Ep. 261, Chapter 1: Introducing Amber Salzman, Ph.D., and Understanding Epigenetic Editing Technology

0:00 – 8:04

Life Science Leader Chief Editor Ben Comer introduces Amber Salzman, CEO and President of Epicrispr Biotechnologies (Epic Bio), a company that leverages epigenetic modulators to control gene expression. Salzman discusses how her family history of neurodegenerative disease guided her career from work on common diseases to a focus on rare diseases, culminating in her joining Epic Bio.

While traditional CRISPR uses a Cas9 molecule to locate and cut DNA, Epic Bio’s epigenetic editing technology deactivates the cutting ability of the Cas9 molecule. It instead fuses a gene regulator to the molecule, allowing it to tell the DNA to either increase or decrease protein expression. This method avoids the risks of genomic instability associated with cutting DNA.