Biocommunication and natural genome editing

The biocommunicative approach investigates communication processes within and among cells, tissues, organs and organisms as sign-mediated interactions, and nucleotide sequences as code, i.e. language-like text, which follows in parallel three kinds of rules: combinatorial (syntactic), context-sensitive (pragmatic), and content-specific (semantic). Natural genome editing from a biocommunicative perspective is competent agent-driven generation and integration of meaningful nucleotide sequences into pre-existing genomic content arrangements and the ability to (re-)combine and (re-)regulate them according to context-dependent (i.e. adaptational) purposes of the host organism.     

Programme OECD conference on genome editing

Transgenic Research -     

Current and future editing reagent delivery systems for plant genome editing

Many genome editing tools have been developed and new ones are anticipated; some have been extensively applied in plant genetics, biotechnology and breeding, especially the CRISPR/Cas9 system. These technologies have opened up a new era for crop improvement due to their precise editing of user-specified sequences related to agronomic traits. In this review, we will focus on an update of recent developments in the methodologies of editing reagent delivery, and consider the pros and cons of current delivery systems. Finally, we will reflect on possible future directions.     

Expanding genome capacity via RNA editing

RNA editing, which results in the creation of RNA molecules that differ from the template from which they were made, is a highly specific process. Alterations include converting one base to another, removal of one nucleotide and substitution of another, deletion of encoded residues, and insertion of non-templated nucleotides. Such changes have marked effects on gene expression, ranging from defined amino acid changes to the de novo creation of entire open reading frames. Editing can be regulated in a developmental or tissue-specific manner, and is likely to play a role in the etiology of human disease.     

Designing future farmed fishes using genome editing

<正>Aquaculture, the most rapidly growing food production sector, has exhibited tremendous expansion over the past several decades and it currently accounts for more than half of the global fish production for human consumption. To ensure sustainable aquaculture, it is necessary to breed farmed fish species (strains) with valuable economic traits,such as high production, high quality, disease resistance, and stress tolerance. Modern fish genetic breeding techniques     

New cytosine base editor for plant genome editing

正A large number of beneficial agronomic traits in crops are associated with single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) or point mutations (Jiao et al., 2010; Li et al., 2017; Ma et al.,2015). In the past, site-specific point mutations in a target gene can only be achieved through the CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene replacement via the homology-directed repair(HDR). However, the intrinsically low HDR activity in plant cells and the lack of efficient way to supply abundant HDR templates in plant nucleus have greatly limited the success