Category Archives: Genetic Engineering

CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes Industry Overview Competitive Analysis, Regional and Global Analysis, Segment Analysis, Market Forecasts 2026

The new report on the globalCRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes marketpublished by theMarket Research Storeincorporates all the essential facts about the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market. This aids different industry players along with new market entrants to open new gateways for the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market on a global platform. Through in-depth research and data obtained from the reliable database the qualitative and the quantitative data of the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market has been updated based on the current market conditions owing toCOVID-19. The overall market conditions have been affected due to the pandemic. The trading conditions and the economy crisis have affected the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market. The information in the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market report is updated and precise thus the clients will be able to relate themselves to the current market scenario.

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The CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market report also encompasses the details about all the market players that are operating in the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market. The market players includeCaribou Biosciences, Addgene, CRISPR THERAPEUTICS, Merck KGaA, Mirus Bio LLC, Editas Medicine, Takara Bio USA, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Horizon Discovery Group, Intellia Therapeutics, GE Healthcare Dharmacon.

The market analysis in the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market study starts with the market definition and scope. In the next section, there is a brief discussion about the target audience of the market. In the later section, a detailed information about the market growth factors and limitations are discussed along with the market opportunities and challenges that are being faced owing to arise of the pandemic. Research tools and methodologies were used while analyzing the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market.

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The major section that covers the overall market description is the market segmentation. The CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market includes segments{Genome Editing, Genetic engineering, gRNA Database/Gene Librar, CRISPR Plasmid, Human Stem Cells, Genetically Modified Organisms/Crops}; {Biotechnology Companies, Pharmaceutical Companies, Academic Institutes, Research and Development Institutes}. To study any market in detail the major components that need to be analyzed are its product type, application, end-use, the solution and the services that are offered. Details about all these segments helps better understand the market size and demand. Every aspect of every single segment was studied carefully and the impact of COVID-19 was also taken into consideration. Both numerical data and subjective information about every segment is included for better understanding. The regional presence of the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market is also included. The current market condition in each regions is explained thoroughly as to how the pandemic has affected the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market demand in a particular region.

Major Advantages for CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes Market:

1. Well-organized description of the international CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market along with the ongoing inclinations and future considerations to reveal the upcoming investment areas.2. The all-inclusive market feasibility is examined to figure out the profit-making trends to obtain the most powerful foothold in the CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes industry.3. The CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market report covers data which reveal major drivers, constraints, and openings with extensive impact analysis.4. The current market is quantitatively reviewed from 2019 to 2028 to pinpoint the monetary competency of the global CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes market.5. Last but not least, PORTERS Five Forces Analysis shows the effectiveness of the customers and providers from a global perspective.

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Global CRISPR And CRISPR-Associated (Cas) Genes Market 2020 with COVID-19 After Effects Analysis by Key Players Caribou Biosciences, Addgene, CRISPR...

Brewing or beer making represents a massive and highly lucrative sector. According to a study, global alcohol consumption has constantly been on the rise, and the consumption of beer accounts for the highest volume share. Yeast, being the cardinal ingredient used in the production of beer, provides the right proportion of texture and flavor to beer during its production. As a result, increasing demand and consumption of beer has been elevating the globalyeast market, which is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 5.4% during the forecast period 2018-2026. The market valuation has been estimated to be over US$ 10,200 Mn by 2026 end.

Yeast Innovation: The Future of Brewery

The brewing industry has overcome a slew of challenges and moved beyond times when technological breakthroughs were not applied to the beer crafting process. According to a research, one small, low-capital innovation, within the reach of all beer makers is enhancing and improvising the yeast they use in their beer. Even though yeast is partially responsible for imparting the flavor and aroma to beer, brewers often compare yeast to hops. This leaves yeasts dynamic nature untapped, which can be used for product enhancements.

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Research has shown that non-GMO development techniques such as selective breeding can be used to optimize the brewing strains. Ultimately, brewers can enhance the quality of beer by innovative yeast that can be fully customized pertaining to the brewery and its beer with the specific desired parameters in fermentation performance, processing, storage, flavor, and aroma, without compromising quality or brand identity.

Alternatives to Traditional Straining to Drive Innovation in Yeast Market

Studies on the beer and yeast market have pointed at various possibilities that would drive the use of yeast in beer making. For instance, to develop brewers yeast, market players could use hop-accentuating enzymes in high volume which will change the aroma and flavor profiles of the different hop varieties used in beer. Additionally, brewers can add a trait to increase fermentation temperature ranges which would produce desired flavor profiles at lower temperatures, eliminating the problem of off odors that occur at higher temperatures.

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Genetically Engineered Yeast to Offer Excellent Taste to Beer

From great-tasting to cloudy and off-taste beers, yeast accounts for up to a third of a brews final flavor. Brewing yeast has its own genetic limitations. For researchers across the globe, brewing yeast is at the forefront of genetic research and synthetic biology, which is pushing the boundaries of genetic engineering. Geneticists can now tweak the genetic code of brewing yeast to suppress or express certain beer characteristics. From taking out the gene responsible for the butter-flavored molecule diacetyl to using specific gene for banana and clove flavors made by hefeweizen yeast brewers would now be able to use this ability of genetically modified (GM) yeast for the production of beer.

Whether it is straining of yeast or making use of genetically engineered yeast, increased consumption of alcoholic beverages in the world, with beer leading the consumption segment, has witnessed several yeast innovations in recent years, favoring the market growth. For more insights, speak to our expert food analysts at Persistence Market Research to know more about the yeasts market and its impact on the end-user industry.

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Yeast Market Trend, CAGR Status, Growth, Analysis and Forecast to 2028 - 3rd Watch News

Researchers have managed to engineer plants with bigger cells that can store more watergetting them to behave like water-harboring succulents that thrive in deserts around the world. Whats more, this trait could be widely transferred to agricultural crops, a new study finds.

The discovery, detailed in The Plant Journal, hinges on a gene thats found in wine grapes, called VvCEB1, which causes the cells of the fruit to enlarge during development. When the researchers bred that gene into thale cressa plant widely used as an experimental model in researchthey were able to over-express it, which led the plants to develop unusually large cells, capable of storing larger quantities of water. The plants could not only withstand extremely dry conditions, but were also able to tolerate higher salinity in the soil, the researchers found.

