Aziza Isbekova

Aziza is still picking between two topics: 1) CRISPR-Cas9 systems: the recent approach for diagnostics and therapeutics of COVID-19 disease. 2) Possible use of daisy chain gene drives to address the ethical problems of using gene drives.

Started May 16, 2022

Abstract or project description

Aziza is still picking between two topics: 1) The first case of COVID-19, the novel disease caused by retrovirus SARS-Cov-2, was reported in Wuhan, China in November 2019. Since the first outbreak of coronavirus, 6.33 million people have been recorded to date. The fast rate of new COVID-19 occurrences and accompanying mortality have sparked significant worries around the globe. Early detection of viral infection certainly enables rapid intervention, illness management, and significant limitation of the disease's fast spread. Additionally, we showcase cutting-edge CRISPR-based COVID-19 diagnostic and therapeutic technologies. Due to the requirement for advanced laboratory equipment and qualified staff, the widely used diagnostic technology, RT-qPCR, is only available in centralized laboratories. There is also relatively high chance of results turning out to be false negative or uncertain. Utilizing CRISPR-Cas systems, novel techniques for pathogen diagnostics and nucleic acid detection have recently been created. These techniques offer quick, affordable diagnostic platforms with excellent sensitivity and specificity without the use of intricate gear. It is conceivable to expand the number of daily tests performed in current laboratories and lower the rates of false negative or uncertain results obtained with RT-qPCR by using CRISPR-based SARS-CoV-2 detection technologies. It enables SARS-Cov-2 testing in resource-constrained environments or in emergency situations when RT-qPCR is not practical. This study will also discuss the benefits and drawbacks of utilizing CRISPR-Cas9 for the diagnosis and treatment of SARS-Cos-2. 2) With the advent of CRISPR-Cas9 technology, many opportunities have opened up in the field of genetic engineering, including genetic drives. The development of driving systems that can both propagate through communities to have the desired influence and be recalled in the case of unintended repercussions or public unfavor is necessary. CRISPR-based gene-drive elements would offer novel approaches to tackle ecological issues by modifying the features of wild creatures if they could spread in wild populations, however the possibility of uncontrolled spread greatly complicates their ethical development and usage. This paper describse a self-exhausting CRISPR-based drive system made up of genetic components connected in a daisy chain, with each component driving the one before it. The ability of "daisy-drive" systems to spread is constrained by the continued loss of non-driving parts from one end of the chain. Daisy-drive systems may locally replicate any impact possible by utilizing an equivalent self-propagating drive mechanism. A valuable genetic factor can be almost fixed locally for a variety of organisms by releasing daisy-drive organisms, which make up a small portion of the local wild population. This paper will also adress ethical issues that might arise if technologies that limit the duration time of gene drives will be not applied.