Biotechnology Forums - Genetic Engineering

CRISPR/Cas

Fri, 24 Sep 2021 10:55:05 +0000

May someone please help me with this:

You observed that the CRISPR knock-out of protein X either promotes or
represses RNA polymerase II transcription, depending on the gene. Which
experiments would you carry out to reveal the mechanism for this
differential activity?

Thank you

CRISPR/Cas

Fri, 24 Sep 2021 10:52:12 +0000

dCas9(D10A) and AncBE4max for Polynesian Albinism single nucleotide conversion

Tue, 29 Jun 2021 21:30:56 +0000

Hello!

I'm working on a personal project to convert a Guanine into an Adenine in this specific albinism causing allele: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene?Db=gen...;Term=4948

The mutation is at 2324 in the code.
My plan is to use a double nickase dCas9(D10A) to bring the AncBE4max to that site and convert the Guanine into Adenine while in-vivo.

I took inspiration from this article in particular: https://www.nature.com/articles/jhg2009130?proof=t

And this one: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/9/7/1690/htm

As well as this article: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-11514-0

I haven't yet built a plasmid from scratch and am trying to use GenSmart Design to do so, but am not yet able to figure out how to delete things from the prebuilt plasmid sections. I am hoping to get some aide into what programs I should be using to build my plasmid as well as any know-how into how this works and if it can work.

Using the sgrna design tools online with the basic PAM of NGG, I haven't been able to find sites close enough to the edit zone to seem viable. I am trying to keep it below a span of 40 nucleotides, but I also don't have a good idea of what I'm doing. Any help with explaining how I should be going about this would be wonderful.

Due to certain personal circumstances, I am unable to continue my education at university and am trying to find other ways to continue my education into this field. Any tips for that would also be greatly appreciated.

Godspeed,

- Drig

Modifying Insect, where to begin?

Mon, 24 May 2021 03:56:17 +0000

Hello,

I want to learn how to genetically modify an insect so that it may only produce sterile offspring. How would I do this? Is this possible to do at home without a lab?

Thanks

Genetically modifying plants to secrete scents of plants and flowers Bats like

Mon, 19 Apr 2021 17:14:08 +0000

April 19, 2021 Plants expressing Plant Smells that Bats like to reestablish populations new areas
What if we make plants make the smells of over plants
lets say we make a plant express the smells of a plant that bats are attracted to but they are from different geographic areas, and since the united states bat population is decimated due to a fungus we could help make plants that make the smells of the plants that bats like that are habituated to the environment here, and that would help bring the bat populations back and even into areas where bats were not there before. I know its wierd because bats are more in to the bugs stuff, What do you guys think?

G-proteins manipulation and ideas..

Sun, 27 Sep 2020 23:07:22 +0000

I have a idea is there a way to unlock the human mind and the increase in chi / energy? Or speeding up the brain I'm looking to work with people. I can even do testing on myself I don't have resources. And I'm not scared of anyone and doing things I believe in progressing the world and revolutionizing it.You ever seen dragon ball z they talk about ki, which from Qi also . Contact me. start some more projects I have plenty of ideas. I can try and get funded. Maybe We can make some money together. I'm In the U.S I have a company called Global Tech Center inc. Just starting up If you find it'll make history. I'm the Owner and Founder. I can give interships or credit for research what you have found if not what I'm looking for.
Deametres@gmail.com

BiO
Back when I was 24 years old I hit 30,000 a month did not last that long someone in trouble. I did a couple things here and there business wise. And got in trouble I lived with some people that got together and stole my things including a car and damaging other properties. I was helping them financially and trying to motivate but they couldn't deal trying to make themselves look a certain in there's head.So I shot at them and had laywer fees etc.I'm a great and cool guy but people try do harm and bad intentions at 19 yrs I shot someone for over what they thought about. He thought about harming me and then when he showed he got shot. had a gun and gloves on him so the investigators let me go. Defensive when people have bad intentions especially after showing love. But now that I'm out of that business I'm focused with my ideas. I the most self-controlled person you probably fine. I have stood still for hours before.Trust is everything.

