Genetic Engineering Publications - GEG Tech top picks

Discovering the function of a gene requires cloning a DNA sequence and expressing it. Until now, this was performed on a one-gene-at-a-time basis, causing a bottleneck. Scientists at Rutgers University-New Brunswick in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University and Harvard Medical School have invented a technology to clone thousands of genes simultaneously and create massive libraries of proteins from DNA samples, potentially ushering in a new era of functional genomics.

The repair of a point mutation can be facilitated by combined activity of a single-stranded oligonucleotide and a CRISPR/Cas9 system. In this study, the scientists provide a detailed analysis of allelic variance at and surrounding the target site. In one particular case, they report sequence alteration directed by a distinct member of the same gene family. Their data suggests that single-stranded DNA molecules may influence DNA junction heterogeneity created by CRISPR/Cas9.