In fact, when exposed to drought-like conditions in the experiment, they showed that only 16 to 25% of the regular thale cress plantswhich lacked the over-expressed VvCEB1 geneultimately survived. The difference in the engineered plants was striking: between 91 and 94% of them survived the dire conditions and continued to grow.

Compared to the non-engineered control plants, the engineered cress were found to retain much more waterand the pace at which they lost water was also notably slower than in the controls, the experiments showed.

Presumably, some of this was thanks to their new, larger cells, which act efficiently like a reservoir in times of need. But the researchers discovered that as well as larger cells, the VvCEB1-expressing plants also had fewer and smaller stomata on their leaves. Especially under dry conditions, water transpires out of stomata at a rapid paceso having fewer and smaller portals to the outside world helps them to keep more water locked in.

On top of all this, the engineered thale cress plants had another advantage over their regular counterparts: equipped with larger cells, these plants became more salt-tolerant, the experiments showed. Thats likely because bigger, more watery cells would help the plant dilute salt thats absorbed from saline soils, as the researchers explain. And whats more, the engineered cress had larger leaves and produced more seeds than the controlsuggesting that productivity isnt sacrificed by this particular genetic tweak.

Interestingly, the researchers made this discovery while pursuing a different research goal. Theyd been trying to engineer plants to contain a trait known as crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM), a naturally-occurring feature in some plants that helps them conserve more water by photosynthesizing only at nightwhen its cooler and safer for stomata to be open. To enable this trait, the researchers needed to engineer plants that contained what they call the right leaf anatomy: namely, larger cells in which to store an ingredient called malic acid, which plays a crucial role in enabling the unusual photosynthetic response. It just so happens that the larger cell sizes which serve that purposes could double up as storage space for water, too.

Altogether, the researchers efforts resulted in the model of a plant that could potentially be drought-tolerant and more adaptable in the higher-salinity landscapes that are expected to expand under climate change.Water-storing tissue is considered among the most successful adaptations to drought in the plant kingdom, the researchers write. And yet, its been largely unexplored as a way to bolster crops against the effects of climate change, they add.

They aim to change that: next up, theyll be combining their discoveries on CAM and reservoir cells, and trying to engineer them jointly into crops.

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Engineering plants to withstand drought and tolerate salinity - Anthropoce

The pristine X-ray crystallography data gathered by Rosalind Franklin played a crucial role in the discovery of DNAs structure. Yet when the discovery was recognized by the Nobel Committee in 1962, the winners of the Nobel Prize did not include Franklin, who had died in 1958. Only recently has Franklin received some of the recognition that she deserves for her essential contribution to one of the biggest discoveries of the past century.

We still have a lot of work to do, unfortunately, notes Akiko Iwasaki, PhD, an immunologist at Yale School of Medicine and a fierce advocate for women in science. Things have definitely gotten better since [Franklins] days she tells GEN. But we still have a huge disparity in women representationespecially at the senior level. Iwasaki adds that we have to address what she thinks is the root cause of the problemthe academic culture and the unconscious (or conscious) bias against women and people of color that prevents these brilliant people from moving up the academic ladder.

To mark the centenary of Franklins birth, GEN sought to highlight scientists at the forefront of COVID-19 researchsome of the most influential research currently being conductedwho are women. In this article, GEN speaks with researchers who are leading efforts to track SARS-CoV-2 genomes, to uncover host factors influencing COVID-19 progression, to develop saliva-based COVID-19 tests, and more.

Working as a pediatrician in China, Qian Zhang, MD, wanted to understand why some children are more susceptible to infections than others. Children are exposed to hundreds of pathogens every day, Zhang tells GEN, but only a very small proportion get really severe infections. Zhang has been researching differences in susceptibility for the past decade. Notably, she performed postdoctoral work at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) with Helen Su, MD, PhD. Afterward, Zhang became a postdoctoral fellow at the Rockefeller University, in the laboratory of Jean-Laurent Casanova, MD, PhD.

Working with patient samples, researchers in the Casanova laboratory look for rare, deleterious mutations that might govern susceptibility to infection. In particular, they look for monogenic variants, where a single defect makes an individual far more susceptible to infection. Zhangs hypothesis for COVID-19 is that patients who are susceptible to less virulent respiratory pathogens will also be susceptible to COVID-19. By taking an unbiased approach, Zhang and colleagues may find genetic factors that have never been identified before.

Normally, Zhang analyzes children because it is in childhood that people usually experience infection for the first time. But COVID-19 is different, she notes, because this infection is the first time for everyone.

Zhang previously led the influenza team in the Casanova laboratory. So, taking on COVID-19 is a natural shift. She adds that many commonalities between the two lung infections have been established, and that many tools developed for flu research can be used in COVID-19 work. Besides, there simply arent any more flu patients coming in.

Zhang asserts that her group, like others, has adapted its work to the pandemic. Investigators normally work on well-defined infections. COVID-19, however, isnt so well defined. Too little about it is known. For example, without key pieces of data such as a fatality rate, investigators who look for genetic lesions may be unaware of the lesions prevalence. We have to change our analysis while the data are coming in, Zhang explains.

How much hesitation did Akiko Iwasaki, PhD, have in moving into COVID-19 research? None, she says. I knew the importance of speed and urgency. She notes that she had learned the value of these attributes from her experience jumping into Zika.

Iwasaki, a professor of immunobiology and molecular, cellular, and developmental biology at the Yale School of Medicine and an investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, has spent the past few months trying to understand the immune response of COVID-19 patients. Iwasakis laboratory is working to develop real-time analyses of immune markers and cytokines that could sharpen patient assessments and even inform treatmentdecisions.

The biggest surprise, so far, has been the role of interferon (IFN) in this disease, asserts Iwasaki. For other viruses, such as influenza and rhinovirus, type 1 IFN has a protective role for the host. But SARS-CoV-2 seems different. Studies in a mouse model have shown that IFN contributes to the inflammatory response without shutting down viral replication. According to Iwasaki, this is unusual. In other viral infections, IFN can shut down the virus. But Iwasaki thinks that the IFN here is being induced a little bit too late or in too small of an amount.

Iwasakis main goal is to understand what type of immune response confers protective immunity versus the types that lead to disease. Because patients have diverse responses to SARS-CoV-2, the researchers are working to build disease trajectories that reflect patient-specific aspects of the immune responsecytokine or antibody production, T-cell response, viral load, etc. By conducting longitudinal sampling and following patients trajectories, the researchers hope to predict how patients will fare when they are admitted to the hospital. Ideally, she envisions a panel that could be ordered by a physician that would allow patients to be treated with a more personalized medicine approach, based on their immune profiles.

