Because CRISPR applications promise so many benefits, we are impatient to see them realized. Indeed, we may complain that the development of CRISPR therapies is too slow. Nonetheless, a handful of CRISPR therapies have advanced to the early stages of clinical trials, including therapies for sickle-cell anemia, HIV disease, and acute myeloid leukemia.

We are eager to see CRISPR succeed not just in medicine, but in other application areas where humanity faces serious challenges—areas that include crop production, bioenergy, manufacturing, and environmental remediation. To hasten progress in all these areas, scientists are working diligently to add tools to the CRISPR toolbox.

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“We’re starting to see CRISPR-edited agricultural products now,” Doudna noted. “We’ll see many more over the coming years addressing issues like food security, drought and flood tolerance, reducing pesticide and fertilizer use, eliminating agricultural emissions, as well as carbon removal and sequestration.”

For all of the uncertainty that lies ahead, one thing we can all be sure about is that CRISPR will likely have a role in shaping the future of individuals and the planet.

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