Adventures in Home Biohacking with CRISPR: New at Reason

Learn how to make your own super bacteria with Ron Bailey’s DIY guide to biohacking. A sampling:

Using the handy tools sent in the kit, I was set to re-engineer some nonpathogenic E. coli in my kitchen. That might sound terrifying; surely journalists shouldn’t be trusted to build superbugs. Relax. The lab-created strain provided in the kit was developed to be easy to engineer and does not live in the wild. While CRISPR holds incredible potential for in-lab and at-home genetic modification and experimentation, my efforts were strictly school science fair stuff—my modified bacteria posed no civilizational risk, and the process of creating them was fun, fascinating, and empowering.

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