About this Event
P lease note: a promo code is not required to purchase a ticket.
The first therapy using the breakthrough gene-editing technology CRISPR has just been approved in the US to treat sickle cell disease, and CRISPR promises to revolutionize the treatment of many other chronic and fatal diseases.
UC-Berkeley’s own Jennifer Doudna invented CRISPR gene editing in 2012, an accomplishment for which she shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2020.
Her colleague, Fyodor Urnov, another renowned gene-editing pioneer, will introduce us to CRISPR at our Arts and Culture program on Wednesday, January 10, at 7 p.m. (Note the change to the second Wednesday of the month.)
Professor Urnov works with Professor Doudna at the Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI) that she founded at UC Berkeley, in part to ensure that CRISPR cures will be available to all who need them.
Tickets for this program are $5 for club members and $10 for non-members. Please register early so we can be sure to accommodate everyone comfortably. Wearing masks for this event is strongly encouraged.
Known for his ability to make complex science understandable, Prof. Urnov will showcase some remarkable CRISPR successes from clinical trials. These include patients freed forever from the debilitating pain of sickle cell disease as well as others who, after a single CRISPR treatment, have been saved from terminal cancer, been protected from a genetic disease that was destroying their nerves and muscles, or had their inherited form of dangerously high cholesterol normalized.
Yet ensuring that these CRISPR therapies will be widely accessible is a formidable challenge, given that such genetic medicines can cost as much as $3 million per patient. Prof Urnov will describe how, in collaboration with physicians at UCSF and UCLA, IGI is spearheading efforts not only to develop treatments but also to push for urgently needed reforms in how they will be regulated and paid for.
"The invention of CRISPR gene editing gave us remarkable treatment powers,” he wrote in an . “Yet no one should do a victory lap. Scientists can rewrite a person’s DNA on demand. But now what? Unless things change dramatically, the millions of people CRISPR could save will never benefit from it. We must, and we can, build a world with CRISPR for all."
Prof. Urnov was co-developer of the “toolbox” used to edit the human genome and the epigenome, the chemical compounds that regulate genes. In addition, he led the team whose accomplishments underpin the new CRISPR treatment for sickle cell disease. At IGI, he directs the efforts to tailor CRISPR-based therapies to immune disorders as well as neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases, such as Huntington’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and Alzheimer’s.
Born in the Soviet Union, Prof. Urnov earned his undergraduate degree in biology at Moscow State University and his PhD in Biology at Brown University. He attributes his interest in genetics to a gift he received on his twelfth birthday: a copy of James D. Watson's book .
Dr. Urnov is sure to inspire us as he explains the incredible potential of CRISPR treatments while also challenging us to consider the obstacles to delivering them.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave, Berkeley, United States
USD 5.00 to USD 10.00
