Cats aren't the only ones that play with balls of yarn

Ever seen a cat playing with a ball of yarn? If not, watch this adorable video (or watch it anyway for guaranteed grins and giggles). 

The kittens are super cute, but the ball usually gets destroyed and yarn goes everywhere. However, with scientific advances, the yarn ball can fight back! Well.... not against a cat, but how about cancer?! In a recent study, researchers have developed a highly effective way to introduce gene editing proteins into living cells using a nano-vesicle in the shape of a clew (a.k.a. a fancy name for a ball of yarn). This structure is completely made of DNA, so the cell can easily recognize it and take it in. Inside, it contains a CRISPR-Cas9 complex, which is responsible for the gene editing function. A single guide RNA (sgRNA) can be designed to target certain areas of the genome to let the complex know exactly which DNA segments to cleave before they can be corrected.

So basically, the tiny ball of yarn sneaks its way into a tumor cell, for example, makes its way into the nucleus like nothing is going on, searches the genome, and if/when the sgRNA finds a bad gene, then bam! it sends the CRISPR-Cas9 complex to chop up the bad portion and then put it back together the way it should be through normal DNA-repair pathways. This will hopefully allow the cell to regain its original function and stop displaying tumor cell properties, such as the ability to bypass cell-division checkpoints, mobilize itself, or even avoid apoptosis, which are necessary qualities for tumor cells to proliferate and eventually develop into a cancerous cell line. So the next time you see a ball of yarn, think of the endless possibilities!!

Until next time!
-Michelle

1. Wujin Sun, Wenyan Ji, Jordan M. Hall, Quanyin Hu, Chao Wang, Chase L. Beisel, Zhen Gu. Self-Assembled DNA Nanoclews for the Efficient Delivery of CRISPR-Cas9 for Genome Editing. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2015; DOI: 10.1002/anie.201506030

Not familiar with the CRISPR-Cas9 system? Come back next week for a quick explanation!