Bione Direct-to-consumer genetic

Mon, 04 May 2020 09:36:31 +0000

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Request for clarification/insight on 2019-nCoV recombination question.

Tue, 10 Mar 2020 09:17:22 +0000

Greetings,

I hope this is the correct sub-forum!

There has been some controversy as to whether the four 3-6 amino acid residue sequence additions found in the spike protein of 2019-nCoV could be of potential significance. Some had argued all four matching samples of HIV-1 was of interest, while others have suggested the comparatively short sequences and presence of sequence gaps potentially matching hundreds of other candidates (though not necessarily all four as with HIV-1), made it less helpful for identifying a possible intermediate carrier.

The main study which originally identified these additions has been hotly debated in its wording and conclusions and is currently withdrawn for review by its authors, however the presence of these sequences and their persistence has not been challenged: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/...1.full.pdf

Taking these findings in a different direction, I wanted to clarify whether it would be theoretically possible for these four potential HIV-1 matches to inherit larger HIV-1 spike components from a co-infection of HIV-1 and 2019-nCoV within a single human host cell via recombination, using these fragments as a translation template?

I imagine it would depend on modeling whether the location and spacing of these four template markers could potentially match an equivalent range in a candidate HIV-1 sequence that, if transferred by recombination, could constitute any significant change in functional capacity of the 2019-nCoV receptor site (where these 4 markers are located).

Obviously the main concern being whether the ability to infect HIV-1 target receptors could be inherited through such a hypothetical transfer.

Please bear in mine I have no real world experience in molecular biology or genetics as my background is Computer Science and IT.

Are there any know analogs for such a recombination naturally of material from one viral source to another with large sequence gaps? If so I was mainly interested in probability for and against such a scenario occurring given the present expression of these four candidate sequence markers and their locations.

As a possible mechanism for co-infection, I considered a hypothetical scenario where an individual previously infected with HIV-1 subsequently contracted 2019-nCoV. During the later disease progression, the patient develops hemoptysis.

Could there be a possible mechanism whereby HIV-1 infected blood in the airways could transfer HIV-1 into a 2019-nCoV infected cell?

Is there any other mechanism whereby a person infected with both diseases might see them co-infect the same cell and transfer material, despite the fact they target different receptors, possibly through some Gag particle assembly mechanism or other known process?

While many have been quick to dismiss the likelihood of 2019-nCoV inheriting parts of HIV-1, they also point out it is not altogether impossible. This is the part I am unclear on. They largely base their conclusions on the assumption of a scenario where the material is inherited from an intermediary animal, while indicating more research is needed to determine if that is indeed the case, as such a candidate animal has yet to be found.

It seems remarkable that these four additions or 'inserts' (debate exists on the classification) appear to be conserved in all available 2019-nCoV sequences. It COULD tend to reinforce an artificial origin, in a hypothetical scenario where such recombination was theoretically possible yet necessitated long term stability of the template to facilitate what may require very rare circumstances (the probability equation) and many random recombinations to achieve.

Admittedly the scenario seems unlikely. It also may be that I am simply ignorant to the reasons why both virus entering the same cell and recombining in such a way is not actually possible. However, I felt compelled to ask.

Best regards,

-James

RECOMBINANT DNA TECHNOLOGY: OVERVIEW AND SCOPE

Fri, 07 Sep 2018 17:54:23 +0000

RECOMBINANT DNA TECHNOLOGY: OVERVIEW AND SCOPE

SUMMARY

Biotechnology is the application of technologies to the conventional biology with a goal of betterment of human life. The scope of biotechnology is vast and understanding the basics of biotechnology has become essential for the life science students. One of the important areas of biotechnology is recombinant DNA technology. This technology is the essence of many useful strategies widely used in healthcare, medicine, and nutrition. This article gives the basic idea about the topic and discusses its scope.

