CRISPR Gene Editing and the Future of Human Health
SUMMARY
- UCSB Arts & Lectures and the Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara co-present Nobel Prize winner Dr. Jennifer Doudna, CRISPR Gene Editing and the Future of Human Health
- Tue, Oct 22 | 7:30 p.m. | The Granada Theatre
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- She was awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for co-developing CRISPR-Cas9 genome engineering technology
- Dr. Doudna is co-author of A Crack in Creation and the subject of Walter Isaacson’s bestseller The Code Breaker
- Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara proudly sponsors Dr. Doudna’s presentation in celebration of its 75th anniversary
- In 2024-2025 UCSB Arts & Lectures celebrates its 65th anniversary season
- $73.50 / $58.50 / $43.50 / $16 UCSB students (Current student ID required)
- Tickets & Info: Arts & Lectures box office online www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu or call (805) 893-3535; or the Granada Theatre box office at www.granadasb.org or call (805) 899-2222
“I had been told that girls don’t do science. And fortunately, I ignored that.” – Dr. Jennifer Doudna
“The technology of gene editing will be the most important advance of our era, one that will create astonishing opportunities combined with frightening moral challenges.” – Walter Isaacson
SANTA BARBARA — UCSB Arts & Lectures and the Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara co-present Dr. Jennifer Doudna, CRISPR Gene Editing and the Future of Human Health on Tuesday, October 22 at 7:30 p.m. at The Granada Theatre. The world stands on the edge of an era when gene editing can address many serious ills plaguing humankind, says biochemist Jennifer Doudna, who earned the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for co-developing CRISPR-Cas9 genome engineering technology.
New discoveries in this field continue at a rapid pace. The FDA recently approved the first CRISPR-based gene therapy for the treatment of sickle cell disease. At Doudna’s Innovative Genomics Institute, CRISPR is being harnessed to reduce climate change-causing emissions from cattle and to edit the microbiome to solve intractable health issues such as asthma. In cancer treatment, a novel technique dubbed “cancer shredding” uses CRISPR to destroy tumor cells. Co-author of A Crack in Creation and the subject of Walter Isaacson’s bestseller The Code Breaker, Doudna will explore this profoundly powerful technology, its ethical implications and its breakthrough applications in agriculture, environment and medical science.
The Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara proudly celebrates its 75th anniversary, marking a significant milestone in the organization’s commitment to providing funding for superior cancer care to all residents of Santa Barbara County. CFSB has sponsored Dr. Doudna’s lecture in honor of this milestone.
In 2024-2025, UCSB Arts & Lectures celebrates its 65th anniversary season of world class performances and special events.
CRISPR’s Next Advance Is Bigger Than You Think | Dr. Jennifer Doudna | TED
ABOUT DR. JENNIFER DOUDNA
Dr. Jennifer Doudna is the Li Ka Shing Chancellor’s Chair and a Professor in the Departments of Chemistry and of Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of California, Berkeley. Her groundbreaking development of CRISPR-Cas9 as a genome-engineering technology, with collaborator Emmanuelle Charpentier, earned the two the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and forever changed the course of human and agricultural genomics research.
This powerful technology enables scientists to change DNA – the code of life – with a precision only dreamed of just a few years ago. Labs worldwide have re-directed the course of their research programs to incorporate this new tool, creating a CRISPR revolution with huge implications across biology and medicine.
In addition to her scientific achievements, Doudna is a leader in public discussion of the ethical implications of genome editing for human biology and societies, and advocates for thoughtful approaches to the development of policies around the safe use of CRISPR technology.
Doudna is an investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, senior investigator at Gladstone Institutes and the founder of the Innovative Genomics Institute. She co-founded and serves on the advisory panel of several companies that use CRISPR technology in unique ways.
She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Medicine, the National Academy of Inventors and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Doudna is also a Foreign Member of the Royal Society, a member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences and has received numerous other honors including the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences (2015), the Japan Prize (2016), Kavli Prize (2018), the LUI Che Woo Welfare Betterment Prize (2019) and the Wolf Prize in Medicine (2020). Doudna’s work led TIME magazine to recognize her as one of the 100 Most Influential People in 2015 and a runner-up for Person of the Year in 2016. She is the co-author of A Crack in Creation, a personal account of her research and the societal and ethical implications of gene editing.
ABOUT CANCER FOUNDATION OF SANTA BARBARA
Since 1949, the non-profit Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara has been dedicated to ensuring the highest level of cancer care for everyone in Santa Barbara County regardless of means. The Foundation proudly celebrates its 75th anniversary in 2024.
The Cancer Foundation is the exclusive fundraising partner of Ridley-Tree Cancer Center (formerly known as Cancer Center of Santa Barbara). Thanks to the generosity of families and foundations, the Cancer Foundation helps to ensure that the Cancer Center stays in the vanguard of comprehensive, outpatient cancer care, retains highly trained and devoted medical personnel, acquires the latest technology and research protocols and integrates patient support and wellness programs into treatment plans.
The Cancer Foundation raises and distributes millions of dollars each year to Ridley-Tree Cancer Center allowing them to deliver a level of cancer care that would otherwise be impossible in a community our size, on par with many renowned cancer centers in the United States.
The Cancer Foundation is the leading fundraising and grant making non-profit dedicated to cancer in Santa Barbara County. The trustees of the Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara focus exclusively on fulfilling its cancer focused mission.
ABOUT UCSB ARTS & LECTURES
Founded in 1959, UCSB Arts & Lectures (A&L) is the largest and most influential arts and lectures organization between Los Angeles and San Francisco. A&L annually presents more than a hundred public events, from critically acclaimed concerts and dance performances by world-renowned artists to talks by groundbreaking authors and film series at UCSB and Santa Barbara-area venues. With a mission to “educate, entertain and inspire,” A&L also oversees an outreach program that brings visiting artists and speakers into local classrooms and other venues for master classes, open rehearsals, discussions and more, serving K-12 students, college students and the general public.
Dr. Jennifer Doudna is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures and Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara.
Tickets are $73.50 / $58.50 / $43.50 / $16 UCSB students (Current student ID required)
For tickets or more information, call UCSB Arts & Lectures at (805) 893-3535 or purchase online at www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu, or call the Granada Theatre box office (805) 899-2222 or online at granadasb.org
UCSB Arts & Lectures gratefully acknowledges our Community Partners the Natalie Orfalea Foundation & Lou Buglioli for their generous support of the 2022-2023 season.