gene editing

noun

variants or genome editing

: the use of biotechnological techniques to make changes to specific DNA sequences in the genome of a living organism

Fundamental research into the ways by which bacteria defend themselves against viruses has recently led to the development of powerful new techniques that make it possible to perform gene editing—that is, precisely altering genetic sequences—in living cells, including those of humans, at much higher accuracy and efficiency than ever before possible.

—David Baltimore et al.

The era of straightforward genome editing raises ethical questions that will need to be addressed by scientists and society at large.

—Jennifer A. Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier

—often hyphenated when used before another noun

a gene-editing technique called CRISPR

Examples of gene editing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In utero gene editing, or prenatal somatic cell genome editing, envisions treating a fetus diagnosed with a genetic disease before birth, thereby preventing that entire protocol and the onset of symptoms in the first place. —Anna Yeo, STAT, 21 Feb. 2024

Looking to the future, researchers are also pondering gene editing approaches that have the potential to permanently reduce LDL in a single injection—but according to Wong, that’s still a while away. —Kristen Fischer, Health, 17 Nov. 2023

Like most gene editing therapies, exa-cel and lovo-cell are likely to be very expensive. —Sara Reardon, Scientific American, 8 Dec. 2023

Of course, even if gene editing works, applying it to young people with heart risk is well into the future. —Gina Kolata, New York Times, 12 Nov. 2023

Colossal is working with My Octopus Teacher director James Reed on a five-year-long documentary series that will follow the startup’s efforts to use gene editing to bring back extinct species—or, more precisely, tweak existing species to more closely resemble their long-dead relatives. —Matt Reynolds, WIRED, 21 Feb. 2024

The findings show that new structures that might have uses in biomedical settings can be developed without gene editing and without having to design the structures manually, the study authors write. —Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Dec. 2023

If molecules really were the new microchips, the promise of remote gene editing was that the body could be manipulated to upgrade itself. —Elliot Ackerman, WIRED, 6 Feb. 2024

But recent advances in cloning and gene editing, along with better understanding of infection control, have led a handful of institutions to breakthroughs — key steps that could allow the US Food and Drug Administration, one day soon, to sign off on a clinical trial. —Jen Christensen, CNN, 30 Jan. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1990, in the meaning defined above