Dividing cells in a fertilized human egg. Researchers are engineering cells so that they can add distinctive bits of genetic material into their DNA so that as cells divide, each lineage builds up its own distinctive bar codes. Image Credit: Petit Format/Science Source
HealthTechnology The WorldCan Tiny Cells Become Their Own Historians?
Scientists are trying to get cells to record their evolution by having engineered cells insert distinctive genetic bits in their DNA, which turn into distinctive bar codes. This would help scientists understand the trajectory of each cell over time.
“It’s something that developmental biologists like me have dreamed of for over 100 years,” exclaims Alexander Schier of the University of Basel in Switzerland, co-author of the paper.
The last few decades have been rich in genome research and discovery, including the CRISPR DNA-editing tool, which will be used to record a cell’s history. Indeed, it will be possible for cells to create a genetic record of a notable event, for example, receiving a signal from other cells or making a particular protein. At Caltech, a team is developing a recorder that doesn’t require the destruction of cells to read their history. Instead, they douse cells with chemicals that light up if they bear a specific bar code. In time, sentient cells could be able to track our changing health. The answer to any ailment could be found in the cellular history recorded by those sentient cells.
