In this episode we talk to Dr. Rasmus O Bak from Aarhus University about the use of CRISPR and its use in cellular therapies. CRISPR has now become a method to not only knock gene’s out but - as Dr. Bak explains - also an all-round tool that can be utilized to a variety of different task. 

We discuss research from Dr. Bak’s research group, examining how CRISPRa and CRISPRi - a method to either active or inactivate genes - can be used in both hematopoietic stem cells and T cells to up- and down-regulate genes and push cells into entire new cellular states.

The articles discussed are:

• “Targeted regulation of transcription in primary cells using CRISPRa and CRISPRi” (Link: https://genome.cshlp.org/content/31/11/2120.long)
• 40-year-old associate professor is this year's recipient of the faculty's talent award (Link: https://biomed.au.dk/display/artikel/40-year-old-associate-professor-is-this-years-recipient-of-the-facultys-talent-award)
• “UK first to approve CRISPR treatment for diseases: what you need to know” (Link: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-03590-6)