This analysis has never been done so extensively for an infectious disease, Iwasaki asserts, because we never had the urgency to do this for other viral pathogens. In 2020, thankfully, the technology exists to do this type of analysis in real time.

Another area Iwasaki has recently explored is sex differences in SARS-CoV-2 infection. By studying male and female immune responses, her group found one clue as to why males are reportedly more susceptible to COVID-19. In a preprint posted in medRxiv, Iwasaki and colleagues described how they investigated sex differences in viral loads, antibody titers, and cytokines in COVID-19 patients, and how they found that T-cell activation was significantly more robust in women than in men. Men who dont develop a good T-cell response have worse disease outcomes.

Emma B. Hodcroft, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Basel, recalls agreeing to keep her supervisors project going while he traveled. She was to take charge in early February. Continuity was important because they had just started uploading sequences of SARS-CoV-2 into the online genomics engine Nextstraina collaboration started in 2014 to track flu virus diversity and help predict the next flu strain.

Because Nextstrain has hubs in Europe and the United States, the absence of data uploads at the University of Basel would hamper runs during the European daytime. She has, in her own words, never looked back.

The pipeline analysis that Nextstrain runs makes phylogeny from viral genome mutations. Phylogenetics is a field full of limitations, Hodcroft notes. She adds that the field is particularly troublesome because its beautifully dangerousthe picture that is drawn is always less certain than it looks. While it is tempting to start telling stories about these sequences, she says, one must be cautious. The roughly 40,000 cases currently in the system is a drop in the bucket compared to the number of COVID-19 cases. There is much more likelihood that we havent sampled someone than we have, she admits.

As borders reopen and travel resumes, continued genomic analysis, Hodcroft tells GEN, could uncover details about virus transmission, including transmission routes. She will be keeping a close watch while cautiously communicating new findings. These data are of interest to a large and growing audience, and members of this audience may misinterpret (intentionally or not) what they hear. Deciphering the uncertainty that surrounds the field of phylogenetics requires expertisesomething not all scientists who have ventured into the world of COVID-19 phylogenetics possess.

Hodcroft gets upset when misinterpreted data spark a storyline that needs to be debunked. I dont think that telling these false stories that panic the public helps anybody, she declares. There is plenty to be worried about with this virus.

COVID-19 is the second SARS epidemic Rachel Graham, PhD, has worked on since she started her graduate work in a coronavirus lab in 2002. Currently working in a large coronavirus laboratory at University of North Carolina (UNC) led by Ralph S. Baric, PhD, she says that Barics group has scaled up from what was a busy program to an extremely busy program.

Graham uses large sequence sets to study how the virus transcriptional program contributes to replication and virulence. As the virus mutates, its subgenomic RNAs are produced in different ways, indicating that the transcription itself may be a virulence factor. She says that as the population acquires more herd immunity, researchers may see a lot of transcriptional differences in the virus, and these differences could result in changes in virulence. SARS-CoV-2 will be the first virus where this relatively new idea in virology will be examined in detail.

Lisa Gralinski, PhD, assistant professor of epidemiology at UNC, has been studying coronaviruses for 12 years. Her current work centers around virus host interactions, specifically in animal models such as the humanized ACE2 transgenic mouse. The mouse was developed at UNC in the mid-2000s after the first SARS outbreak. Researchers had even started the paperwork to cryopreserve the mouse just before COVID-19 struck. Quickly adjusting to COVID-19, they changed course and started as many breeding pairs as possible.

Graham and Gralinski may be new to the UNC faculty, but they are veterans in a rapidly growing field. Gralinski notes that six months ago, few people worked in coronavirus. Unlike SARS, SARS-CoV-2 is not currently a select agentwhich means that more people are free to work on it. Both Graham and Gralinski welcome more hands on deck, but theyve been alarmed by some of the ways that people are working with SARS-CoV-2 in their Biological Safety Level 3 (BSL3) labs. SARS-CoV-2 requires special precautions and security due to the high titers used in experiments.

In early March, Anne L. Wyllie, PhD, an associate research scientist in epidemiology at Yale, was chatting with her colleague, Nathan D. Grubaugh, PhD, an assistant professor of epidemiology. He was lamenting the level of SARS-CoV-2 RNA detection in patient samples. Wyllie drew his attention to a method she had been using to detect Streptococcus pneumoniae from saliva samples of asymptomatic carriers.

Her method, which used Thermo Fishers MagMAX Kit for Nucleic Acid Extraction, had worked so well for Wyllie that she suggested that Grubaugh use it to test for SARS-CoV-2. Wyllie recalls that when Grubaugh and colleagues compared the methods, Wyllies method blew the other one out of the water. Ultimately, the MagMAX Kit and the King Fisher platform (which happens to be named Frankie in the lab, in honor of Rosalind Franklin) became the Grubaugh laboratorys method of choice. Wyllie is now co-lead on the COVID-19 project with Grubaugh.

Wyllie was the lead author on a preprint uploaded to medRxiv showing that saliva samples offer a more sensitive and consistent alternative to nasopharyngeal swabs for COVID-19 testing. Saliva samples, the paper argued, should be considered a viable alternative to nasopharyngeal swabs to alleviate COVID-19 testing demands. This could be key to meeting public testing demands.

We knew a pandemic would come and we knew we would have to be ready, says Viviana Simon, MD, PhD, professor of microbiology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. A decade after starting her virology laboratory in 2006, Simon and her colleagues built the Virology Initiative in 2017, which allowed real-time access to samples from patients with viral infections. The goal, she explains, was to study emerging viruses in New York Cityviruses such as Zika, chikungunya, and dengue. Having the initiative established allowed the laboratory to spring into action when the pandemic hit. Simon notes that a virology infrastructure capable of such responsiveness would not be easy to build in the middle of a pandemic.

Simon remarks that there was never any doubt that there would be a pandemic: We thought that it would be a respiratory virus and figured that it would be an avian influenza strain. Any pandemic would almost certainly come through New York City, which serves as a gateway not just for people, but for viruses from all over, she says.