BASICS

Recombinant DNA is the DNA which is formed by the combination of DNA from two or more sources. While studying the basics of this technology, one must understand some important terms and students should know about:

· Genome: The genetic constitution of an organism

· Clones: Genetically identical organisms

· Cloning: Introduction of foreign DNA into the host cell

· Vector: Carrier of the gene of interest (ex. Plasmid, Phage)

· Marker: Gene for the identification of transformant cells

· Insert: Gene of interest carried by the vector to the host cell

· Recombinant DNA: DNA formed by joining the DNA from different origins, mostly used for a combination of vector and insert

· Host: Recipient cell for foreign DNA

· Copy number: Copy number of a vector denotes the number of copies it can produce within a cell

Tools used for recombinant DNA technology are the molecules, mainly enzymes, used for the manipulation of DNA like cutting, joining, end modification etc. (1). Some are enlisted below.

· Restriction enzymes: Popularly known as “molecular scissors”

· Ligase: Popularly known as “molecular glue”

· Topoisomerase

· End modification enzymes: Polynucleotide kinases, nucleases

· Linkers, adapters, and connectors.

The central dogma of recombinant DNA technology

A. Insert selection: Insert is typically the gene of interest which we desire to clone

B. The formation of a recombinant DNA: It involves the use of restriction enzymes as well as a ligase. It is the joining of an insert to a vector.

C. Cloning of this recombinant DNA into a host cell.

D. Expression of the gene of interest

APPLICATIONS
The whole aim for gene transfer exercises is either
A. Phenotypic expression of a foreign gene in an organism as can be seen in case of crop improvement techniques
B. Production of a particular protein in bulk
Ex. Heterologous protein production like the production of human insulin in bacteria

This technology is widely used in healthcare industries, agriculture, clinical research etc. Apart from this, it is also used for gene therapies including various genetic disease.

FUTURE
While using this technology, expressing a foreign gene in a given host is not that easy. Obviously, the host cell has to make a lot of compromises. Research is going on to address this issue (2). Recombinant DNA technology is further being expanded as synthetic biology (3), which will be the main driving force for therapeutics, food and energy sector and a lot more industries.

REFERENCES

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.100...7-2460-8_3
Ceroni F, Algar R, Stan G, Ellis T et al (2018) Nature Methods, 15:387–393, https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth.4635
Katz L, Chen YY, Gonzalez R et al (2018) J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol, 45: 449. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10295-018-2056-y

CRISPR Research Guidance

Mon, 20 Aug 2018 22:06:22 +0000

Hello, I'm posting here in hopes someone on this forum can point me in the right direction.
I'm interested in genetically modifying avian species such as chickens. I am trying to make a breed of chicken that can have the attribute of a homing pigeon that allows it to find its way home.
Does anyone have any books, threads, blogs, articles that someone with little knowledge about this topic can understand? Any help would be appreciated

Genetic engineering course

Tue, 31 Jul 2018 04:00:27 +0000

Any one is there to help me in this genetic engineering field for the study material material and syllabuses .

CrispR Research

Thu, 07 Jun 2018 04:00:00 +0000

Hey everyone.

I'm posting here in hopes someone on this forum can point me in the right direction.

I'm mostly interested in agricultural genetic modification. I have a very limited understanding of Cas9, guide RNA, and plasmids. My goal is to eventually be able to knockout certain genes, and replace them with a new sequence of my choosing in plants.

Does anyone have any books, threads, blogs, articles that a begginer can pick up on? I've looked around the net, and I can't seem to find very much footage of the process. That would help very much so. I apologize if I sound ignorant, it's probably because I am, and I need to change that haha.

Thank you for taking the time to glean a little light on this subject for me.

Short survey on germ line editing using CRISPR

Wed, 29 Nov 2017 22:28:43 +0000

I am writing a research based argument on germ line gene editing using CRISPR and would really appreciate your opinion on the topic.

Link: https://goo.gl/forms/Hf1L2tW9exNjyNA82

Transforming spider web into silk business. What do you think?

Thu, 17 Aug 2017 07:57:15 +0000

Who doesn’t love silk? Silk isn’t just gorgeous on the outside but on the inside too. It has characteristics that people keep falling for. Although it may look like a vulnerable fabric, silk is actually the strongest natural fiber which can withstand pulling pressure, is wrinkle-resistant, elastic, great for all seasons, and barely catches dirt.

