CRISPR

CRISPR Cas9 explained. CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) are segments of prokaryotic DNA containing short repetitions of base sequences. is an RNA-guided gene-editing platform that makes use of a bacterially derived protein (Cas9) and a synthetic guide RNA to introduce a double strand break at a specific location within the genome.

Cas9 is an enzyme that snips DNA, and CRISPR is a collection of DNA sequences that tells Cas9 exactly where to snip.

Patent awarded for DNA-targeting complex at heart of CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing

October 30, 2018
By Robert Sanders | UC Berkeley media relations

CRISPR-CAS9 patent awarded to UC Berkeley and Jennifer DoudnaThe University of California announced today that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has granted U.S. Patent Number 10,113,167, covering unique RNA guides that, when combined with the Cas9 protein, are effective at homing in on and editing genes. These RNA/protein combinations act like precision-targeted gene-editing scissors.

https://news.berkeley.edu/2018/10/30/patent-awarded-for-dna-targeting-complex-at…

Jennifer Doudna to receive the 2018 Pearl Meister Greengard Prize

September 14, 2018
Katherine Fenz | The Rockefeller University

Jennifer DoudnaThe Rockefeller University has announced that Jennifer Doudna will receive this year's Pearl Meister Greengard Prize, a major international accolade honoring outstanding women scientists.

Adding a 'switch' to Cas9 to make CRISPR gene editing safer

March 22, 2019
by Angus Liu | Fierce Biotech

University of California, Berkeley, scientists developed new Cas9 variants that could make CRISPR safer. (kirstypargeter/iStock/Getty Images Plus/Getty Images)

One big challenge facing the development of CRISPR gene editing for use in humans is the fear that the Cas9 "scissors" used in the technology could cause unintended off-target effects. Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have come up with a potential solution: a “switch” mechanism that could keep the Cas9 enzyme turned off until it reaches its target site.

In a recent study co-authored by CRIPSR pioneer Jennifer Doudna and published in the journal Cell, the UC Berkeley team described how they used an engineering technique called circular permutation to create Cas9 variants, "ProCas9s," that allow CRISPR to be turned on only in the targeted cells.

Jennifer Doudna awarded 2020 Wolf Prize in Medicine

January 13, 2020
By Robert Sanders | UC Berkeley Media Relations
Jennifer Doudna, UC Berkeley professor of molecular and cell biology and of chemistry, has won the 2020 Wolf Prize in Medicine, a prestigious international prize awarded in Israel for unique contributions to humanity.

Summer Reading List: A Crack in Creation

May 2, 2017
by Berkeley Library Communications

A Crack in CreationPart of the 2017 Berkeley Summer Reading List, A Crack in Creation discusses the origin and impact of the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing technology co-invented by UC Berkeley biologist Jennifer Doudna. Hailed as the scientific breakthrough of the century,...

UC Berkeley launches trial of saliva test for COVID-19

June 30, 2020
By Robert Sanders | UC Berkeley media relations

COVID-19 saliva based test

Scientists from the Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI), the same UC Berkeley group that rapidly popped up a state-of-the-art COVID-19 testing laboratory in March, are now trialing a quicker way to obtain patient samples: through saliva. Saliva, collected in the same way companies like 23andMe and Ancestry.com get samples for DNA genealogy analysis, can be gathered without medical supervision, and that saves time, money and precious PPE.

Life, gene editing, and rock ’n’ roll

November 15, 2017
By Tor Haugan

A smiling woman in a lab coat.Jennifer Doudna, professor and co-inventor of CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing, speaks with Susan Koskinen, head of the Life and Health Sciences Library Division, at the Bioscience & Natural Resources Library on Nov. 14, 2017.

CRISPR gene-editing works to reduce high cholesterol in a new study

November 13, 2025
by Rob Stein | NPR
(NPR) A single infusion of an experimental gene-editing drug appears safe and effective for cutting cholesterol, possibly for life, according to a small early study released Saturday.
https://www.npr.org/2025/11/08/nx-s1-5587748/crispr-gene-editing-cholesterol-hea…

Newly granted CRISPR patents boost UC’s U.S. portfolio to 10

August 2, 2019
By Robert Sanders, Media relations
The University of California has received two new patents for use of the revolutionary CRISPR-Cas9 technology. Five more are expected to be issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office by the end of the summer.

Jennifer Doudna wins Priestley Medal

August 6, 2025
By Veronica Bartell | College of Chemistry
The Priestley Medal is the highest honor given out by the American Chemical Society (ACS), annually recognizing distinguished service to chemistry.