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Dalton Alum Phil Nussenzweig '07 Shares His Research with Bioethics and Advanced Biology Students

Phil Nussenzweig, a Dalton alum from the Class of 2007, visited Ron Schollenberger’s Bioethics and Advanced Biology classes for a third year to share his research experiences and the bioethical insights acquired while researching one of the most important and potentially far-reaching biotechnologies discovered to date - the CRISPR-cas9 bacterial immunity/gene editing system.
His presentation to the two Advanced Biology classes focused mainly on the technical aspects of how CRISPR-cas9 is utilized by bacteria to provide an immune response to invading viruses. Phil explained how this understanding of CRISPR-cas9 could be used to manipulate the DNA in other organisms to cure diseases, to add/delete selected genes and to create various “designer organisms.”

In Bioethics, after introducing the technicalities of his research, Phil engaged the students in a lively, thought-provoking, give-and-take about the many bioethical issues surrounding the current use of CRISPR in the laboratory and about the vast array of potential ethical concerns about its use in the future. The ability to easily manipulate the genes of any given animal, plant, bacterium and human being indeed comes with its rewards and its risks, both regarding its scientific/medical, practical uses and its possible questionable/unethical uses. 
 
Phil's passion for his work was quite evident, and he certainly motivated my students to continue to question and thoughtfully analyze a number of the critical considerations about the use of CRISPR once they left the classroom. My students were very grateful that Phil took the time to visit their classes, and we hope to see him again next year.
Enrolled in the Weill Cornell/Rockefeller University/Sloan-Kettering Tri-Institutional MD-PhD program, Phil is conducting his research at the Marraffini Laboratory at Rockefeller University.

Story and photos provided by High School Biology Teacher Ron Schollenberger
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