There are different kinds of silk, although all of them fall into similar characteristics. One silk that has been quite popular for its admirable characters is spider silk. Spider silk’s strength is comparable to steel; it is more elastic than rubber and lighter than carbon fiber. We haven’t reached to the point where we are able to wear spider silk in our clothing, but many companies are interested in developing the super tough silk.

The toughness of spider silk is comparable to Kevlar, the strongest synthetic fibers which have replaced the steel cables widely used in bridge suspension ropes, elevators, and even fighter jets’ wings. Kevlar is useful in many ways but it comes at a high price. Spider silk is much more cost-effective. This is also why many companies are interested in making businesses out of it.

Several companies have gotten their hands on the spider silk fibers, though many of them try the synthetic ones, and many of their projects are still in progress. However, there’s already one spider-silk product, and it comes from a California-based startup company, Bolt Threads. They’re making synthetic spider silk through a yeast fermentation process that produces a large quantity of silk protein. Their product is a $314 necktie that has been reviewed by MIT Technology Review and WIRED.

There are many extraordinary uses of spider silk that we are dying to explore. It’s not that simple as it takes so much effort.

Farming spiders is not quite a manageable job. Spiders are known to be cannibals which slows the process of getting enough spiders to create sufficient silk fibers. 14,000 spiders are needed to create an ounce of silk. That’s makes for hardship, but it’s not necessarily a dead end to create a business of spider silk.

So now the question is, how should they solve the spider cannibalism that gets in their way?

The answer is not to use spiders.

There are always alternatives. It turns out that the secret of spider silk’s strength is in the proteins produced by fibroin genes. Using gene synthetic technology, these proteins can also be genetically modified and carried by bacteria, yeast, insects, and even goats like the scientists in Utah States University has done. However, there’s still not as much production as they can get with it. It’s caused by the large content of protein that natural spider silk has, almost more than 250 kDa. In order to create mass production for large supplies, we have to come up with another viable solution. Quality is also a concern. Synthetic protein which spins the silk fiber lacks the strength of the naturally spun fibers.

The superhero that came to the scientists’ minds were the silkworms who are already producing silk of their own. Scientists edited the genome of silkworms to have the spider silk gene. They used CRISPR/Cas9. The result was satisfying. The edited silkworms produced 40-50% higher mechanical properties than the original silkworm silk. They are easy to farm, they produce large proteins, and they spin their own silk. There’s really nothing to worry about.

We all know the difficulty of farming spiders and how other organisms are able to be the media of making synthetic spider silk, but still, we will not be satisfied until the spider silk really comes out of the spiders. It would be the ultimate goal for both scientists and industry. There are other genome editing tools as advanced as CRISPR, such as TALEN and Sherlock, which could later gene-edit the spiders to prevent cannibalism or produce more silk. There are different types of silk that spiders can make and each has their own use such as:

Dragline silk: This fiber is used as the outer rim of the web. It is tough and strong as steel.
Tubiliform silk: This fiber is used for protecting egg sacs. Its nature is very stiff.
Capture-spiral silk: This fiber is extremely sticky and stretchy by nature, and it is used for the capturing lines of the web.
Minor-Ampullate silk: This fiber is used for web construction purposes.
Aciniform silk: This fiber is used to wrap the captured prey. This is three times tougher than the dragline silk. (source: fiber2fashion)

So, looking at the different uses and strong points of each silk, genome-editing tools could also help program the spiders to create a specific type of silk that we desire so they won’t bother making the other type. Capture-spiral silk sounds like a perfect fit to make a super-duper strong adhesive glue, or aciniform, which is three times tougher than dragline silk, could be used for elevator cables. If that’s not enough, genome editing tools could also enhance the quality of the spider silk to be higher as different spiders produce different qualities of silk. For example, the Darwin’s Bank spider has the highest performance of silk, while Nephila spiders create golden orb webs in a lower quality. Genome editing could help combine these interesting characteristics. A little snip here and there, et voila!

Market demand

The technical fibers market is always expected to grow and improve due to extensive use from textile to aerospace industries. According to Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, the market demand for technical fibers has a rapid growth. In 2012, the global market for technical fibers reached approximately $133 billion. The demand for technical fibers is expected to reach $160 billion in 2018. For raw silk fibers, the market is sitting at $5 billion. Knowing how powerful spider silk can be, it is already a promising multi-billion dollar market.

