Nature, one of the oldest and most important scientific journals, perhaps the one considered as the most prestigious within the international scientific community, recently published the list of seven technologies that will probably have a groundbreaking impact on science in 2022. 

The list includes the complete sequence of human genome, the better characterization of protein structures, quantum simulation, precise genome manipulation, targeted genetic therapies, spatial multi-omics tools, and CRISPR-based diagnostics. Interestingly, almost all of these technologies are connected to Advanced Therapies Medicinal Products (ATMPs).

Reading the article appear evident that genome-related tools will be the main characters of future scientific developments, according to Nature.

The consortium Telomere-to-Telomere (T2T), launched in 2019, is finally completing the sequencing of the whole human genome. Even after the human genome project, nearly 10% of the human DNA sequence remained unknown. Using third generations sequencing methods, T2T consortium is now able to “read” long sequences, mostly formed by repeated motifs, shedding new light on the non-coding part of the genome, considered as evolutionary trash until some years ago. 

According to Nature, 2022 will be a crucial year for gene therapy developments. On one hand, the improvements of CRISPR-Cas9 technology are making available more precise manipulations of the genome, allowing precise gene correction rather than the simply disruption. On the other hand, scientists are testing CRISPR–Cas system for viral diagnostic, generating a measurable signal after the cleavage of the target sequence. 

Another important gene therapy-related topic is the improvement and refinement of the gene vectors. In fact, the potential of nucleic acid-based medicines failed to be fully exploited mostly because of the limited tissues in which they can be applied. To date, adeno-associated viruses are by far the most used vehicle for gene therapy. However, viruses can be challenging to manufacture at high scale and can trigger the immune response of the patient, elicit adverse events. Moreover, their use of several tissue types is limited. Lipid nanoparticles are emerging as a valid alternative: modifying the lipid compositions and the proteins associated with these lipids, various studies demonstrated that nanoparticles can be specifically distributed in the tissues of interest, without adverse effect. 

The article, written by Michael Eisenstein, is available here.