Üsküdar University Deputy Director of the Institute of Addiction and Forensic Sciences and Forensic Sciences Department Faculty Member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Kaan Yılancıoğlu gave a seminar titled “CRISPR-CAS Your Genetics Will Not Be Your Destiny”. Yılancıoğlu made important statements regarding the fields of genetics and bioindustry.
“We can now say our genes are not our destiny”
Yılancıoğlu stated that with the development of the Nobel Chemistry Prize-winning CRISPR-CAS genetic editing system, it is now easy to assert that genetics is not people's destiny; “As you know, the CRISPR-CAS tissue system received a Nobel Prize. With the development of this system, we can clearly state that genetics will not be our destiny. We used to say our genes were our destiny, but now we have reached a point where we can say our genes are not our destiny.” he said.
“Although it is thought to be new, it is not a very new system”
Yılancıoğlu stated that the CRISPR-CAS system is known as a relatively new system; “Frankly, many people have only recently heard of this system. There are those who learned about it through the Nobel Prize, but it is a system that people working in our field have been following for a long time. First of all, although it is said to be new, it is not a very new system. Because we know that the CRISPR system emerged in 1993 as a bacterial adaptive immune system. In 1993, a scientist at a university named Alicante, who suspected the existence of this situation, wondered if bacteria had such an immune system. And he became the first person to discover and propose the existence of such a system. In 2003, ten years later, he himself found that bacteria had such an immune system and that it was an adaptive immune system, and he presented this as an article. After this point, the CRISPR system was not yet at its current state. At that time, it was only considered a mechanism in bacteria. In 2006, this work gradually spread to central Europe by other scientists, and evidence began to emerge. In 2008, the CRISPR system was operated by programming for the first time, and in the same year, it was observed that CRISPR could target DNA.” he explained.
“Many different plant species and genetically modified organisms will emerge in the future”
Yılancıoğlu stated that over time, a giant industry called bioindustry has emerged; “From today onwards, we will hear about this more often. Especially during the coronavirus period, we constantly hear about vaccines. This is a harbinger that bioindustry will now become very large at some point. The CRISPR method will be used in all technologies related to living things that you can imagine, such as human health, agriculture, bioresources, animals, and food. Many studies are being carried out in agriculture to make plants resistant to pesticides, and to provide resistance against all kinds of biotic and abiotic stress conditions that you can imagine, such as drought, saline soils, and wind. Many companies have already obtained patents. These companies hold numerous patents. We can say that many agricultural products to be produced in the future will also emerge from these patents. Saying this will not be a prophecy or fortune-telling. Many different plant species, genetically modified plants, will emerge in the future. We used to do it before, yes, but changing more than one gene of a plant at the same time was very difficult, required a lot of time, and took years. Currently, it is possible for us to perform genetic modifications with the CRISPR system. We are talking about a method where we can perform ten, twenty, or any number of genetic modifications simultaneously. In other words, in the past, making one mutation in a plant would take years, but now it is possible to give a plant dozens of mutations, that is, dozens of different features, within months.” he said.