Big names in fashion industries have also set their sights on spider silk’s use for clothing advancement. The North Face already teamed up with Spiber, a Japanese-based company which makes synthetic spider silk fibers, to make Moon Parka whose high-quality material is meant for the most extreme arctic conditions. Although not already mass-produced, this wear piece is a step forward to making an outer jacket more protective from any harsh weather condition.

As mentioned earlier, AMSilk has done a lot in the skincare department. They’ve also worked together with Adidas to make The Future Biocraft, running shoes made from 100% biodegradable fabric. This fabric is very strong and lightweight at the same time. What’s most special about these shoes is that they won’t sink once you add a special enzyme to it. So, once this pair of shoes gets worn out, you can easily make it sink and no environmental damage is done. These pro-environmental shoes are just still a prototype, but take this as a sign to show the future where the fashion industry can go.

Nephila Clavipes is a type of spider that produces golden orb webs. You heard it right. Back in 2012, a golden silk cape made from 1.2m Nephila Clavipes took 8 years to create. The golden color of the cape naturally came 100% from the silk, making it more precious than any other silk ever. This cape was only displayed at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Imagine how genome editing could reduce the years and efforts required to make golden orb web clothing more available. The fashion world must stay in tune for these advancements.

As spider silk is predicted to be the most-advanced fibers in the future, what are the other wonders you can make with Spider Silk? It goes way beyond clothing. Here are some of the things that we can do with it.[/font]

Protective clothing & Military Uniform Advancement[/font]

There’s more than just a neck tie. With the existing popularity of silk, when you create a business of these super spider silks, you can make super clothes. Not ones with superhero’s power, of course, but the soon to be super-tough silk can protect you from the rain, UV rays, and also bullets. It doesn’t stop there. Scientists in Utah State University are also working on lighter and melt-resistant uniforms. This very promising solution for the troops is so welcomed by the U.S Army that they granted $1 million for the R&D of this project.

So, imagine being a pioneer in making anti-wet clothing and superhero-like military uniforms, doesn’t it sound like a great deal?

Aerospace Applications

Beyond uses on Earth, spider silk can be a valuable material for spacesuits. As astronauts need to be protected from any damage while out in the space, spacesuits always need the most-advanced material technology. The soon to-be super tough silk is an open gate to getting the best of this business opportunity.

Safer material for airbags

More than just a piece of clothing, spider silk can also be made into an airbag. Not only will it replace the material of airbags, but it will literally cover your body entirely — just like when Spiderman captures his enemy — protecting your body from any damage that could happen in a car crash. As spider silk is much softer and lighter than the current airbags, it makes a perfect and safer material in the future. Imagine, if later on, airbags will not only come in cars but also motorcycles. Even though there are already body protectors, imagine pushing a button and the spider silk airbag comes out and wraps you entirely. Imagine how many lives could be saved during bad accidents.

Stronger artificial skin, self-healing bandages and thinner surgical sutures

Now on to medical uses. Spider silk was used a long time ago for covering wounds. Spider silk would be a great material to be artificial skin for burn victims. Spider silk is stronger and biodegradable as compared to current artificial skin. Scientists in Hannover Medical School, Germany did an experiment using silk from a golden orb web. They seeded the mesh with skin-building cells and nutrients, the result of which you can see here. Other than artificial skin, spider silk is said to be great for surgical sutures. The silkworm silk is already the thread that surgeons use. Spider silk is thinner and stronger; thus, it works great in any kind of surgery. Especially for delicate surgeries like nerve and eye surgery. What about for a simple skin wound? Can spider silk turn into a super bandage that could even regenerate skin cells and deliver drugs to your skin? The great news is, scientists from University of Nottingham has already been working on that.

It’s always great to hear about more advancements in the medical world. Spider silk sounds amazingly like a perfect material for even basic first-aid tools such as bandages. Surely, spider silk will be applicable to other medical materials as well.

