CRISPR has been around since 1987 but scientists have only began to discover the gene editing tool's revolutionary capabilities in the last decade. Whilst on work experience at Delta2020, William Walker Y12 student from the Bishops Stortford High School decided to research his keen interest in this rapidly developing but controversial topic.

What is CRISPR?

The latest tool being developed in biotech laboratories around the world today is “CRISPR” (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats), a genome editing tool that allows scientists to make changes in the genetic material of a cell or an entire organism in an easier, cheaper and faster way than previous techniques. This advanced technology has countless applications for human and animal health, medicine, agriculture, the environment and food supply chain. 

Regardless of what your views on genetic engineering are, the CRISPR technology is being used and has been developing rapidly over the past decade.