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Category Archives: Human Genetic Engineering

Dont tell me the COVID-19 virus could not have been manufactured by China – WION

So far, the global scientific community has been unable to identify a natural origin of, or a logical evolutionary pathway for, the COVID-19 virus.

In contrast, the entire history of coronavirus research is punctuated by the ubiquitous use of genetic engineering to produce new viral combinations, which makes a laboratory origin a far more likely scenario.

In 2008, just five years after the first 2002-2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) pandemic, Dr. Ralph Baric of the University of North Carolina published an article entitled Synthetic recombinant bat SARS-like coronavirus is infectious in cultured cells and in mice, in which he described the creation in the laboratory of an entirely new virus capable of producing a human SARS-like infection:

Here, we report the design, synthesis, and recovery of the largest synthetic replicating life form, a 29.7-kb bat severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-like coronavirus (Bat-SCoV), a likely progenitor to the SARS-CoV epidemic.

In that study, Baric demonstrated that his new synthetic virus was capable of infecting human lung cells to a similar extent as the first human SARS pandemic virus because he had genetically spliced the receptor binding domain (RBD) from the SARS virus onto his new artificial virus.

It is important to note that Dr Baric has been a long-time research collaborator with Zheng-Li Shi, the bat woman from the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

Similar to the 2008 study described above, Baric and Zheng-Li Shi jointly published a 2015 scientific article describing the insertion of the RBD from a newly isolated coronavirus (SHC014) into SARS-CoV-1, the coronavirus responsible for the 2002-2003 pandemic.

Baric and Zheng-Li Shi combined the components of two coronaviruses and produced another novel virus, SHC014-MA15, which showed robust viral replication both in vitro [cell cultures] and in vivo [animals], using models adapted to test for human infectivity.

Other genetic engineering techniques, such as the insertion of a furin polybasic basic cleavage site, which is found in the COVID-19 virus and in no other close natural relative, as well as individual artificial point mutations, have been widely used in coronavirus research.

Since the initial 2002-2003 SARS pandemic, which also originated in China, there have been attempts to create a broad-spectrum vaccine that would provide long-lasting protection against a variety of coronaviruses that might emerge from nature and infect humans.

One such approach has been the development of live-attenuated vaccines like those used for the childhood diseases measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox, in which a weakened or attenuated form of the virus that causes the disease is manufactured.

Because live-attenuated vaccines are so similar to the natural infection that they help prevent, a strong and long-lasting, even life-time immune response can be produced.

In a 2018 scientific article, Dr Baric offered a strategy for the development of a broad-spectrum, live-attenuated vaccine for coronaviruses.

Baric also identified the inherent danger of live-attenuated virus vaccines that they have been shown to revert back to their original pathogenic structure after administration to a recipient.

That risk is exponentially increased for self-spreading vaccines, which are essentially genetically engineered live-attenuated vaccines designed to move through populations in the same way as viruses, but rather than causing disease, conferring protection.

In my two previous articles, here and here, I cited evidence supporting the argument that the COVID-19 virus originated in connection with Chinas vaccine development program, in which a live-attenuated virus may have reverted to its deadly form after a human infection and then leaked from laboratory containment.

Given the mounting evidence, a non-natural origin for the COVID-19 pandemic demands investigation.

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Despite fearmongering, GMOs are the key to a healthy and sustainable future – Queen’s Journal

A lot of plant-based foods at the grocery store are labeled non-GMOas if genetically modified crops should be avoided. In reality, we ought to embrace the technology.

Genetic modification to our food is as old as agriculture itself. When humans began domesticating plants, we used selective breeding to enhance desired traits. This meant greater crop yields and bigger, tastier fruits and vegetables.

With the discovery of the DNA double helix in 1953, it eventually became possible to directly transfer favourable genes from one species to another. Naturally, this has dramatically expanded the scope of what we can do when compared to traditional methods of selective breeding.

The Non-GMO Project, which is responsible for all those labels on our food, argues consumers should have an informed choice about what they buy. But widespread anti-GMO sentiments are based on superstition, not facts.