Advanced skincare ingredients

For those of you who desire silky-feeling skin, you may want to start looking out for skincare products that actually have spider silk formulation in it. The German firm, AMSilk, makes this formulation that has been market tested and approved. Spider silk comes in powder, microbeads, and hydrogel forms which will provide your skin with smoothness and moisture, leaving skin feeling silky and softer. These are common things that some people choose to get surgery or special treatments for, which doesn’t cost little. If you could make a product that would deliver those things mentioned above, with more affordable prices, you could expect a satisfying revenue after launching.

Biodegradable bottles

Fantastically, spider silk can also save the environment because of its biodegradability. With spider silk, we can make biodegradable bottles. There are countries whose consumption of water bottles reaches in the billions such as China and Indonesia. So, biodegradable bottles would be very welcome for not only water, but also for other drinks. It will be a great business as the consumption of plastic-bottled drinks is fast moving.

One very easy step to take to live a green life is to reduce your plastic waste. One day, hopefully soon enough, we won’t have to worry about plastic use anymore.

This is just a short list of what spider silk can be developed into. As technology advances every year, there could be many more developments, such as waterproof clothing (so we don’t bother when we forget to bring our umbrellas or raincoats), dirt-free shoes, or even space elevators. More developments may not have crossed our minds now but could happen with the continued extensive research and development of spider silk.

Humans have been fascinated by the wonders of spider silk for ages and yet the history of humans exploring spider silk has not been so wonderful as we have always faced the same problem. Spider silk is already predicted to be the future of fibers. From automotive and textile use to aerospace utilizations, spider silk could not be more appealing for its broad uses. Big names have got their eye on its development, and surely more and more companies will as well. Before there are too many demands, CRISPR technology is the perfect solution for the number one difficulty people have in starting this business: farming spiders. It’s just an entrance to more exploration and development of spider silk. Both markets of silk and technical fibers are promising already. As we all will look for more advancement in fashion and infrastructure, creating this business means you’re taking your part in making your life more advanced with the wonder material of spider silk.

Gene edited to preserve cashmere goat. Share what do you think?

Tue, 08 Aug 2017 15:46:31 +0000

Cashmere is known for its rarity, hence the hefty price tag on your cashmere sweater. But there’s a chance that it could even become rarer than it is now. There’s a threat in the cashmere industry and yet there might also be a solution that could cure all…

The rarity of cashmere wool comes from the fact that it is created from the wool on a goat’s undercoat that only grows in winter. One goat produces as much as four ounces annually, resulting in not nearly as much production as the other fabrics that we can get. Its rarity is what makes cashmere ever so luxurious.

If it’s that hard to get more production, since it takes 2 goats to create one cashmere sweater, then the question is “why not double up the goats?”

This is where the problem begins…

Mongolia is the second largest cashmere producer, standing only behind China. These cashmere goats have been quite a great source of income for Mongolians. So, increasing the goat population is definitely already on the Mongolian herders’ to-do list. However, there’s an underlying cause to why doubling up the goat population is not enough.

The climate change.

Back in 2010, CNN put this crisis into the spotlight. They interviewed a Mongolian herder who revealed that the grassland was getting worse year after year. The change of nature had created less quality of the grassland. The aforementioned fact about the profitable cashmere as an income source also has made more Mongolians opt out of being herders. Things became complicated when the decreased quality of the grasslands because of the climate change met the increased number of goats there. According to NPR, the climate change has caused 4-degree Fahrenheit rise in average temperature in Mongolia and the goats also take their part in decreasing the grasslands’ quality.

These are the reasons why goats are not earth-friendly, as described by Clean by Design:

They consume more than 10% of their body weight daily in roughage
They eat very close to the roots thus destroying plants
Their stiletto-like hoofs also damage topsoil and grass root system

Although it’s always possible to get the grasslands green again naturally but goats have rapid reproduction, meaning that they can have multiple births at a time. So, with this rapid reproduction increasing the population of goats, many more goats will be around and the grasslands will still be just as bad as it is now.

Now you see why cashmere production has raised a controversy between cashmere industry and environmentalists. It’s undeniable that cashmere production is not easy on the environment.

