New CRISPR tool enables more seamless gene editing — and improved disease modeling
Peer-Reviewed Publication
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 11-Sep-2025 04:11 ET (11-Sep-2025 08:11 GMT/UTC)
New Haven, Conn. — Advances in the gene-editing technology known as CRISPR-Cas9 over the past 15 years have yielded important new insights into the roles that specific genes play in many diseases. But to date this technology — which allows scientists to use a “guide” RNA to modify DNA sequences and evaluate the effects — is able to target, delete, replace, or modify only single gene sequences with a single guide RNA and has limited ability to assess multiple genetic changes simultaneously.
Now, however, Yale scientists have developed a series of sophisticated mouse models using CRISPR (“clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats”) technology that allows them to simultaneously assess genetic interactions on a host of immunological responses to multiple diseases, including cancer.
The findings were published March 20 in the journal Nature Biomedical Engineering.
The increasing global interest in outdoor activities highlights the need for detailed 3D outdoor maps. Researchers have developed a novel method for constructing accurate and enriched 3D hiking road maps by combining crowdsourced trajectories and advanced geospatial modeling, addressing gaps in outdoor mapping technology. Tested using 1,170 hiking trajectories in China's Yuelu Mountain Scenic Area, the resulting 3D road network map demonstrated high accuracy in both spatial positioning and elevation estimation. Published in the Journal of Geo-information Science, this innovation provides outdoor enthusiasts with safer route planning and navigation, as well as enhanced support for search and rescue operations in complex terrains.
People who later experienced persistent shortness of breath or fatigue after a SARS-CoV-2 infection were already taking significantly fewer steps per day and had a higher resting heart rate before contracting the virus, according to a study by the Complexity Science Hub (CSH) published in npj Digital Medicine. This may indicate lower fitness levels or pre-existing conditions as potential risk factors.
An international team, led by the Immunogenetics Research Laboratory (IRLab) at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) and the Biobizkaia Health Research Institute, has identified associations between modifications in the placenta and the risk of developing schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression disorder. The study, published in Nature Communications, was coordinated by Dr. Nora Fernandez-Jimenez, assistant professor at the UPV/EHU Faculty of Medicine and Nursing and researcher at Biobizkaia, with Dr. Ariadna Cilleros-Portet as the first author.