Those who vehemently oppose GMOs claim our food is injected with viral particles and bacteria which are harmful to human health. In the most common genetically modified crop, corn, a gene from aninsect-killing bacterium is inserted. This allows the corn to produce a protein that kills insects but is harmless to humans, negating farmers need to spray potentially harmful insecticides on their crops.

There are plenty of substances that are deadly to one species but not another. Caffeine is a naturally-produced insecticide, but is consumed and enjoyed by humans every day.

Moreover, GMOs are essential to meeting the food demands of a growing population while minimizing the negative effects of agriculture on climate change. By engineering crops that need less water, we can create drought-resistant food sources at a time when droughts are becoming more frequent.

In addition, it may be possible to produce crops with a much greater yield so we can continue using farmland we already have and avoid clearing forests to create more.

Next time you see the label non-GMO on packaging at the grocery store, dont celebrate it. Theres no reason to shy away from a revolutionary technology that stands to aid us in the fight against climate change while improving human health.

Nathan is a fourth-year English student and The Journals Arts Editor.

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Despite fearmongering, GMOs are the key to a healthy and sustainable future - Queen's Journal

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Transplanting Pig Hearts Into Human Beings? It Could Be A Reality By 2021 – International Business Times, Singapore Edition

Critically Endangered And Endangered Species on Earth

The biggest hurdle faced by patients requiring organ transplants is the shortage of organ donors, with patients having to wait for over six months or more to be able to find one. This wait can be the decisive factor in their prognosis. However, a review states that hearts harvested from pigs could soon solve the drastic shortage of donor organs, and save and prolong lives.

A review paper by researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) outlines the recent breakthroughs in the area of cardiac xenotransplantationimplantation of hearts from one species into another.

They highlighted the advancements in genetic engineering and the development of drugs that enabled the successful transplantation of pig hearts into baboons in Germany. Dr. Richard N. Pierson III, lead author of the paper, predicted that the first pig-to-human heart transplant could happen as early as the end of 2021.

In the paper, the authors discuss the quantum leaps that have aided in the overcoming of obstacles faced in cardiac xenotransplantation. An example is the recent transplantation of heart from pigs to baboons.

The immune systems of primates such as baboons identify pig hearts as "foreign" and launch an attack against them. This leads to organ rejection. To mitigate this, scientists have utilized genetic engineering techniques to create pigs with organs that lack specific carbohydrates that serve as the key target for the immune system.

Experiments have also shown that proteins in the lining of pig blood vessels and proteins in human blood are incompatible, and result in the formation of blood clots or thrombosis. The authors have also contributed to the development and testing of pigs that are designed to possess genes that responsible for the production of the human variant of a protein known as thrombomodulin, which moderates clotting.

Recipients of organ transplants are required to take medications to suppress the immune system and prevent the rejection of organs. "But those drugs don't work when you put a pig organ into a baboon," said Dr. Pierson.

In order to overcome the problem of blood clots, Dr. Pierson collaborated with other scientists to engineer monoclonal antibodies (mAb) that counter "costimulatory" molecules called CD154 and CD40. The mAbs perform effectively better than conventional immunosuppressants in preventing immune cells in baboons and humans from attacking organs from pigs.

The paper also addresses a valid concern that the current COVID-19 pandemic raises. Will transplantation of animal organs into humans transmit infectious diseases? "That looks quite unlikely. The culmination of a lot of research and hard work by our group and others over the last 35 years is that it now looks as though pig-to-human heart transplantation is feasible," answered Pierson.

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Transplanting Pig Hearts Into Human Beings? It Could Be A Reality By 2021 - International Business Times, Singapore Edition

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A New Factory in France Will Mass-Produce Bugs as Food – Singularity Hub

Though the worlds population is no longer predicted to grow as much as we thought by the end of this century, there are still going to be a lot more people on Earth in 30, 50, and 80 years than there are now. And those people are going to need healthy food that comes from a sustainable source. Technologies like cultured meat and fish, vertical farming, and genetic engineering of crops are all working to feed more people while leaving a smaller environmental footprint.