People in the cashmere industry are also concerned by this, as it will soon be a threat to their business growth. Sustainable Fibre Alliance (SFA) has teamed up with companies, governments, and NGOs to establish the first Sustainable Cashmere Standard. NOYA Fibers also partnered with The Nature Conservancy to implement sustainable grazing practices in Mongolia.

The cashmere crisis went on and in 2016, Kuow.org updated the situation of the Mongolian grasslands with bad news. The demand is still high for cashmere, but we cannot also neglect the ever de-greening grasslands back in Mongolia. Everyone, from the herders, cashmere, and fashion companies to environmentalists have been facing this dilemma and trying their best to find a solution. Their efforts are still considered too small to maintain the sustainability of both the cashmere business and the environment. If anything, a possible quick way to solve this issue is to lower either the quality or the quantity of cashmere. If so, you’ll probably have to take more serious care of your cashmere sweaters in the case that it will be even rarer in the future.

It may not be soon enough since the cashmere business is hanging by the thread, but as the clock is ticking, we better come up with a solution as fast as we can.

Now, genome editing has helped the Chinese herders in Shaanxi province with producing hairier goats that result in much more cashmere production. While we also have to take serious care of the Mongolian grasslands and any other grasslands out there, with genome-editing, we don’t have to worry about the increased number of goats while at the same time worrying about the ever de-greening grasslands.

A group of scientists from Shaanxi Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Shaanbei in China has successfully created the hairier goats by using CRISPR. Fibroblast growth factor 5 (FGF5) is responsible for determining the hair length in some animals, including goats and humans. The scientists edited the FGF5, along with MSTN, which also made those goats end up with more meat along with more hair. By disrupting a single gene, scientists have found not only longer cashmere, but the edited goats also yield a third more cashmere than the normal goats. Crispr cas-9 that the scientists used has increased more length and quantity of cashmere from one goat but not the diameter of the cashmere fiber. This modification is also likely to be transmitted to the offspring of the Crispr modified goats.

There’s no information yet about the quality of the cashmere from gene-edited goats being higher than the normal ones. Although the scientists say that there is no hair differentiation caused by the genetic modification. Some international regulators doubt the authenticity of the cashmere as the goats’ natural mutations are edited. However, the scientists aren’t planning to commercialize the edited goats anytime soon. There are other tests that they want to do in order to know if there are other effects caused by the mutations. One of the scientists even said that this could take years of work.

So, once this is commercialized, it will really improve the genetics in goats. This research means a lot to Shaanxi, as they are well-known for their cashmere production. We can think of CRISPR goats as the win-win solution for everyone involved in the business.

The cashmere industry has kept expanding since 2011 both in Mongolia and China. In Mongolia, the high demand of cashmere has resulted in over 4000 tons in 2011 and escalated to 8900 tons in 2015. Last year, the cashmere industry in Mongolia successfully made their $9.6 million revenue — so far the best on records — from their exports. China, they exported more than 200,000 kg of cashmere by October 2016 to 9 countries. The cashmere industry is likely to expand in the next year after looking at its rapid growth.

With the rapid growth and high demands, it indeed has attracted young entrepreneurs to enter the industry. Matt Scanlan decided to set foot into the industry after his visit to Mongolia in 2012. Amazed by the culture and the charisma of it, he told Bloomberg how every herder knows the name of each goat. He is currently the CEO of Nadaam Cashmere where the aim is not only to sell high quality cashmere at fair prices, but also to give back to the Mongolian grasslands and society. His company actively gives veterinary care to goats. They’re now planning to build fences there to help prevent the climate change because of excessive grazing. Their yarning process in Italy also causes no damage to the environment by using clean energy. More than just a charity, Nadaam’s business focuses on sustainability as a business practice.

It is surprising to know how the population of these cashmere goats are standing side by side with the climate change and taking their toll on the environments. To achieve the goals of people involved in this issue, we have to decrease the number of goats to save the environment without losing the number of production of cashmere. The math is simple, but putting it into action may not be. Now, this is the scene where CRISPR goats would save us from the cashmere doomsday.

