A Crack in Creation: Gene Editing and the Unthinkable Power to Control Evolution

The Asilomar Conferences were pivotal meetings held in Pacific Grove, California, that addressed emerging concerns about genetic engineering technologies. The first conference in 1973 (Asilomar I) focused on cancer virus DNA risks, while the second conference in 1975 (Asilomar II) specifically addressed recombinant DNA technology and established safety guidelines for genetic research. These conferences, organized by Paul Berg and colleagues, served as a model for scientific self-regulation and public engagement, demonstrating how the scientific community could proactively address potential risks of new technologies before they created problems. In A Crack in Creation, Doudna and Sternberg reference these conferences as a historical precedent for their own efforts to initiate public discourse about CRISPR technology and its implications for human genetic modification.

Cas9 is a protein enzyme that functions as the primary cutting tool in type II CRISPR systems. Originally identified as Csn1 in bacterial immune defense, Cas9 works in conjunction with guide RNA molecules to locate and cut specific DNA sequences. The protein contains two separate nuclease modules that allow it to cut both strands of a DNA double helix at precise locations, making it an effective tool for genetic modification. Cas9’s ability to be programmed to target any DNA sequence through the use of guide RNA made it the foundation for CRISPR-based gene-editing technology.