REVOLUTIONARY PIONEER, JENNIFER DOUDNA

Priscillahanafiah
6 min readNov 3, 2020

As we start to go to our successful path, we will set up some goals and we start to dream about that. In order to strengthen our skills, knowledge, courage, we will follow the person who is most inspiring for us.

Jennifer Doudna is one of the person as a role model to gain confidence and courage to do things, I am inspired by her by her invention that is beneficial and could help large amount of people.

The way she struggled and succeeded. In this competitive world, we have seen few people working to improve others live by their life story and success they have attained.

Jennifer Doudna

Born : February 19, 1964, Washington, D.C. U.S.

Education : Pomona College (BA), Harvard University (PhD)

Fields : Biochemistry, CRISPR-Cas, RNA biology, Gene editing

Jennifer Doudna is Professor of the Departments of Chemistry and of Molecular and Cell Biology at University of California, Berkeley and an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Early in her career, she studied the structure and mechanism of ribozymes and protein complexes.

Now her research focuses on understanding how RNA molecules control gene expression in bacteria and eukaryotic cells, through CRISPR-Cas9 and RNA-mediated mechanisms, respectively.

We could see that she is very dedicated in her field. Her enthusiasm for the biology world is very clear and very passionate about her job.

Jennifer Doudna and CRISPR

CRISPR technology is a simple yet powerful tool for editing genomes. It allows researchers to easily alter DNA sequences and modify gene function. Its many potential applications include correcting genetic defects, treating and preventing the spread of diseases and improving crops. However, its promise also raises ethical concerns.

What makes CRISPR so revolutionary is that it’s so precise. The Cas9 enzyme mostly goes wherever you tell it to. And it’s incredibly cheap and easy: In the past, it might have cost thousands of dollars and weeks or months of fiddling to alter a gene. Now it might cost just $75 and only take a few hours. And this technique has worked on every organism it’s been tried on.

Her invention, CRISPR has so many benefits that could make the world a better place. This technology has been used into many different things and field that is very useful for large amount of people and develop new things.

These are some of the benefits :

Turning pigs into organ donors

For decades, scientists have considered the controversial idea that animals could provide a ready supply of organs to help ease the organ transplant shortage.

Making new and improved fruit

About the size of a cherry tomato, the groundcherry is sweet with notes of pineapple and mango. It can grow in the U.S., but it’s currently uncommon because the plants sprawl wildly and are hard to control.

Changing flowers from violet to white

Japanese scientists are using CRISPR to change the flower color of a traditional garden plant.
Researchers programmed CRISPR to target a specific gene, known as DFR-B gene, in the Japanese morning glory.

Modifying human embryos

Last year, a scientist in Oregon made headlines when he reported that his team used CRISPR to snip out a heart disease-causing genetic error in dozens of human embryos.

Halting muscular dystrophy in dogs

In dogs with muscular dystrophy, a CRISPR gene-editing treatment appeared to fix the genetic mutation responsible for disease

Creating new treatments for cancer and blood disorders

Injecting CRISPR directly into the body is risky, so for now, investigators are using CRISPR to edit human cells outside the body and then infusing them back into patients. The approach is being used in early clinical trials in the U.S., Europe, and China.

Eliminating mosquitoes

Mosquito-borne diseases, especially malaria, are a deadly scourge. Globally, malaria kills more than 400,000 people every year. To cut down on the spread, some scientists propose using a controversial technology called a gene drive.

By her invention, she made a large positive impact and has something to offer that will make a difference and inspire others.

With CRISPR, scientists can create a short RNA template in just a few days using free software and a DNA starter kit that costs $65 plus shipping. Unlike protein-based technologies, the RNA in CRISPR can be reprogrammed to target multiple genes.

She also shares some inspiring words. One of them that is very memorable to me is

“The more we know, the more we realize there is to know.

— Jennifer Doudna

For me, this quotes is very inspiring. This made me realize that I should never stop learning in every aspect in life. There are so many things and knowledge that we haven’t discovered yet.

Learning is a never-ending journey. From cradle to grave, we are in continuous cycle of learning new things. It is a necessary part of our life. Without learning new things, we will remain unaware of wonderful things in the world.

Learning is about enriching our minds, honing our skills, and changing the way we see the world and ourselves. It improves our behavior and the way we think by expanding and challenging our understanding.

When asked about her success, Doudna comments that much of it was down to her luck in having good mentors early on in her career and having had the freedom to build up her laboratory team with people with whom she shares a personal chemistry and the same scientific vision and drive.

A key essence for her is to have laboratory with a supportive environment where people work together as a team and older members are prepared to mentor those who are younger. Much of her achievement she also attributes to Kaihong Zhou, her laboratory manager, who has worked with her for over thirty years, starting from when she was at Yale University.

Jennifer Doudna has won numerous awards in her time

Jennifer Doudna has won more than five awards. This is very inspiring for me. She has done amazing things in the field that she is passionate about and finally make wonderful things, the result is she get the awards that she deserves.

SIO’s Nierenberg Prize in La Jolla
$3 million Breakthrough Prize
Jennifer Doudna Awarded 2017 Japan Prize for CRISPR Discoveries

Jennifer Doudna inspired us to be bold, have the fortitude and courage to push through their fears, and take a stand on what she believe. As a great influencer and achiever which led to a strong passion, and that passion became so strong that it internally pulled her to herdestination.

She is also very passionate in her field. The education that she took lead her to the path that build her amazing self as she is right now.

With her invention, she is very helpful for so many scientist and others in this field.

For me, to become personally inspired, the best I can do is set up the optimal circumstances for inspiration. An easy first step is simply recognizing the sheer potency of inspiration, and its potential impact on everything we do.

You can check out her blog to see her masterpieces and what she’s up to

https://doudnalab.org/

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