150 anos do DNA

da descoberta ao advento da edição gênica

Abstract

About 150 years after its discovery, DNA is today one of the main molecular tools in Biomedical Sciences, becoming an object of analysis for the understanding of several diseases, even as a treatment option in the area of personalized medicine. The rapid technological advance promoted the onset of new research lines, with implications in both basic and applied research, including the understanding of various diseases of genetic origin through chromosome analysis. Moreover, the knowledge concerning the nature of this molecule also allowed the development of molecular diagnostic tests such as the polymerase chain reaction. Since then, we observed the expansion of Medical Genetics, Epigenetics Research and, more recently, the possibility of genomic editing by Genetic Engineering, enabling the ability of modifying organisms for the production of substances of either pharmacological or economical relevance on a large scale, or a Item a tively the inco r por atio n of characteristics of scientific interest. Through these techniques it was possible to characterize and widely explore the DNA, promoting this molecule from a mere subject of study to a powerful tool in different biological contexts.