Recent Clinical Updates From the Gene-Editing...
Nov. 22, 2023
CATCHing Tumour DNA: Using CRISPR to Detect Cancer in the Gut | Wednesday October 18, 2023 | 2:00 pm–3:00 pm CEST / 8:00 am–9:00 am EDT
On-demand webinar is available - Follow this link
CATCHing Tumour DNA: Using CRISPR to Detect Cancer in the Gut
Despite advances in cancer treatment, colorectal cancer (CRC) remains a significant cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Although early cancer detection can improve outcomes, current non-invasive tests, such as faecal immunochemical testing, show limited accuracy. While effective, invasive diagnostic procedures, such as colonoscopy, are unsuitable for large-scale screening because of their high cost and risk. In addition, screening programmes using colonoscopy are only available for individuals older than a certain age, usually 45 years.
In a recent study, researchers at the University of California San Diego, South Australia Health and Medical Research Institute, and Colonoscopy Clinic used CRISPR to engineer Acinetobacter baylyi, a non-pathogenic bacterium commonly found in soil, to detect specific DNA mutations shed by CRC tumours into the gut lumen. Their study demonstrated that the bacteria take up tumour DNA through natural competence and integrate target sequences into their genome through homologous recombination. This prompts a detectable change in the bacteria, allowing sensitive and specific identification of CRC mutations.
This proof-of-concept study provides evidence that engineered non-pathogenic bacteria can be used as biosensors to non-invasively detect tumour DNA in the gut, paving the way for the development of novel early cancer detection methods for large-scale CRC screening.
What will you learn about during this webinar:
- Synthetic biology as a biosensor
- Life healing life
- Colorectal cancer
Webinar Programme (CEST time zone):
- 14.00 Welcome and introduction by Karen O'Hanlon Cohrt PhD., Editor-in-chief, CRISPR Medicine News
- 14.05 Dan Worthley M.D., Ph.D. |CATCHing Tumour DNA: Using CRISPR to Detect Cancer in the Gut
- 14.45 Q & A with Dr. Dan Worthley
- 15.00 Close by CRISPR Medicine News
Speaker | Title:
Dan Worthley M.D., Ph.D., Gastroenterologist at Colonoscopy Clinic, Australia | CATCHing Tumour DNA: Using CRISPR to Detect Cancer in the Gut
Speakers
Dr. Daniel Worthley, M.D., Ph.D., / Gastroenterologist, Colonoscopy Clinic, Australia
Dan Worthley, M.B., B.S.(Hons), MPH, PhD, FRACP, AGAF. is a gastroenterologist and cancer researcher based in Queensland, Australia. Dr. Worthley completed his medical and gastroenterology training in Adelaide, Australia, and his PhD and Master in Public Health at the University of Queensland, followed by a 4-year post-doctoral fellowship at Columbia University in New York. When he returned to Australia, Dr. Worthley established a research programme in synthetic biology and a clinical practice that, together, would reduce bowel cancer deaths in the community. To date, Dr. Worthley has authored more than 100 scientific articles and reviews in journals that include Science, Cell, Cancer Cell, Cell Stem Cell, and Gastroenterology. Dr. Worthley works closely with Professor Jeff Hasty at University of California San Diego, and his clinical practice is Colonoscopy Clinic in Queensland. His mission is to contribute academically, clinically and to policy towards a future where no Australian dies of colorectal cancer.
Read our CMN interview with Dr. Worthley here.
Sign up to the webinar
CATCHing Tumour DNA: Using CRISPR to Detect Cancer in the Gut | Wednesday October 18, 2023 | 2:00 pm–3:00 pm CEST / 8:00 am–9:00 am EDT
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