CRISPR Cutout™ is the fourth in a series of mobile educational games developed by the Institute for Molecular Medicine and Infectious Disease at Drexel University College of Medicine. CRISPR Cutout introduces the molecular mechanisms of a cutting-edge genome editing technology called ‘clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats’, or CRISPR for short. The player will create a gene-editing tool and use it in a cell to cut out a sequence of HIV DNA. The game has two guides called Crispy and G that will teach you how CRISPR is created and how it can be used in editing DNA to cure disease. Please visit our other games Hep B-Ware™, Malaria Invasion™, and CD4 Hunter™ to learn more about infectious diseases.

Stay tuned for more games about other microbes that threaten our health.

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Visit our website: www.drexelmed.edu/immid

Game Features:

CRISPR Cutout is a fun, educational mini-game in which players create a gene-editing tool and use it in a cell to cut out a sequence of HIV DNA. The game has two guides called Crispy and G that will teach you how CRISPR can be used in editing DNA to cure disease. By immersing real science within simple gameplay, users learn about how a new and exciting gene editing tool can be used to cure infectious diseases using HIV as an example.

Download CRISPR Cutout for free to:

• Learn complex science through fast-paced and addictive gameplay.

• Learn how guide RNAs (gRNA) seek out and remove unwanted HIV from cells.

Learning Goals:

CRISPR Cutout is the fourth in a series of mini games to be developed by the Institute for Molecular Medicine and Infectious Disease at Drexel University College of Medicine, to introduce players to the world of gene editing. CRISPR Cutout was designed for non-scientists and science students. This app is awesome for use in the biomedical science curriculum in high school or in higher education. CRISPR Cutout focuses on meeting the following learning objectives:

1. Identify the nucleotides that makeup RNA and DNA.

2. Match correct nucleotides between RNA and DNA.

3. Identify Cas9 as an enzyme that can cut DNA.

4. Define gRNA.

5. Describe how Cas9 and gRNA work together to remove unwanted DNA.

Credits:

Executive Producer and Consultant

Brian Wigdahl, PhD

Chair, Department of Microbiology and Immunology (M&I); and Executive Director, Institute for Molecular Medicine and Infectious Disease (IMMID), Drexel University College of Medicine

Project Director:

Mary Ann Comunale Ed.D, M.S.

Assistant Professor of M&I; and Director, the Center for Science Communication and Outreach, Drexel University College of Medicine

Game Designers:

Mary Ann Comunale Ed.D., M.S.

Colin Page

Programmer:

Colin Page

Co-op student at M&I and IMMID, Computer Science Program, Drexel University College of Computing and Informatics

Animator and Artist:

Julia DeBenedetto

Co-op student at M&I and IMMID, Animation and Visual Effects, Drexel University College of Media Arts and Design (Class of 2018)

SPECIAL THANKS TO:

Subject Matter Experts

William Dampier, PhD; Michael Nonnemacher,

Beta Testers:

Microbiology and Immunology Department graduate students

*** Please help us improve this game by reporting any bugs to IMMID@Drexelmed.edu. We welcome feedback and suggestions for upgrades and improvements. ***

©2023 Drexel University