Jennifer Doudna wants to understand RNA-mediated regulation of the genome. Doudna and her team are focused on the discovery and development of CRISPR systems and other RNA-guided mechanisms of gene regulation. In particular, they are studying RNA-mediated initiation of protein synthesis in the hepatitis C virus. They are also investigating RNA-mediated genetic control, in which small RNAs are generated and used to target specific gene transcripts for destruction, in human cells and in bacteria. Each of these projects seeks to understand the molecular basis for RNA function, using a combination of structural, biophysical, and biochemical approaches.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced today that HHMI Investigator Carolyn Bertozzi of Stanford University, Morten Meldal of University of Copenhagen, and K. Barry Sharpless of Scripps Research Institute are the recipients of the 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the development of click chemistry and bioorthogonal chemistry. The Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute announced today that HHMI Trustee David Julius of the University of California, San Francisco, and HHMI Investigator Ardem Patapoutian of Scripps Research are the recipients of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discoveries of receptors for temperature and touch. Researchers learn more details about how CRISPR works in cells. HHMI investigator Jennifer Doudna is among six scientists honored for transformative advances toward understanding living systems and extending human life. Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) scientists have created a portrait of a DNA-snipping protein called Cas9, a powerful research tool used in many labs for genome editing. New research from HHMI scientists reveals how a foreign-DNA-destroying system, known as CRISPR, efficiently locates its DNA targets within a bacterial genome. With a newly discovered component of an adaptive bacterial immune system, scientists have identified a targeted method of slicing DNA that they say can be easily customized for a variety of applications.