CRISPR stands for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats, which is basically a bacterial defense system. In the genome environment, CRISPR is often used to refer to the various CRISPR systems that can be programmed to target specific stretches of genetic code and to edit DNA at specific locations. With this researchers can permanently change genes in organisms, which might make it possible to correct genetic mutations in the future.
This relates to engineering because scientists and researchers identified a problem and created a solution. This system was first identified in archaea and later found in bacteria by Francisco Mojica. These repeat sequences of genetic code that are also interrupted with spacer sequences. The enzymes created by Cas9, part of CRISPR, attach themselves to the DNA and shut them off.
https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/primer/genomicresearch/genomeediting
