The Code Breaker

Starred review from February 1, 2021
A magisterial biography of the co-discoverer of what has been called the greatest advance in biology since the discovery of DNA. For the first third of Isaacson's latest winner, the author focuses on the life and career of Jennifer Doudna (b. 1964). Raised by academic parents who encouraged her fascination with science, she flourished in college and went on to earn a doctorate in biological chemistry and molecular pharmacology from Harvard. After fellowships and postdoc programs at the University of Colorado and Yale, she joined the faculty at the University of California in 2002. In 2006, she learned about CRISPR, a system of identical repeated DNA sequences in bacteria copied from certain viruses. Others had discovered that this was a defense mechanism--CRISPR DNA generates enzymes that chop up the DNA of the infecting virus. With collaborators, she discovered how CRISPR operates and invented a much simpler technique for cutting DNA and editing genes. Although known since the 1970s, "genetic engineering" was a complex, tedious process. CRISPR made it much simpler. Formally accepted by the editors of Science in 2012, the co-authored paper galvanized the scientific establishment and led to a torrent of awards, culminating in the 2020 Nobel Prize in chemistry. At this point, Isaacson steps back, keeping Doudna as the central character but describing the rush to apply gene editing to altering life and curing diseases, the intense debate over its morality, and the often shameful quarrels over credit and patents. A diligent historian and researcher, Isaacson lucidly explains CRISPR and refuses to pass it off as a far-fetched magic show. Some scientific concepts (nuclear fission, evolution) are easy to grasp but not CRISPR. Using charts, analogies, and repeated warnings for readers to pay attention, the author describes a massively complicated operation in which humans can program heredity. Those familiar with college-level biology will have a better time, but nobody will regret the reading experience. A vital book about the next big thing in science--and yet another top-notch biography from Isaacson.

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March 1, 2021

In this latest work, best-selling author Isaacson (Steve Jobs) takes a close look at how scientific collaboration actually happens in the modern age, in particular the tension between academic institutions and industry. The author does an admirable job of explaining science in accessible terms and also focusing on the human side of the story. Throughout the work, he sketches quick portraits of the dozens of researchers, scientists, and business people involved with CRISPR from the beginning. Also, given Jennifer Doudna's recent Nobel Prize win for CRISPR, readers will doubtless want to hear more about her life and the attribution controversy that often attends such awards. One person who reappears frequently is molecular biologist James Watson. Isaacson seems determined to create a connection between Doudna and Watson, but, although Dounda read The Double Helix as a child and met Watson several times, their personalities and attitudes toward genetic manipulation could not be more different. Color photographs of all the key players are extremely helpful and break up the text into bite-sized pieces. VERDICT Similar to his previous works, Isaacson's latest is another absorbing story of scientific discovery. The final section on the use of CRISPR to combat COVID-19 will only widen the appeal.--Cate Schneiderman, Emerson Coll., Boston

Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from March 1, 2021
In his previous biographies of Einstein, Steve Jobs, and da Vinci, Isaacson has demonstrated a soft spot for scientist-innovators and a deft touch for explicating their work. Here he introduces Jennifer Doudna, a pioneer of the revolutionary gene-editing tool CRISPR, a biotechnology based on the defense system bacteria use to combat viruses. In Isaacson's splendid saga of how big science really operates, curiosity and creativity, discovery and innovation, obsession and strong personalities, competitiveness and collaboration, and the beauty of nature all stand out. The lure of profit, academic prizes, patents, and historical legacy also looms large. The book's cast of complex characters is headlined by Jennifer Doudna, winner of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and the versatile RNA molecule. In addition to his account of Doudna's life, an introduction to molecular biology, and applications for CRISPR (including fighting COVID-19), Isaacson provides a cautious consideration of the moral issues and risk of misuse engendered by a biotechnology that potentially provides a mechanism to ""hack our own evolution."" CRISPR has the power to eliminate sickle-cell anemia and possibly other diseases, but should it also be employed for the enhancement of intelligence, muscle strength, or beauty? Who decides? Science can save us or destroy us, depending on how we wield it.

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