CRISPR Primer launches with Walder Foundation support

Cartoon of Cascade cleaving DNA. Cascade, a grey elongated globular arch, contains crRNA, a thick black line with a green arch, bound to the top strand of a DNA segment. A red bean-shaped Cas3 is on the lower DNA strand, clipping it into small pieces

This week the Bailey Lab launched our CRISPR Primer, created to help people understand CRISPR systems, with a focus on the Type I and III systems that we study.

Though there are many resources about CRISPR written for non-experts, most focus on molecular biology tools and the Type II CRISPR-Cas9 system. Our primer is intended to be a starting point for those who want to know more about the basic biology and diversity of CRISPR in their natural setting as a bacterial immune system. Type I and III systems are more wide-spread in nature than Type II systems, and the specific steps and mechanisms used by each type varies.

Support for the Primer is provided by the Walder Foundation. This private family foundation was founded by Johns Hopkins University alumna Elizabeth Walder and Joseph Walder, a former biochemistry professor at the University of Iowa and the founder of Integrated DNA Technologies, Inc.

The Walder Foundation supports education and communications activities in both the Bailey Lab and the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Department.

The Primer will continue to be updated and expanded in the future. Check back for updates!

Sarah StuderOctober 5, 2020news, primer, Walder Foundation