gene editing

Researchers report that 'epigenetic' editing can banish the hepatitis B virus, silencing it without cutting its DNA, according to a Nature news article. Hepatitis B chronically infects hundreds of millions of people and current treatments suppress but rarely cure it, so an approach that permanently shuts the virus down is being closely watched as a potential step toward a functional cure.

Researchers report lipid nanoparticles engineered to carry large RNA payloads and target specific tissues can enhance genome editing directly inside living organisms. The work, published in Nature, addresses a key limitation of delivery vehicles in gene editing by improving both cargo capacity and tissue selectivity. Scientists say such delivery advances could broaden the range of diseases treatable with in vivo gene therapies.

Researchers report engineering a compact CRISPR enzyme with a 60-fold increase in gene-editing power. The mini enzyme, if validated, could make gene therapies more efficient with smaller delivery vehicles, a key limitation in current CRISPR treatments. Coverage in the biology community highlights the size-and-strength tradeoff as a notable advance for therapeutic and research applications.