CRISPR

noun

ˈkri-spər 

variants or less commonly Crispr

1

: a segment of genetic material found in the genomes of prokaryotes (such as some bacteria and archaea) that consists of repeated short sequences of nucleotides interspersed at regular intervals between unique sequences of nucleotides derived from the DNA of pathogens (such as viruses) which had previously infected the bacteria and that functions to protect the bacteria against future infection by the same pathogens

Note: The CRISPR segment encodes, via transcription, short RNA sequences that pair with complementary sequences of viral DNA. The pairing is used to guide an enzyme to cleave the viral DNA and prevent further infection.

CRISPR, he learned, was a strange cluster of DNA sequences that could recognize invading viruses, deploy a special enzyme to chop them into pieces, and use the viral shards that remained to form a rudimentary immune system.

—Michael Specter

2

: a gene editing technique in which CRISPR and the RNA segments and enzymes it produces are used to identify and modify specific DNA sequences in the genome of other organisms

Just a few years after its invention, CRISPR gene editing is already having a major impact on biomedical research. It makes it easy to "turn off" genes one at a time, to see what they do. It can introduce specific mutations, to find out why they make cells cancerous or predispose people to diseases. And it can be used to tinker with the genes of plants and animals …

—Michael Le Page

Using CRISPR, they have now disabled four rice genes, suggesting that the technique could be used to engineer this crucial food crop.

—Elizabeth Pennisi

Scientists hope Crispr might also be used for genomic surgery, as it were, to correct errant genes that cause disease.

—Andrew Pollack

Note: The technique is sometimes called CRISPR-Cas9 , which includes the name of the enzyme that cleaves DNA.

… an incredibly fast-paced field in which laboratories around the world have used CRISPR-Cas9 to edit genomes of a wide range of cell types and organisms.

—Jennifer A. Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier

Examples of CRISPR in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Scientists are also developing CRISPR tools to treat sickle cell disease, a blood disorder that affects eight million people worldwide, and are experimenting with treating certain forms of genetic blindness. —Sara Hashemi, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 May 2025

Nobel-winning technology Scientists at United Therapeutics genetically modify a pig cell Research in xenotransplantation stalled until the development of the gene editing tool CRISPR in the early 2000s. —Nadia Kounang, CNN Money, 17 May 2025

News broke yesterday that researchers in Philadelphia appear to have successfully treated a 6-month-old baby boy, called KJ, with a personalized CRISPR gene-editing therapy. —Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 16 May 2025

In February 2025, KJ received his first infusion — a dose of CRISPR components delivered to his liver using lipid nanoparticles. —Jenny Lehmann, Discover Magazine, 16 May 2025

The treatment, described in a new study published in The New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy meeting, relies on a complex therapy known as CRISPR, a powerful gene-editing tool. —Keerthana Pakanati, ABC News, 15 May 2025

Doctors have started using gene-editing treatments like CRISPR to treat devastating genetic blood disorders such as sickle cell disease, and are studying experimental gene-editing therapies for other diseases, including cancer, inherited high cholesterol and some forms of genetic blindness. —Rob Stein, NPR, 15 May 2025

But many scientists and governments also agree that using genetic technologies to improve health outcomes, such as CRISPR powered CAR T-cell therapy to save the lives of cancer patients, can be well-justified. —Douglas McCauley, Time, 27 Apr. 2025

Colossal reconstructed a full genome through CRISPR edits. —Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 8 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Clustered Regularly-Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats

First Known Use

2002, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Medical Definition

CRISPR

noun

ˈkris-pər 

variants also Crispr

1

: a segment of genetic material found in the genomes of prokaryotes that consists of repeated short sequences of nucleotides interspersed at regular intervals between unique sequences of nucleotides derived from the DNA of viruses (such as bacteriophages) which had previously infected the prokaryote and that functions to protect the prokaryote against future infection by the same viruses

Note: The CRISPR segment encodes, via transcription, short RNA sequences that pair with complementary sequences of viral DNA. The pairing is used to guide an enzyme to cleave the viral DNA and prevent further infection.

One of the most dramatic examples of short-term genome evolution can be seen in the CRISPR … loci of bacteria and archaea. CRISPRs serve as a defense against invading phages and plasmids, in a manner akin to adaptive immunity.

—David A. Relman, The New England Journal of Medicine

2

: a gene editing technique in which CRISPR and the RNA segments and enzymes it produces are used to identify and modify specific DNA sequences in the genome of other organisms

Gene editing refers to several novel ways to alter the DNA inside living cells. The most popular method, CRISPR, has been revolutionizing scientific research … and is likely to power a new generation of gene treatments for serious diseases.

—Antonio Regalado, MIT Technology Review

Note: This technique is sometimes called CRISPR-Cas9, which includes the name of the enzyme that cleaves DNA.

CRISPR-Cas9 works by "silencing" the part of the … gene that signals protein production.

—Hanae Armitage, Science