Simon tells GEN that her team heard rumors about a new virus in December and began preparing. The moment the first sequences were released in mid-January, she recalls, We ordered primers. And then? Simon and colleagues waited and waited, she says, for the first case to show up. The first COVID-19 case was diagnosed at Mount Sinai on February 29. Only then could the Simon team grow the virus and sequence it.

Simons team has analyzed the genetic diversity of SARS-CoV-2 circulation in New York City and how the virus was introduced. The team is also interested in assessing the durability of antibodies and determining the degree to which antibodies are protective.

The size of Simons laboratory has doubled, primarily due to a temporary influx of postdoctoral researchers and technicians, volunteers that come from laboratories shut down by COVID-19. This COVID task force jumped in to support the COVID-19 research being done at Mount Sinai. Simon remarks that when temporary personnel start returning to their own laboratories, she will be busy hiring more people.

The dedicated researchers highlighted in this article have been working almost nonstop for months, motivated by a shared passion to beat back a virus that has taken over the world. These researchers represent different scientific backgrounds, and they are tackling different facets of the virus. But they would no doubt recognize common elements in their professional development. For example, the challenges that come with being women in male-dominated fields. Hopefully, it will not take decades to recognize and celebrate the contributions of some of these outstanding scientists.

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COVID-19 Research: Women Are Changing the Face of the Pandemic - Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

University of WisconsinMadison researchers have developed a safer and more efficient way to deliver a promising new method for treating cancer and liver disorders and for vaccination including a COVID-19 vaccine from Moderna Therapeutics that has advanced to clinical trials with humans.

The technology relies on inserting into cells pieces of carefully designed messenger RNA (mRNA), a strip of genetic material that human cells typically transcribe from a persons DNA in order to make useful proteins and go about their business. Problems delivering mRNA safely and intact without running afoul of the immune system have held back mRNA-based therapy, but UWMadison researchers are making tiny balls of minerals that appear to do the trick in mice.

These microparticles have pores on their surface that are on the nanometer scale that allow them to pick up and carry molecules like proteins or messenger RNA, says William Murphy, a UWMadison professor of biomedical engineering and orthopedics. They mimic something commonly seen in archaeology, when we find intact protein or DNA on a bone sample or an eggshell from thousands of years ago. The mineral components helped to stabilize those molecules for all that time.

William Murphy

Murphy and UWMadison collaborators used the mineral-coated microparticles (MCMs) which are 5 to 10 micrometers in diameter, about the size of a human cell in a series of experiments to deliver mRNA to cells surrounding wounds in diabetic mice. Wounds healed faster in MCM-treated mice, and cells in related experiments showed much more efficient pickup of the mRNA molecules than other delivery methods.

The researchers described their findings today in the journal Science Advances.

In a healthy cell, DNA is transcribed into mRNA, and mRNA serves as the instructions the cells machinery uses to make proteins. A strip of mRNA created in a lab can be substituted into the process to tell a cell to make something new. If that something is a certain kind of antigen, a molecule that alerts the immune system to the presence of a potentially harmful virus, the mRNA has done the job of a vaccine.

The UWMadison researchers coded mRNA with instructions directing cell ribosomes to pump out a growth factor, a protein that prompts healing processes that are otherwise slow to unfold or nonexistent in the diabetic mice (and many severely diabetic people).

mRNA is short-lived in the body, though, so to deliver enough to cells typically means administering large and frequent doses in which the mRNA strands are carried by containers made of molecules called cationic polymers.

Oftentimes the cationic component is toxic. The more mRNA you deliver, the more therapeutic effect you get, but the more likely it is that youre going to see toxic effect, too. So, its a trade-off, Murphy says. What we found is when we deliver from the MCMs, we dont see that toxicity. And because MCM delivery protects the mRNA from degrading, you can get more mRNA where you want it while mitigating the toxic effects.

The new study also paired mRNA with an immune-system-inhibiting protein, to make sure the target cells didnt pick the mRNA out as a foreign object and destroy or eject it.

Successful mRNA delivery usually keeps a cell working on new instructions for about 24 hours, and the molecules they produce disperse throughout the body. Thats enough for vaccines and the antigens they produce. To keep lengthy processes like growing replacement tissue to heal skin or organs, the proteins or growth factors produced by the cells need to hang around for much longer.

What weve seen with the MCMs is, once the cells take up the mRNA and start making protein, that protein will bind right back within the MCM particle, Murphy says. Then it gets released over the course of weeks. Were basically taking something that would normally last maybe hours or even a day, and were making it last for a long time.

And because the MCMs are large enough that they dont enter the bloodstream and float away, they stay right where they are needed to keep releasing helpful therapy. In the mice, that therapeutic activity kept going for more than 20 days.

They are made of minerals similar to tooth enamel and bone, but designed to be reabsorbed by the body when theyre not useful anymore, says Murphy, whose work is supported by the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation and a donation from UWMadison alums Michael and Mary Sue Shannon.

We can control their lifespan by adjusting the way theyre made, so they dissolve harmlessly when we want.

The technology behind the microparticles was patented with the help of the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation and is licensed to Dianomi Therapeutics, a company Murphy co-founded.

The researchers are now working on growing bone and cartilage and repairing spinal cord injuries with mRNA delivered by MCMs.

This research was supported by grants from the Environmental Protection Agency (S3.TAR grant 83573701), the National Institutes of Health (R01AR059916, R21EB019558, NIH 5 T32 GM008349) and the National Science Foundation (DMR 1105591, DGE-1256259).

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Tiny mineral particles are better vehicles for promising gene therapy - University of Wisconsin-Madison

CAREER OPTIONS | JULY 08, 2020:

Choosing the right subject and career can put you in a dilemma as it requires research along with a lot of thought process. Deciding what subject to opt for after class 12 is a critical decision every student has to make. Sadly, many students rush and begin career planning at the last minute and end up choosing popular careers, but not suited to their talent.

It must be realised that there is one profession that does not fit all and therefore it is high time for you to start brainstorming to know what options lay ahead of you after school so that you can make a smart and right decision.

It is always advisable to try to choose your career based on your interests or one which is closest to it; try not to grab whatever is left out or blindly follow what your best friends are pursuing and do not take up the course just because you are being forced by the family.

We often make these mistakes for so many reasons, but it is hoped that this article will provide you with some clarity and guidance in finding your desired career option.

MedicalOne of the most popular professions in the Medical sector that every parent desires their children to pursue is Doctor. Medical is a vast field, apart from MBBS and BDS, there also exist numerous medical courses.

