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GES Center Lectures, NC State UniversityGenetic Engineering & Society Center Where biotechnology meets societyethics, policy, and practice. Author: Patti Mulligan
Recorded live from NC States GES Colloquium, this show explores how biotechnologies move from lab to life: microbiome engineering in buildings, CRISPR in agriculture and forestry, gene drives and integrated pest management, data governance and benefit-sharing, risk analysis and regulation, sci-art collaborations, and practical models of responsible innovation and public engagement. Episodes feature researchers, students, and community partners in candid conversations about decisions, trade-offs, and impacts. Learn more at go.ncsu.edu/ges and sign up for our newsletter at http://eepurl.com/c-PD_T. Produced by Patti Mulligan, Communications Director, GES Center, NC State Language: en-us Genres: Courses, Education, Natural Sciences, Science Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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S13E4 - Jake Warner on genome editing in corals
Episode 4
Tuesday, 24 February, 2026
Recorded from NC State’s GES Colloquium, this podcast examines how biotechnologies take shape in the world: microbiome engineering in built environments, gene editing and gene drives, forest and agricultural genomics, data governance and equity, risk and regulation, sci-art, and public engagement in practice. Genome editing in corals Zoom ONLY | An overview of the state of genome editing technology in corals and the ethical issues they elicit. Coral reefs worldwide are experiencing unprecedented losses. Rising sea surface temperatures, declining seawater pH, pollutants, and disease are among the many factors that have led to coral population decline. Given the varied nature of these threats, it is unlikely that a ‘one size fits all’ approach to conservation and restoration will be sufficient. Precision genomics, including genome modification and transgenics, affords new opportunities to develop tailored solutions to these problems. Genomic modification in corals has thus far been hindered by technical difficulties including logistical challenges associated with coral reproduction and the low success rate of traditional transgenic approaches more broadly. Our group has overcome both limitations by successfully spawning corals in captivity year over year, and by developing a novel, high- throughput, gene knock-in strategy which we have demonstrated in several cnidarians including corals. There are potentially transformative applications of this technology: coral transgenic lines could, eventually, be used to drive expression of beneficial gene products that confer tolerance to heat, disease, or other stressors. At the same time, with our bioethics collaborators we are examining the potential ethical, environmental, and policy implications of deploying this technology in corals to generate a framework to guide future stakeholders in its implementation. Warner Lab Download seminar poster > Jake Warner, PhD Associate Professor at UNC Wilmington | Profile Dr. Warner’s lab seeks to understand early development of Stony corals, a long overlooked field of developmental biology. He uses a combination of single cell omics, imaging, and perturbations to derive the gene regulatory networks of early cell type specification in developing corals. His group recently published the first transgenic ‘knock-in’ coral (Warner et al 2025). His group has garnered significant recognition and is funded by the NSF, NIH and international organizations The Genetic Engineering and Society (GES) Colloquium is a seminar series that brings in speakers to present and stimulate discussion on a variety of topics related to existing and proposed biotechnologies and their place within broader societal changes. GES Colloquium is taught by Dr. Zack Brown, and the seminars serve as a great opportunity for our students to build their networks and grow as professionals. To support their efforts, we encourage you to join our in-person seminars, which will now take place in Nelson 4305. Remember, we regularly post colloquium seminars as videos on Panopto and on our GES Lectures podcast, allowing you to revisit or catch up on these recordings at your convenience. Please subscribe to the GES newsletter and LinkedIn for updates. Genetic Engineering and Society Center Colloquium Home | Zoom Registration | Watch Colloquium Videos | LinkedIn | Newsletter GES Center at NC State University—Integrating scientific knowledge & diverse public values in shaping the futures of biotechnology. Produced by Patti Mulligan, Communications Director, GES Center, NC State Find out more at https://ges-center-lectures-ncsu.pinecast.co
