cech (Nobel Laureate for the discovery of catalytic RNA) has found a fun way to explain how they work. His book, which I reviewed a few weeks ago, is a mine of insights and information. Here is a small excerpt.

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CRISPR vines make their field debut in Italy

Testing of Chardonnay edited to resist downy mildew starts today near Verona, while the prosecco variety awaits its turn in the greenhouse

The president of the influential farmers’ association Coldiretti, Ettore Prandini, formerly very hostile to GMOs, as he plants an edited vine with his own hands in the Verona experimental field on Sept. 30, 24
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CRISPRing at school – for 2$

Forget Odin, the controversial kit that was being sold online by controversial “biohacker” Josiah Zayner (getting people to play around with developing antibiotic-resistant bacteria is certainly not a good idea). At Stanford University they have developed a CRISPRkit for cell-free in vitro experiments that is easy and safe because the target is a harmless pigment. And the great thing is that it costs less than an American coffee (two dollars).

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