A new facility in northern France aims to help solve the future of food problem in a new, unexpected, and kind of cringe-inducing way: by manufacturing a huge volume of bugsfor eating.

Before you gag and close the page, though, wait; these particular bugs arent intended for human consumption, at least not directly.

Our food system and consumption patterns are problematic not just because of the food we eat, but because of the food our food eats. Factory farming uses up a ton of land and resources; a 2018 study found that while meat and dairy provide just 18 percent of the calories people consume, it uses 83 percent of our total farmland and produces 60 percent of agricultures greenhouse gas emissions. That farmland is partly taken up by the animals themselves, but its also used to grow crops like corn and soy exclusively for animal consumption.

And were not just talking cows and pigs. Seafood is part of the problem, too. Farm-raised salmon, for example, are fed not just smaller fish (which depletes ecosystems), but also soy thats grown on land.

Enter the insects. Or, more appropriately in this case, enter nsect, the French company with big ambitions to help change the way the world eats. nsect raised $125 million in Series C funding in early 2019, and at the time already had $70 million worth of aggregated orders to fill. Now theyre building a bug-farming plant to churn out tiny critters in record numbers.

Youve probably heard of vertical farms in the context of plants; most existing vertical farms use LED lights and a precise mixture of nutrients and water to grow leafy greens or other produce indoors. They maximize the surface area used for growing by stacking several layers of plants on top of one another; the method may not make for as much space as outdoor fields have, but can yield a lot more than you might think.

nsects new plant will use layered trays too, except theyll be cultivating beetle larvae instead of plants. The ceilings of the facility are 130 feet highthats a lot of vertical space to grow bugs in. Those of us who are grossed out by the thought will be glad to know that the whole operation will be highly automated; robots will tend to and harvest the beetles, and AI will be employed to keep tabs on important growing conditions like temperature and humidity.

The plant will initially be able to produce 20,000 tons of insect protein a year, and nsect is already working with the biggest fish feed company in the world, though production at the new facility isnt slated to start until 2022.

Besides fish feed, nsect is also marketing its product for use in fertilizer and pet food. Its uncertain how realistic the pet food angle is, as Id imagine most of us love our pets too much to feed them bugs. But who knowstheres plenty of hypothesizing that insects will be a central source of protein for people in the future, as theyre not only more sustainable than meat, but in some cases more nutritious too.

Well just have to come up with some really creative recipes.

Image Credit: nsect

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A New Factory in France Will Mass-Produce Bugs as Food - Singularity Hub

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Gene Drives Could Kill Mosquitoes and Suppress Herpesvirus Infections – American Council on Science and Health

Several years ago, a brand new method of genetic engineering called CRISPR was invented, and it was based on discoveries made about the rudimentary "immune system" possessed by bacteria. Essentially, bacteria have a way of "remembering" which viruses had infected them previously, and they possess a molecular system that destroys viral DNA that matches that of a prior infection.

The molecular system consists of a DNA-cutting protein called Cas9. (See infographic from Business Insider below.) When equipped with a special guide RNA, Cas9 can be used to cut specific DNA sequences, for instance, a mutated gene that is causing a health problem. Because a broken DNA molecule is dangerous, the cell will attempt to repair it. If a DNA segment is snuck into the cell before the repair occurs, the cell can insert the new (and usually improved) DNA piece, providing a method to "edit" DNA.

The implications for such a technology are obvious. Such a method could be used, for example, to cure a person of a genetic disease or more easily produce genetically enhanced crops for farmers. But there are even cleverer uses. Because the CRISPR-Cas9 system can be designed to be self-propagating, it can be used to force a gene into a population of animals, such as mosquitoes. If this system targets genes that are important for survival or reproduction, then once released, this "gene drive" would rapidly spread through the population, killing off mosquitoes. (See infographic from The Economist.)

Now, a team of researchers writing in the journal Nature Communications has shown that a gene drive can be used to suppress infection with cytomegalovirus, a type of herpesvirus. The underlying molecular mechanism of the gene drive is similar to others before it: A self-propagating chunk of DNA inserts itself into a gene that is important to the virus. In this case, the gene is UL23, which is needed for cytomegalovirus to avoid the human immune response.