Some of them are Nursing, Ayurveda, Allopathy, Homoeopathy, Unani, Veterinary, science courses (B.Sc.), teacher training courses, paramedical courses and other diploma courses.

Apart from top medical colleges in India, you can also apply for medical courses in NEIGRIHMS, Guwahati Medical College, Regional Institute of Medical Science- Lamphelpat, Manipur, Assam Medical College, Regional Institute of Paramedical & Nursing Sciences- Zemabawk, Mizoram, Sikkim Manipal Institute of Medical Sciences, Gangtok Sikkim, Agartala Government Medical College Tripura, Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi Regional Institute of Mental Health (LGBRIMH), Tezpur Assam.

ManagementThe most sought after career in the management courses is Bachelor of Business Management (BBA). Under (BBA) you can opt for your specialization in Finance, Marketing, and Hotel Management. It is one of the top-paying careers indeed.

BBA Courses can be pursued in Guwahati College, Institute of Hotel Management Assam, Dispur college, Assam downtown, Royal Global University, Dibrugarh University, Kaziranga University, North East Institute of Management Science (NEIMS), Jorhat, Sikkim Manipal University -Sikkim, and other private institutions, followed by an internship to enhance your skills and knowledge.

Journalism and Mass CommunicationMass Communication is quickly gaining popularity with young job seekers all over the country. Some of the specialisations you can opt are television, newspaper, radio, advertising, Public Relation etc.

Mass Communication Courses are being offered in various institutions across the Northeast and in various parts of India. Some of the institutes in Northeast are Tezpur University, Assam Don Bosco University, Royal Global University, St. Antonys College, Meghalaya, and Assam School of Journalism.

LawLaw as a profession is in high demand nowadays. If you are interested in pursuing law then you can get yourself enrolled in any genuine and recognised institutes in your city, which offers a course in Law.

Some of the best colleges in Northeast are NEF Law College Assam, Tezpur law college, J.B Law College, NEHU Meghalaya, Shillong Law College, and BRM Government Law College.

AviationThis sector has witnessed enormous growth over the last few decades. This sector is becoming more popular among women nowadays. Students can pursue their flying dreams soon after completing their class 12 by joining short term or long training courses in any genuine and recognised institutes in your city or outside.

Some of the Institutes in Northeast are North East Institute of Management Science Assam and Jettwings Institute of Aviation & Hospitality Management in Guwahati and Shillong.

BankingThe banking sector is a booming industry. If you have passed out your class 12 but dont want to study further and immediately want to start earning then this is the right option for you.

You can sell an insurance policy by joining with SBI, HDFC, LIC and many others. But if you are heading to be an officer or a branch manager then soon after your graduation enrol with exams like SBI, RBI, IBPS, and NABARD. If you find it difficult to prepare for the exams, coaching centres are everywhere.

DanceCareers in this field can be that of a choreographer, performer, and teacher. If you aspire for a career in dance, you can sharpen your skills with training and guidance. There is no specific age to learn dancing. All you need is the will power to master the art.

Fashion DesigningIf you can style a simple dress in such a way that it can instantly grab eyeballs, go for fashion designing. Learn how to blend creativity and styling and bring out the best pieces of clothes that can flaunt any silhouette.

Fashion designing courses can be pursued in Global Institute of Fashion Technology Assam, Guwahati institute of fashion Technology, North East Institute of Fashion Technology (NEIFT) Guwahati, NIFT Shillong, and Guwahati College of Design.

ChefToday, cooking is more than an activity cramped to traditional kitchens. The ability of a chef today has become very modern which is a blend of passion, creativity and hard work for the art of cooking.

If you have a passion for cooking then courses in food processing, catering technology and other relevant areas are being offered by different institutions. The best institutions in Northeast are Assam Institute of Hotel Management, IHM Meghalaya, North East Institute of Management Science etc.

Performing ArtsIf you are a creative and expressive individual passionate about your craft then this is the right option for you. To become a successful performing artist, you can enhance and master your skills by enrolling short term courses in Acting, Dance, and Music.

PilotThe pilot is the one who operates the aeroplane, so without a pilot, the aeroplane will not fly. If you want to become a pilot then this career is for you.

Courses for this profession are available across India and abroad.

SportsOther than actually being an active sportsperson, sports has a highly paid career, such as sports management, sports medicine, sports journalism, adventure sports, fitness and health clinics, sports goods manufacture/marketing or as a commentator.

If you are aspiring to become a trainer or a manager, a graduate degree in physical education can be pursued after Class 12.

EngineeringEngineering is a multi-disciplined field. Engineering as a career has drawn the attention of students in India in a big way and a large number of aspirants taking the engineering exams are testimony to this fact.

Though a large number of students are appearing for different engineering exams like JEE, BITSAT, VITEEE, SRMJEE, not many are aware of the various career options. The most popular types of engineering courses include Mechanical, Chemical, Civil, Electrical and Aerospace engineering.

With the advancement and upliftment of technology, new engineering disciplines like biotechnology, computer, automobile engineering and genetic engineering have gained massive popularity among students.

Top Engineering Colleges in North East is National Institute of Technology, Agartala, National Institute of Technology, Mizoram, National Institute of Technology, Nagaland, National Institute of Technology, Sikkim, National Institute of Technology, Meghalaya, Assam University, NEHU, Tezpur University, Silchar.

Armed ForceDo you love your country and are patriotic enough to devote your entire life in the Service of the nation? Then this is the right option for you.

The above-mentioned careers are just a few of them, there are numerous other careers to explore. The innovative careers right now are jewellery designing, Interior designing, website designing, architecture, writer, blogger, digital marketing, and a lot more.

Besides these, if your dream job is not mentioned here, do not hesitate just follow your dreams. With determination, conviction and hardwork, anything is possible for you.

Good luck!

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Career prospects to choose from after class 12th - thenortheasttoday.com

GMOs, short for genetically modified organisms, are subject to a lot of controversy.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), GMO seeds are used to plant over 90% of all maize (corn), cotton, and soy grown in the United States, which means that many of the foods you eat likely contain GMOs (1).

Although most notable organizations and research suggest that GMO foods are safe and sustainable, some people claim they may harm your health and the environment.

This article helps explain what GMOs are, provides a balanced explanation of their pros and cons, and gives guidance on how to identify GMO foods.

