Cells use CRISPR to blog about their lives

摘要

This week I beat an invading virus, copied all my DNA, and split in two. #blessed #yolo #celllife. What would our cells say if they could blog? We'll soon know: the CRISPR gene-editing technique has been adapted to make cells log what happens to them, written inside their own DNA. Such CRISPR-based logging could have a huge range of uses, from smart cells that monitor our health from within, to helping us understand exactly how our bodies develop. Darren Nesbeth, a synthetic biologist at University College London, says this is an exciting technology that could record the biography of a cell. For example, immune cells could be engineered to patrol a person's body, recording what they see and reporting back when recaptured.