CRISPR pioneer Feng Zhang recounts how Jurassic Park and RNA-guided editing shaped gene editing

CRISPR pioneer Feng Zhang says he disliked biology in high school until Jurassic Park's idea of DNA as life's blueprint drew him in. He describes how early tools such as zinc finger nucleases and TALENs required protein engineering over months, while CRISPR-Cas9, which he noticed at a 2011 talk at the Broad Institute, uses RNA base pairing to guide editing of multiple genes within weeks. Using CCR5 as an example, he stresses that editing involves trade-offs, such as HIV resistance but greater West Nile virus susceptibility, and calls for cautious progress.