GMO, which stands for genetically modified organism, refers to any organism whose DNA has been modified using genetic engineering technology.

In the food industry, GMO crops have had genes added to them for various reasons, such as improving their growth, nutritional content, sustainability, pest resistance, and ease of farming (2).

While its possible to naturally give foods desirable traits through selective breeding, this process takes many generations. Also, breeders may struggle to determine which genetic change has led to a new trait.

Genetic modification significantly accelerates this process by using scientific techniques that give the plant the specific desired trait.

For example, one of the most common GMO crops is Bt corn, which is genetically modified to produce the insecticide Bt toxin. By making this toxin, the corn is able to resist pests, reducing the need for pesticides (3).

GMO crops are incredibly common in the United States, with at least 90% of soy, cotton, and corn being grown through genetic techniques (4).

In fact, its estimated that up to 80% of foods in supermarkets contain ingredients that come from genetically modified crops.

While GMO crops make farming much easier, there is some concern around their potential effect on the environment and their safety for human consumption specifically surrounding illnesses and allergies (5).

However, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and USDA maintain that GMOs are safe for human and animal consumption (6).

GMOs are food items that have been made using genetic engineering techniques. They comprise 90% of soy, cotton, and corn grown in the United States and are deemed safe for human consumption.

GMO foods may offer several advantages to the grower and consumer.

For starters, many GMO crops have been genetically modified to express a gene that protects them against pests and insects.

For example, the Bt gene is commonly genetically engineered into crops like corn, cotton, and soybeans. It comes from a naturally occurring bacteria known as Bacillus thuringiensis.

This gene produces a protein that is toxic to several pests and insects, which gives the GMO plants a natural resistance. As such, the GMO crops dont need to be exposed to harmful pesticides as often (7).

In fact, an analysis of 147 studies from 2014 found that GMO technology has reduced chemical pesticide use by 37% and increased crop yields by 22% (8).

Other GMO crops have been modified with genes that help them survive stressful conditions, such as droughts, and resist diseases like blights, resulting in a higher yield for farmers (9, 10, 11).

Together, these factors help lower the costs for the farmers and consumers because it allows a greater crop yield and growth through harsher conditions.

Additionally, genetic modification can increase the nutritional value of foods. For example, rice high in beta carotene, also called golden rice, was developed to help prevent blindness in regions where local diets are chronically deficient in vitamin A (12).

Moreover, genetic modification may be used simply to enhance the flavor and appearance of foods, such as the non-browning apple (13).

In addition, current research suggests that GMO foods are safe for consumption (14).

GMO foods are easier and less costly for farmers to grow, which makes them cheaper for the consumer. GMO techniques may also enhance foods nutrients, flavor, and appearance.

Although current research suggests that GMO foods are safe, there is some concern around their long-term safety and environmental impact (14).

Here are some of the key concerns around GMO consumption.

There is some concern that GMO foods may trigger an allergic reaction.

This is because GMO foods contain foreign genes, so some people worry that they harbor genes from foods that may prompt an allergic reaction.

A study from the mid-1990s found that adding a protein from Brazil nuts to GMO soybeans could trigger an allergic reaction in people sensitive to Brazil nuts. However, after scientists discovered this, they quickly abandoned this GMO food (15).

Although allergy concerns are valid, there have been no reports of allergic reactions to GMO foods currently on the market.

According to the FDA, researchers who develop GMO foods run tests to ensure that allergens arent transferred from one food to another (16).

In addition, research has shown that GMO foods are no likelier to trigger allergies than their non-GMO counterparts (17).

Yet, if you have a soy allergy, both GMO and non-GMO soy products will prompt an allergic reaction.

Similarly, theres a common concern that GMO foods may aid the progression of cancers.

Because cancers are caused by DNA mutations, some people fear that eating foods with added genes may affect your DNA.

This worry may stem partly from an early mice study, which linked GMO intake to a higher risk of tumors and early death. However, this study was later retracted because it was poorly designed (18, 19, 20).

Currently, no human research ties GMO intake to cancers.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) has stated that theres no evidence to link GMO food intake to an increased or decreased risk of cancer (21).

All the same, no long-term human studies exist. Thus, more long-term human research is needed.

Although GMO crops are convenient for farmers, there are environmental concerns.

Most GMO crops are resistant to herbicides, such as Roundup. This means that farmers can use Roundup without fear of it harming their own crops.

However, a growing number of weeds have developed resistance to this herbicide over time. This has led to even more Roundup being sprayed on crops to kill the resistant weeds because they can affect the crop harvest (22, 23, 24).

Roundup and its active ingredient glyphosate are subject to controversy because animal and test-tube studies have linked them to various diseases (25, 26, 27).

Still, a review of multiple studies concluded that the low amounts of glyphosate present on GMO foods are safe for human consumption (28).

GMO crops also allow for fewer pesticide applications, which is a positive for the environment.

That said, more long-term human research is necessary.

The main concerns around GMOs involve allergies, cancer, and environmental issues all of which may affect the consumer. While current research suggests few risks, more long-term research is needed.

Although GMO foods appear safe for consumption, some people wish to avoid them. Still, this is difficult since most foods in your supermarket are made with ingredients from GMO crops.

GMO crops grown and sold in the United States include corn, soybean, canola, sugar beet, alfalfa, cotton, potatoes, papaya, summer squash, and a few apple varieties (29).

In the United States, no regulations currently mandate the labeling of GMO foods.

Yet, as of January 2022, the USDA will require food manufacturers to label all foods containing GMO ingredients (6).

That said, the labels wont say GMO but instead the term bioengineered food. It will display either as the USDA bioengineered food symbol, listed on or near the ingredients, or as a scannable code on the package with directions, such as Scan here for more information (6).

Presently, some foods may have a third-party Non-GMO project verified label, which indicates that the product contains no GMOs. However, this label is voluntary.

Its also worth noting that any food labeled 100% organic does not contain any GMO ingredients, because U.S. law prohibits this. However, if a product is simply labeled organic, it may contain some GMOs (30).

In the European Union (EU), foods with more than 0.9% GMO ingredients must list genetically modified or produced from genetically modified [name of food]. For foods without packaging, these words must be listed near the item, such as on the supermarket shelf (31).

Until the new regulations come into place in the United States, there is no clear way to tell if a food contains GMO ingredients.

