New gene-editing enzyme, NgAgo, proving to be difficult replicate in lab

There are reports that a new enzyme can edit genes, but no one has been able to replicate the original experiment.

Extraordinary research that shows promise in altering mammalian DNA more efficiently than CRISPR-Cas9, but after multiple attempts, no one can recreate the experiment? What gives? There is a lot of speculation, but mostly complaints as to why researchers failed to replicate it.

There have been many controversial reports as to what the possible role of NgAgo is, but none of them involve editing of genes. One theory was that NgAgo was thought to clamp onto a gene and limit it's expression, noted in the experiment on eye development in zebrafish, but this were correct, the enzyme would not permanently change gene function that's passed down every generation.

Another theory was that temperature could play a key aspect to a successful experiment. The original experiment was carried out in a cool environment, which allows the bacteria, that makes the protein, lives.

Whether this protein's role is entirely different than what the original report says it is, needs to be kept in a cool environment, or just simply doesn't work, the debate surrounding this experiment is insane. Until the NgAgo experiment is published, we will never know whether this enzyme is used for gene editing.

Controversy Over New "Gene-Editing Technique" NgAgo

Scientific discoveries in the biomedical world in the last 20 years have put us at the forefront of gene-editing, with many thanks to the CRISPR-Cas9 technique for significant advances and successes in research studies. Now, in China, a new gene-editing technique has supposedly been identified and has been claimed to be more precise and versatile than it's predecessor. NgAgo, an enzyme, was found to edit mammalian genes with precision and overwhelming success... in one study. The biologist to recognize the importance of NgAgo in gene-editing is Han Chunyu, refuses to step down from his claims that NgAgo has clear importance and accuracy in gene-editing.

Above: Han's study focused on editing the genes involved in eye formation of zebrafish embryos.

Due to the overwhelming success that Han's paper seemed to have, many scientists flocked to this new method to find out if it was really as perfect as Han had shown. Despite multiple attempts to recreate the exact conditions of the paper, no existing research has concluded that NgAgo is a gene-editor. From what has been seen thus far, it appears the NgAgo may bind to the gene in question and down-regulate the expression of just that gene. Unfortunately, this change in expression is not inheritable, thus possibly making NgAgo not a viable gene-editor.

There are hopes on the horizon for NgAgo however. A few scientists, Gaetan Burgio included, claim that the enzyme wasn't tested at the proper temperature (the temperature inside a bacterial cell). Further research will be needed to verify if NgAgo can be a superior alternative to CRISPR-Cas9, as this would change genetics for decades to come.