CRISPR Harnessed to Turn Bacteria into Microscopic Tape Recorders

Scientists have harnessed the bacterial CRISPR/Cas immune system to generate miniature living tape recorders that could feasibly be used to diagnose disease, carry out environmental or microbiological sensing, and record changes in body organs or systems such as the gut."Such bacteria, swallowed by a patient, might be able to record the changes they experience through the whole digestive tract, yielding an unprecedented view of previously inaccessible phenomena," comments Harris Wang, Ph.D., ass