However, you can try to avoid GMO foods by eating locally, as many small farms are unlikely to use GMO seeds. Alternatively, you can avoid foods that contain ingredients from the GMO crops listed above.

Until the 2022 USDA rule takes effect, its hard to determine which foods contain GMOs in the United States. You can avoid GMOs by limiting GMO ingredients, eating locally, looking for third-party non-GMO labels, or buying 100% organic.

GMOs are foods that have been modified using genetic techniques.

Most foods in your local supermarket contain GMO ingredients because theyre easier and more cost-effective for farmers, which makes them cheaper for the consumer.

In the United States, foods grown using GMO techniques include corn, soybean, canola, sugar beet, alfalfa, cotton, potatoes, papaya, summer squash, and a few varieties of apples.

Although current research suggests that GMO foods are safe for consumption, some people are concerned about their potential health effects. Due to a lack of long-term human studies, more research is needed.

In the United States, its currently not mandatory to label foods that contain GMOs. However, as of 2022, all foods that contain GMO ingredients must have the term bioengineered food somewhere on the packaging or a scannable code to show that it has GMO ingredients.

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GMOs: Pros and Cons, Backed by Evidence - Healthline

Researchers identified a protein that can not only worsen skin inflammation but also plays a key role in damaging joints and bones of patients with psoriasis.

Patients with psoriasis show higher rates of diverse comorbid conditions, such as psoriatic arthritis (PsA), which occurs in one-third of patients with psoriasis and can cause severe, disabling joint disease. However, the reason why so many people with psoriasis develop PsA hasnt been clear.

Since the damage that occurs as a result of PsA is irreversible, identifying patients with PsA early, before too much damage is done to bones, tendons, and joints, is an important consideration, researchers noted.

A team led by Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine researchers discovered that normalizing KLK6 can eliminate skin inflammation and reduce the arthritis-like damage.

"To discover that turning down KLK6 eliminated the skin inflammation and even improved the arthritis-like changesthat was unbelievable," Nicole Ward, PhD, the study's principal investigator and a professor of nutrition and dermatology at the medical school, said in a statement. "This suggests that clinicians need to aggressively treat patients with psoriasis to prevent the arthritis changes, which generally occur after the skin disease presents itself. Since the joint and bone damage are largely irreversible in patients, prevention becomes critical."

In previous research, Ward found that the skin of patients with psoriasis had 6 times more KLK6 than normal. In addition, the PAR1 receptor protein, which causes cellular/tissue responses like inflammation when activated, is overproduced in these patients skin and immune cells. The theory that came from these findings was that KLK6 drove inflammation through signaling of PAR1.

In this new study, the researchers overproduced KLK6 through genetic engineering to develop psoriasis-like skin disease. When PAR1 was deleted, there was a reduction in skin inflammation, as well as an improvement in bone and joint problems.

"These findings suggest that chronic inflammation originating in the skin has the capacity to cause distant joint and bone destruction seen in arthritis, according to Ward.

Reference

Billi AC, Ludwig JE, Fritz Y, et al. KLK6 expression in skin induces PAR1-mediated psoriasiform dermatitis and inflammatory joint disease. J Clin Invest. 2020;130(6):3151-3157. doi:10.1172/JCI133159

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Connection Between Psoriasis and Joint Disease Indicates Early Treatment Can Be Key - AJMC.com Managed Markets Network

(THE CONVERSATION) This summer, for the first time, genetically modified mosquitoes could be released in the U.S.

On May 1, 2020, the company Oxitec received anexperimental use permitfrom the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to releasemillions of GM mosquitoes(labeled by Oxitec as OX5034) every week over the next two years in Florida and Texas. Females of this mosquito species, Aedes aegypti, transmit dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever and Zika viruses. When these lab-bred GM males are released and mate with wild females, their female offspring die. Continual, large-scale releases of these OX5034 GM males should eventually cause the temporary collapse of a wild population.

However, as vector biologists, geneticists, policy experts and bioethicists, we are concerned that current government oversight and scientific evaluation of GM mosquitoes do not ensure their responsible deployment.

Genetic engineering for disease control

Coral reefs that can withstand rising sea temperatures,American chestnut treesthat can survive blight andmosquitoes that cant spread diseaseare examples of how genetic engineering may transform the natural world.

Genetic engineering offers an unprecedented opportunity for humans to reshape the fundamental structure of the biological world. Yet, as new advances ingenetic decodingandgene editingemerge with speed and enthusiasm, the ecological systems they could alter remain enormously complex and understudied.

Recently, no group of organisms has received more attention for genetic modification than mosquitoes toyield inviable offspringor make themunsuitable for disease transmission. These strategies hold considerable potential benefits for the hundreds of millions of people impacted bymosquito-borne diseaseseach year.

Although the EPA approved the permit for Oxitec, state approval is still required. A previously planned release in the Florida Keys of an earlier version of Oxitecs GM mosquito (OX513) waswithdrawn in 2018aftera referendum in 2016indicated significant opposition from local residents. Oxitec has field-trialed their GM mosquitoes inBrazil, the Cayman Islands, Malaysia and Panama.

Thepublic forumon Oxitecs recent permit application garnered 31,174 comments opposing release and 56 in support. The EPA considered these during their review process.

Time to reassess risk assessment?

However, it is difficult toassess how EPA regulatorsweighed and considered public comments and how much of theevidence used in final risk determinationswas provided solely by the technology developers.

The closed nature of this risk assessment process is concerning to us.

There is a potential bias and conflict of interest when experimental trials and assessments of ecological risk lackpolitical accountabilityand are performed by, or in close collaboration with, the technology developers.

This scenario becomes more troubling with afor-profit technology companywhen cost- and risk-benefit analyses comparing GM mosquitoes to other approachesarent being conducted.

Another concern is thatrisk assessmentstend to focus on only a narrow set of biological parameters such as the potential for the GM mosquito to transmit disease or the potential of the mosquitoes new proteins to trigger an allergic response in people and neglect other importantbiological,ethicalandsocialconsiderations.

To address these shortcomings, the Institute for Sustainability, Energy and Environment at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign convened a Critical Conversation on GM mosquitoes. The discussion involved 35 participants from academic, government and nonprofit organizations from around the world with expertise in mosquito biology, community engagement and risk assessment.

