It appears that using "CRISPR" technology, it is possible to "correct the spelling" of various DNA *protein coding subsequences* to replace all coding triplets for a particular amino acid with a single, canonical triplet for that amino acid. This "spelling correction" of an organisms's genome apparently *does not harm* the creature, since precisely the same proteins are still constructed in precisely the same way. However, this "spelling correction" seems to play havoc with a majority of the usual viruses that want to attack the organism, and may provide some degree of immunity -- at least until the viruses evolve to recognize & take advantage of this new/canonical coding triplet sequence. This "spell checking" is analogous to, but simpler than, the "Address Space Location Randomization" which is used to stymie computer computer viruses & malware. Of course, ASLR-type randomization may soon be required in humans & other organisms when the biological viruses begin to recognize a canonical coding. Speaking of viruses, it also appears that tens of *complete viruses* are encoded in animals' DNA -- e.g., pigs -- in such a way that theses viruses can escape from the DNA and become fully active. Typically, these pigs are already immune (or partially immune) to these hidden viruses, but *other organisms* -- e.g., humans -- who come in contact with them may not be. This "hidden virus" problem makes transplanting *pig organs* into humans much more difficult, as transplantation requires *immunosuppression*, which then makes the human recipient completely vulnerable to these hidden viruses. Apparently, CRISPR can also be used to remove these hidden viruses, and thus produce pigs whose organs don't harbor such viruses. https://after-on.com/episodes/024 Episode 24: George Church | Bioengineering After On Podcast #24: The Astounding Present and Dizzying Future of Synthetic Biology (from Boing Boing) George Church's Harvard lab is one of the most celebrated fonts of innovation in the world of life sciences. George's earliest work on the Human Genome Project arguably pre-dated the actual start of that project. Subsequently, he's been involved in the creation of almost a hundred companies - 22 of which he co-founded. Much of George's most recent and celebrated work has been with a transformationally powerful gene-editing technique called CRISPR, which he co-invented. ...