An interview with Professor John van der Oost
Professor John van der Oost is leader of the Bacterial Genetics group in the Laboratory of Microbiology at Wageningen University. In this interview, he tells us more about his research, which has included revealing that CRISPR-Cas systems use CRISPR-derived RNA guides to specifically target DNA.
Tell us more about your research.
In the course of the ongoing microbial warfare, bacteria and archaea have evolved an impressive repertoire of anti-virus defense systems. Apart from unraveling intriguing molecular mechanisms, several of these systems have been repurposed as tools for genetic engineering.
Since carrying out my PhD research in the 1980s, restriction enzymes have been used in many different projects for generating plasmid constructs. During the last decade; together with a wonderful team of highly talented researchers, molecular details on new types of defense systems have been revealed, several of which are now being used as next generation tools for genome editing.
Throughout the years, the goal of my research group has been to combine the discovery of new microbiological systems, the unraveling of underlying molecular mechanisms, and the repurposing of these systems for relevant applications.
Being a generalist, I have studied many aspects in the field of molecular microbiology. From the central metabolism of bacteria and archaea (from Paracoccus to Pyrococcus), to RNA-guided nucleases and their applications (from RNA to R&D).
Why is this research so important?
A highlight of my research was the successful transplantation of key components of the Escherichia coli CRISPR-Cas machinery to another bacterium, and the design of a CRISPR array, to specifically immunize this host against a bacteriophage. As such, we revealed that CRISPR-Cas systems use CRISPR-derived RNA guides to specifically target DNA. Apart from a fundamental understanding of the defense mechanism, these insights provided the basis for genome editing applications: from engineering of micro-organisms and plants, to gene therapy in human cells.
Why is it important to be a member of an organisation such as the Microbiology Society?
Like many of its national and international sister organisations, the Microbiology Society plays a very important role in facilitating education & life-long learning, as well as communication and collaboration. As such, the Society has been key to boosting the aforementioned progress of life sciences in general, and of the microbiology field in particular. Assuming that the gain of (micro)biology related insights will continue to develop as it did the last 75 years, it is hard to imagine where that will lead us in the course of the next 25 years, and how that will impact our society. My expectations are high!
Why does microbiology matter?
Life science research is in the middle of a revolution. Building on the central dogma of molecular biology discovered in the 1960s, and supported by incredible technological developments (DNA sequencing, genetic tools, PCR, laboratory evolution, comparative & functional genomics), molecular (micro)biological insights have been gained at an unprecedented pace. The last decade, CRISPR-Cas further accelerated progress by enabling highly efficient genome editing of organisms throughout the tree of life.