The researchers showed that when a cell is infected by both the normal virus (called "wildtype" or "WT") and the modified virus carrying a gene drive ("GD"), the gene drive was able to quickly and efficiently spread through the entire population, representing up to 95% of the final proportion of viruses. The end result is the suppression of viral infection (in cell culture, not in an animal model) because the gene drive virus lacks the important UL23 gene, which is needed for the virus to avoid a potent immune molecule known as interferon gamma(IFN-), which the authors added to the cell culture.

Could such a system work to treat viral infections in humans? Possibly. The authors note that a different gene (other than UL23) might need to be targeted, since lack of this gene is only fatal to the virus if IFN- is added to the cell culture. There are also concerns that a gene drive system could cause the viruses to mutate in various ways and may have unforeseen consequences.

Still, the technology is powerful and should be researched further. The coronavirus pandemic reminds us that we want to have multiple weapons in the public health arsenal should we be confronted with another life-threatening microbe.

Source: Walter, M., Verdin, E. Viral gene drive in herpesviruses. Nat Commun 11, 4884 (2020). Published: 28-Sept-2020. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-18678-0

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Genetic Engineering Drug Market 2020 | What Is The Estimated Market Size In The Upcoming Years? – The Daily Chronicle

The Global Marketers provides you regional research analysis on Genetic Engineering Drug Market and forecast to 2026. The global Genetic Engineering Drug Market report comprises a valuable bunch of information that enlightens the most imperative sectors of the Genetic Engineering Drug market. The global Genetic Engineering Drug market report provides information regarding all the aspects associated with the market, which includes reviews of the final product, and the key factors influencing or hampering the market growth.

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Main players in the Genetic Engineering Drug Market:

GeneScience Pharmaceuticals Co., LtdBeijing SL Pharmaceutical Co., LtdBiotech Pharmaceutical Co., LtdShenzhen Neptunus Interlong Bio-Technique Co., LtdJiangsu Sihuan Bioengineering Co., LtdTonghua Dongbao Pharmaceutical Co., LtdAnhui Anke Biotechnology (Group) Co., Ltd3SBio Inc.Shanghai Lansheng Guojian Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd

Some of the geographic regions examined in the overall Genetic Engineering Drug Market are:

In addition, the global Genetic Engineering Drug market report delivers brief information about federal regulations and policies that may ultimately affect market growth as well as the financial state. The situation of the global market at the global and regional levels is also described in the global Genetic Engineering Drug market report through geographical segmentation. The Genetic Engineering Drug report introduces speculation attainability evaluation, a task SWOT investigation, and venture yield evaluation.

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Global Genetic Engineering Drug Market Segmentation:

On the Basis of The Application:

30 Years Old30 Years Old-60 Years Old60 Years Old

On the Basis of Type:

Monoclonal AntibodyRecombinant Human ErythropoietinRecombinant Human InterferonRecombinant Human Growth HormoneRecombinant Human Insulin

Moreover, the report comprises the main developments made in the Genetic Engineering Drug market. Porters five force analysis is used to conclude the competition in the Genetic Engineering Drug market along with new entrants and their strategies & tactics. The report involves the value chain analysis which denotes workflow in the Genetic Engineering Drug market. Also, the market has been classified on the basis of category, processes, end-use industry, and region. On the basis of geography, the report Genetic Engineering Drug the market.

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The Genetic Engineering Drug Market research report presents a comprehensive analysis of the market and contains attentive insights, facts, past data, and statistical support, and industry-validated market data. It furthermore contains projections applying a suitable set of assumptions and methodologies. The research Genetic Engineering Drug report provides examination and information according to market segments such as geographies, applications, and industry by considering major players.

Key questions answered in this report

Highlights of the TOC of the Genetic Engineering Drug Report:

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Genetic Engineering Drug Market 2020 | What Is The Estimated Market Size In The Upcoming Years? - The Daily Chronicle

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