A video interview that included Jeffrey Miner, PhD, FASN, discussing CRISPR gene therapy and the importance of diversity, integrity, and serendipity in his research was shown at the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) “Learn Serve Lead 2021: The Virtual Experience” event held November 8-10, 2021. Dr. Miner, Eduardo and Judith Slatopolsky Professor of Medicine, is director of basic research in the Division of Nephrology at Washington University.
The AAMC is a nonprofit organization dedicated to transforming health through medical education, health care, medical research, and community collaborations.
The plenary speaker at the event was UC Berkeley biochemist Jennifer Doudna, PhD, who was co-winner of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the development of CRISPR-Cas9 technology. She is also founder of the Innovative Genomics Institute at UC Berkeley and UC San Francisco. Dr. Doudna spoke about the clinical potential of gene editing, how CRISPR could help fight future pandemics, and why the gene-editing technology should be accessible to everyone (see her talk here: AAMCNews recap).
The introductory video featuring Miner aired just prior to Doudna’s lecture. The video also features Miner Lab members Jennifer Richardson and Kohei Omachi, PhD.
“It was a wonderful opportunity for me to speak about the CRISPR technological breakthrough and how we are using it to investigate potential treatments for Alport syndrome in proof-of-concept studies in mice,” says Miner.
The distinguished lineup of Learn Serve Lead 2021 speakers addressed a wide range of topics affecting the academic medicine community, including health equity and racial injustice. In addition to Doudna, other highlighted speakers included: political columnist George F. Will; Pulitzer Prize winner Isabel Wilkerson, researcher and author Brené Brown, LMSW, PhD; best-selling author Heather McGhee, JD; social psychologist and author Jonathan Haidt, PhD; professor J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD; and President and CEO of AAMC David J. Skorton, MD.
See the video featuring Miner below:
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