Translator's Preface
Series Editor's Preface

Introduction: Jigsaw Puzzles and the "Genetic Gap"

Part 1: The Components of Life

Chapter 1: mRNA in the spotlight for vaccine development _Penny Rix
Chapter 2: CRISPR Gene Editing Technology, Winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry _ Dimitri Perin
Chapter 3: Proteins Explained by a Biologist _Nathan Algren
Chapter 4: Three Ways RNA Will Be Used in Next-Generation Medicine _ Oliver Rogoitzki
Chapter 5: Limitations of Human Genome Sequencing for Disease Treatment _Ari Berkowitz
Chapter 6: Somatic Gene Editing: Don't Be So Afraid _ Eleanor Feingold
Chapter 7 How many genes does it take to make a human? _Sean Ni
Chapter 8: Everything About Dolly, the First Cloned Sheep _George E.
Seidel
Chapter 9: CRISPR, Fluorescent Proteins, and Optogenetics _Mark Zimmer

Part 2 Biotechnology, Food, and Environment

Chapter 10: Biotech Foods Explained by an Agricultural Expert _ Kathleen Merrigan
Chapter 11: Organic Farming Through Gene Editing? _Rebecca McElfrench
Chapter 12: Differences in the U.S. and Europe on Genetically Modified Foods _Paul B.
Thompson
Chapter 13: Can Genetic Engineering Save Our Disappearing Forests? _Jason A.
Delvon
Chapter 14: Improving the Taste and Appearance of Plant-Based Meats _Mariana Lamas
Chapter 15: Genetically Modified Mosquitoes That Suppress Disease Transmission_Jason Lasgon
Chapter 16: Cleaning Up Oil Sands Contamination and Mine Waste with Manipulative Bacteria _Vikramaditya G.
Yadav

Part 3: Powerful Tools for Medicine and Health

Chapter 17: A New Gene Therapy That's Very Expensive _ Kevin Docgen
Chapter 18: Viruses That Fight Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria _ Kevin Docgen
Chapter 19: Mini Livers Extend the Lifespan of Mice with Liver Disease _ Mo Ebrahimkani
Chapter 20: 'Humanized Pigs' for Studying Human Disease and Treatment _Christopher Tuggle and Adeline Bocher
Chapter 21: A New Structure of a Protein That AI 'Hallucinates' _ Ivan Anishchenko
Chapter 22: Engineering Bacteria to Treat Genetic Diseases _ Pedro Velda-Pere
Chapter 23: Gene Editing Human Brain Cells to Prevent Opioid Overdose _Craig W.
Stevens
Chapter 24: CRISPR: Combating Immune Responses in Gene Therapy _ Samira Kiani
Chapter 25: 3D Printing to Solve the Organ Transplant Shortage _Saman Nagie
Chapter 26: In Search of the Longevity Gene _ Amanda Kowalczyk

Part 4: The Frontiers of Genetics and Ethics

Chapter 27 CRISPR from the Perspective of Test Tube Babies _ Patricia A.
Stapleton
Chapter 28: Three Parents Baby _ Jennifer Barfield
Chapter 29: Flexible Tools for Evaluating Gene-Edited Foods _Christopher J.
Preston, Trinh Antonsen
Chapter 30: Laboratory-Grown Embryos and Human-Monkey Hybrids _Sahotra Sarkar
Chapter 31 Designer Baby Possibility _A.
Cecil J.
W. Janssens
Chapter 32: The Dangers of Biological Weapons Research _Gary Samore
Chapter 33: The Power of DIY Science as Revealed by Biohackers _ Andrew Lapworth

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The world of biotechnology, where puzzle pieces are revealed every day and a new puzzle begins.
Where is biotechnology headed?

This book consists of 33 articles divided into 4 parts.
Part 1, “The Building Blocks of Life,” consists of nine articles and introduces the basics of proteins, genes, mRNA, replication, and CRISPR, which manipulates the building blocks of life.
A common thread running through most of the writing is that the technologies described originate in nature and were developed through the gradual work of many researchers over decades.
Part 2, “Biotechnology, Food, and the Environment,” examines the potential of genetic engineering in food production and environmental protection, and discusses some of the regulatory challenges this new technology raises.
It highlights how controversial and complex this field is, and how it is driven in different directions by public opinion, expert knowledge, regulation, and hype.
The articles in Part 2 were selected to provide an overview of GMOs, focusing on the scientific aspects but also covering some literary and ethical perspectives.


Part 3, “Powerful Tools for Medicine and Health,” discusses the potential of today’s biotechnology to address some of the most pressing challenges in medicine and describes pioneering experiments that are pointing the way forward for the life sciences.
Over several chapters, each contributor discusses the pros and cons of CRISPR and explains how model organisms can be used to achieve the long-term goal of improving outcomes for human patients.
Part 4, “Frontiers of Genetics and Ethics,” examines in detail the ethical issues raised in Part 3.
Establishing principles for regulating biotechnology is challenging because each country must consider safety, ethics, and competitiveness.
What roles should funders, journal editors, tenure committees, regulators, and philosophers play in establishing new ethical standards and regulations, and who should be responsible for overseeing them? The four essays in this part will stimulate our thinking and help frame and inform the debate.


Collaboration between journalists and researchers

The Conversation is an independent, non-profit news organization that brings expert knowledge to the public through journalism.
A collaborative effort between scholars and editors produces 10-12 articles daily, with scholars drafting explanatory and analytical drafts based on their research and editors assisting in translating these into everyday language.
This book is the first in the Critical Conversations series, a collaborative publication between The Conversation and Johns Hopkins University Press, which selects articles from The Conversation on specific topics and features guest editors from experts on the topic. Mark Zimmer, a professor of chemistry at the University of Connecticut, served as guest editor.