With CRISR goats, we would have control over their reproduction, minimize the danger their hooves cause to the environment, and get the same, or possibly much more production of cashmere. The reproduction control we have over the CRISPR goats is creating these opportunities below:

Everyone involved in this issue could calm down and take baby steps towards the goals they want. The heat between the cashmere industry, fashion companies, and environmentalists could melt down with CRISPR goats. The cashmere industry and fashion companies could safely continue their business while at the same supporting the environmentalists to help the environment go back green again.
CRISPR goats yield more cashmere than normal goats. In numbers, from the CRISPR goats that are still in the labs, there’s a 92.75 gr of cashmere increase from each 4 month old CRISPR goat on average. The length of cashmere is increased too.
In Mongolia, sand has replaced the grass where the grass used to grow. However, goats eat almost anything even when there’s a lack of grass patches. This means the herders have to buy the grains to feed the goats. If the herders could have as much cashmere production with half the number of normal goats, such as with CRISPR goats, then they wouldn’t have to bother buying food supplies in the city. Budget wise, it’s more than just good.
What’s good can be better. Even when goats are willing to eat anything, their favorite food would still be grass. There’s barely even grass anymore on Mongolian land, and it has raised concerns about the quality of cashmere. When CRISPR goats arrive, maybe they would have to be fed by the mix of grains while waiting for the grass to grow again. When the environment has finally healed, they will be able to eat the grass again, as it will just get better for herders and the goats themselves.

China is so supportive in gene-editing projects that they even have tried it on human embryos. If one day these scientists prove that there’s no harm and only improvement in the gene-edited goats to cashmere production, China might soon utilize the gene-edited cashmere. In addition, TIME magazine has named these CRISPR goats as one of the 100 Most Influential Animals of 2016 even before they come out to play.

We’ve taken a look at the opportunities CRISPR goats might bring when they arrive. But there’s still one more problem.

The GMO products controversy.

CRISPR may be new here, but many breeders have already implemented different techniques to develop and refine animals by doing selective breeding. An improvement made by selective breeding that we can all still relate to it from the dairy cows in the US. Traditional selective breeding has reduced the number of cows from 25.6 million in 1944 to just 9 million today with increased milk productivity by as much as 1.6 times. With that in mind, think how much cashmere can be improved faster through gene editing?

Alison Van Eenennaam, an expert in animal genetics and biotechnology at the University of California Davis says, “Thanks to improvements made in the dairy industry through traditional breeding, a glass of milk today is associated with just one third of the greenhouse gas emissions linked to producing a glass of milk in the 1940s.”

Now we can see that the problems with dairy cows are much likely the same with cashmere goats. Both the environment and animal welfare are on edge because they’re on the opposite side from each other, and the climate change’s taking over. As traditional breeding has improved our livestock and contributed to the environment sustainability, so could CRISPR.

It’s true that many more tests have to be done and preparations have to be made before they come out on the stage. When it comes to cashmere goats, just like the dairy cows, it is more than just a change of appearance like the micropigs which would aim to be the next it-pet. Many more drug and food animals are being tested in the labs with CRISPR to improve their and our own lives.

We can’t really talk yet about the risks of the CRISPR goats’ existence, as many things will soon be revealed through the continuous work of the scientists. When it comes to the regulations, greenlights from the FDA have been given to some genome-edited plants but never before to animals. The FDA proposed regulations for genome editing products in January which says all animals whose genomes have been intentionally altered must be examined for safety, which is similar to the process of approving drugs. Many researchers aren’t happy about these proposed regulations. Alison Van Eenennaam said to Nature that this could mean a loss of interest in developing gene-edited animals in businesses, universities, and NGOs.

Surely, many fashion companies have acted on the decreased quality of grassland in Mongolia just as Naadam does. CRISPR will definitely boost their pro-environmental activities and many other aspects in cashmere industry. However, there are still many things to be tested, reviewed, and considered. But if the development is supported by many, especially from the governments and communities, maybe in the next 5 or 10 years the cashmere clothing business will be the next big thing. CRISPR will always be developed for its use. Who knows? Maybe once we accept cashmere from CRISPR goats, scientists could create a stronger cashmere fibers, or make it anti-wet and able to give more heat. Anything sounds possible. We’ll know that after the approval of these soon to be super goats.