editing | Common News Update

Jan102021 by adminNo Comments

Gene editing of British produce could hamper exports to the EU

Technology

The body representing food and drink manufacturing in the UK warns there could be "barriers" to exporting English farmed foods if gene editing is allowed. The government has launched a consultation on whether to green light the process, which it says could allow farmers to grow crops that perform better and reduce impact on the environment. The process is highly restricted in the EU, after the European Court of Justice ruled in 2018 that gene editing must come under the same strict rules as genetic modification.The Food and Drinks Federation (FDF) has welcomed the consultation - but told Sky News if gene editing is allowed in England, it could create hurdles for farmers exporting goods to the EU.Helen Munday, chief scientific officer of the FDF, said: "We feel positive there are some ...

Oct302020 by adminNo Comments

Gene editing method may cause chromosome loss in developing embryos

Health

Oct. 29 (UPI) -- Researchers testing technology to edit DNA during human development -- with the hope of preventing disease -- have found that the process often eliminates an entire section of genetic material and could threaten the health of the baby, according to a study published Thursday in the journal Cell. The technology, the CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing method, allows scientists to make precise changes to the DNA of cells. Advertisement Chromosomes are DNA molecules that carry genetic information from parent to child, and they exist in matching pairs, with one for each pair inherited from each biological parent. This chromosome loss, the result of a "single break" in embryonic DNA during the editing process, could have a significant impact on the healthy development of the baby, the ...

Sep152020 by adminNo Comments

Gene editing to produce ‘super dad’ livestock

Science

Scientists have produced gene-edited animals they say could serve as "super dads" or "surrogate sires".The pigs, goats, cattle and mice make sperm carrying the genetic material of donor animals.The researchers used a hi-tech gene editing tool to knock out a male fertility gene in animal embryos.The animals were born sterile, but began producing sperm after an injection of sperm-producing cells from donor animals.The technique would enable surrogate males to sire offspring carrying the genetic material of valuable elite animals such as prize bulls, said a US-UK team.This would be a step towards genetically enhancing livestock to improve food production, they added.Prof Jon Oatley, of Washington State University's College of Veteri...

Mar52020 by adminNo Comments

Genome editing strategy could give rice, other crops nutritional boost

Science

March 5 (UPI) -- Scientists have developed a new genome engineering strategy for boosting the levels of beta carotene, the precursor of vitamin A, in rice. The novel CRISPR technology method, described this week in the journal Nature Communications, could help plant scientists engineer healthier, more robust crops. Typically, genetic engineers use a special bacterium to transfer beta carotene-producing genes into the rice genome, but the technique is imprecise. Transgenes can end up in unwanted locations in the genome, compromising the plant's health and reducing yields. Scientists at the University of California Davis came up with a better way. "We used CRISPR to precisely target those genes onto genomic safe harbors, or chromosomal regions that we know won't cause any adverse effects ...

Nov252019 by adminNo Comments

BBC acknowledges ‘mistake’ in Boris Johnson editing

Entertainment

The BBC has said editing footage of Prime Minister Boris Johnson for a news bulletin was "a mistake on our part". The Prime Minister appeared on Question Time: Leaders Special on BBC One on Friday evening.The audience laughed when he was asked a question about how important it is for people in power to tell the truth.But the laughter and subsequent applause was absent from a cut-down version of the exchange on a lunchtime news bulletin the following day."This clip from the BBC's Question Time special, which was played out in full on the News at Ten on Friday evening and on other outlets, was shortened for timing reasons on Saturday's lunchtime bulletin, to edit out a repetitious phrase from Boris Johnson," the BBC said in a state...