A primary takeaway from this conversation was an urgent need to make regulatory procedures more transparent, comprehensive and protected from biases and conflicts of interest. In short, we believe it is time to reassess risk assessment for GM mosquitoes. Here are some of the key elements we recommend.

Steps to make risk assessment more open and comprehensive

First, an official, government-funded registry for GM organisms specifically designed to reproduce in the wild and intended for release in the U.S. would make risk assessments more transparent and accountable. Similar to the U.S.database that lists all human clinical trials, this field trial registry would require all technology developers to disclose intentions to release, information on their GM strategy, scale and location of release and intentions for data collection.

This registry could be presented in a way that protects intellectual property rights, just as therapies entering clinical trials are patent-protected in their registry. The GM organism registry would be updated in real time and made fully available to the public.

Second, a broader set of risks needs to be assessed and an evidence base needs to be generated by third-party researchers. Because each GM mosquito is released into a unique environment, risk assessments and experiments prior to and during trial releases should address local effects on the ecosystem and food webs. They should also probe the disease transmission potential of the mosquitos wild counterparts andecological competitors, examine evolutionary pressures on disease agents in the mosquito community andtrack the gene flowbetween GM and wild mosquitoes.

To identify and assess risks, a commitment of funding is necessary. The U.S.EPAs recent announcementthat it would improve general risk assessment analysis for biotechnology products is a good start. But regulatory and funding support for an external advisory committee to review assessments for GM organisms released in the wild is also needed;diverse expertise and local community representationwould secure a more fair and comprehensive assessment.

Furthermore, independent researchers and advisers could help guide what data are collected during trials to reduce uncertainty and inform future large-scale releases and risk assessments.

The objective to reduce or even eliminate mosquito-borne disease is laudable. GM mosquitoes could prove to be an important tool in alleviating global health burdens. However, to ensure their success, we believe that regulatory frameworks for open, comprehensive and participatory decision-making are urgently needed.

This article was updated to correct the date that Oxitec withdrew its OX513 trial application to 2018.

[Deep knowledge, daily.Sign up for The Conversations newsletter.]

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here:https://theconversation.com/genetically-modified-mosquitoes-could-be-released-in-florida-and-texas-beginning-this-summer-silver-bullet-or-jumping-the-gun-139710.

The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Brian Allan,University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign;Chris Stone,University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign;Holly Tuten,University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign;Jennifer Kuzma,North Carolina State University, andNatalie Kofler,University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

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Genetically modified mosquitoes could be released in Florida this summer - WFLA

The internet

Musk believed the internet, nascent in the '90s, would "fundamentally change humanity," he said on the podcast.

"I would not regard this as a profound insight but rather an obvious one," Musk said.

He compared the internet to the human nervous system: "If you didn't have a nervous system, you wouldn't know what's going on. Your fingers wouldn't know what's going on. Your toes wouldn't know what's going on. You'd have to do it by diffusion," he said.

"The way information used to work was by diffusion. One human would have to call another human or write them in a letter. [That was] extremely slow diffusion. And if you wanted access to books, and you did not have a library, you don't have it. That's it."

He knew the internet could change all that.

And while Musk only had minimal access to the internet at the time (only to use it for his physics studies, he said), he knew the internet would be a "fundamental and profound change."

"Now, you have access to all books instantly, and you can be in a remote mountaintop location and have access to all of humanity's information if you got a link to the internet," he said on the podcast. "Now suddenly, human organisms anywhere would have access to all the information instantly."

Musk believed "making life multi-planetary and making consciousness multi-planetary" would change the world, he said on the podcast.

As a child, Musk was influenced by a variety of science fiction booksand he believed he'd one day "[build] spaceships to extend the human species's reach," according tothe book"Elon Musk." (Musk previously said that theseven-book "Foundation" science fiction series by scientist and author Isaac Asimov, for example, was "fundamental to the creation of his aerospace company, SpaceX.")

On May 30, SpaceXsuccessfully launched two NASA astronautsinto orbit for the first time. It was a milestone forhuman spaceflightand got Musk one step closer to achievinghis Mars ambitions.

Just as a character in the 1997 movie Gattaca undergoes genetic engineering to pursue his dream of space travel, according to Musk, when he was younger he believed being able to change human genetics could change the world.

And it's happening today, with technology like Crispr, Musk said on the podcast.

"It will become normal, I think, to change the human genome for getting rid of diseases or propensity to various diseases," he said. "That's going to be like the first thing you'd want headed out. If you've got a situation where you're definitely going to die of some cancer at age 55, you'd prefer to have that edited out."

"There's the Gattaca sort-of extreme thing where it's not really edited out but it's edited in for various enhancements and that kind of thing," he said, "which probably will come too."

"I'm not arguing for or against it," Musk said. "I'm just saying it's more likely to come than not down the road."

As a teenager, Musk felt a "personal obligation" for the fate of mankind and felt inspired to create "cleaner energy technology" one day, according to the book"Elon Musk."

So he believed that sustainable energy would change the future.

"Sustainability, actually, was something that I thought was important before the environmental implications became as obvious as they are," he said on the podcast. "If you mine and burn hydrocarbons[compounds that form the basis of natural gas, oil and coal], then you're going to run out of them. It's not like mining metals.... We will never run out of metals, but we will run out of hydrocarbons."

He said the future may bring a carbon taxthat would raisethe cost of burning fossil fuels to mitigate climate change, which is a "no brainer."

In 2004, Musk invested in and became a co-founder ofelectric car companyTesla.Hebecame CEO in 2008. On Wednesday, Tesla became the world's most valuable automakerwhen the electric vehicle company's market capitalization surpassed Toyota's for the first time.

"AI is a really major one" too, Musk said on the podcast.

In 2019,at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai, Musk (who co-founded non-profit AI research lab OpenAIbut laterleft the company's board) said computers will "surpass us in every way," including scary things, likejob disruptionfrom robots or even apotentialAIracethatleadstoa third World War.

AI is "capable of vastly more than almost anyone knows and the rate of improvement is exponential," he saidhe said at the 2018 South by Southwest tech conference.

Musk also founded machine intelligence venture Neuralink, because he believes humans must merge with AI to avoid becoming irrelevant.

"We do want a close coupling between collective human intelligence and digital intelligence,"he said at the SXSW conference, "and Neuralink is trying to help in that regard by trying creating a high bandwidth interface between AI and the human brain."

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In college, Elon Musk thought these 5 things would change the world - CNBC