Skip to main content
Dana Carroll

Dana Carroll, PhD

Languages spoken: English

Academic Information

Departments Emeritus - Biochemistry

Academic Office Information

dana@biochem.utah.edu

Research Interests

  • Societal Issues
  • Genome Editing
  • Genome Engineering
  • DNA Repair
  • CRISPRs
  • TALENs
  • Zinc-Finger Nucleases

Dana Carroll, PhD, is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Utah School of Medicine.

Carroll’s research involves genome engineering using targetable nucleases. His lab pioneered the development of zinc-finger nucleases as gene targeting tools and continued working with the more recent TALENs and CRISPR/Cas nucleases. Much of the effort was focused on optimizing the efficiency of these reagents for targeted mutagenesis and gene replacement, which could ultimately provide treatment for many diseases, including certain types of cancer. This technology has now been applied to more than 200 different organisms, including current clinical trials in humans and improvements in crop plants and livestock. Carroll no longer has an active research laboratory, but he maintains an interest in the applications and societal implications of genome editing.

Carroll received his bachelor’s degree from Swarthmore College, Pennsylvania, and his PhD from the University of California, Berkeley. He did postdoctoral research at the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research in Glasgow, Scotland, and at the Carnegie Institution of Washington Department of Embryology in Baltimore.

Education History

Postdoctoral Fellowship Carnegie Institution of Washington
Postdoctoral Fellow
Beatson Institute for Cancer Research
Postdoctoral Fellow
Doctoral Training University of California, Berkeley
PhD
Swarthmore College
BA

Selected Publications

Journal Article

  1. Wilson RC, Carroll D (2019). The Daunting Economics of Therapeutic Genome Editing. CRISPR J, 2(5), 280-284. (Read full article)
  2. Yarrington RM, Verma S, Schwartz S, Trautman JK, Carroll D (2018). Nucleosomes inhibit target cleavage by CRISPR-Cas9 in vivo.LID - 201810062 [pii]LID - 10.1073/pnas.1810062115 [doi]. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 115, 9351-9358. (Read full article)
  3. Sarno R, Vicq Y, Uematsu N, Luka M, Lapierre C, Carroll D, Bastianelli G, Serero A, Nicolas A (2017 Nov 2). Programming sites of meiotic crossovers using Spo11 fusion proteins. Nucleic Acids Res, 45(19), e164. (Read full article)
  4. DeWitt MA, Corn JE, Carroll D (2017 May 15). Genome editing via delivery of Cas9 ribonucleoprotein. Methods, 121-122, 9-15. (Read full article)
  5. DeWitt MA, Magis W, Bray NL, Wang T, Berman JR, Urbinati F, Heo SJ, Mitros T, Munoz DP, Boffelli D, Kohn DB, Walters MC, Carroll D, Martin DI, Corn JE (2016). Selection-free genome editing of the sickle mutation in human adult hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells. Sci Transl Med, 8(360), 360ra134. (Read full article)
  6. Carroll D, Beumer KJ (2014). Genome engineering with TALENs and ZFNs: repair pathways and donor design. Methods, 69(2), 137-41. (Read full article)
  7. Beumer KJ, Carroll D (2014). Targeted genome engineering techniques in Drosophila. Methods, 68(1), 29-37. (Read full article)
  8. Cho SW, Lee J, Carroll D, Kim JS, Lee J (2013). Heritable gene knockout in Caenorhabditis elegans by direct injection of Cas9-sgRNA ribonucleoproteins. Genetics, 195(3), 1177-80. (Read full article)
  9. Beumer KJ, Trautman JK, Christian M, Dahlem TJ, Lake CM, Hawley RS, Grunwald DJ, Voytas DF, Carroll D (2013). Comparing zinc finger nucleases and transcription activator-like effector nucleases for gene targeting in Drosophila. G3 (Bethesda), 3(10), 1717-25. (Read full article)
  10. Beumer KJ, Trautman JK, Mukherjee K, Carroll D (2013). Donor DNA Utilization during Gene Targeting with Zinc-finger Nucleases.LID - g3.112.005439v2 [pii]LID - 10.1534/g3.112.005439 [doi]. G3 (Bethesda), 3, 657-664. (Read full article)
  11. Christensen S, Pont-Kingdon G, Carroll D (2000). Target specificity of the endonuclease from the Xenopus laevis non-long terminal repeat retrotransposon, Tx1L. Mol Cell Biol, 20(4), 1219-26. (Read full article)
  12. Bibikova M, Wu B, Chi E, Kim KH, Trautman JK, Carroll D (1998). Characterization of FEN-1 from Xenopus laevis. cDNA cloning and role in DNA metabolism. J Biol Chem, 273(51), 34222-9. (Read full article)
  13. Segal DJ, Faruqi AF, Glazer PM, Carroll D (1997). Processing of targeted psoralen cross-links in Xenopus oocytes. Mol Cell Biol, 17(11), 6645-52. (Read full article)
  14. Pont-Kingdon G, Chi E, Christensen S, Carroll D (1997). Ribonucleoprotein formation by the ORF1 protein of the non-LTR retrotransposon Tx1L in Xenopus oocytes. Nucleic Acids Res, 25(15), 3088-94. (Read full article)
  15. Segal DJ, Carroll D (1995). Endonuclease-induced, targeted homologous extrachromosomal recombination in Xenopus oocytes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 92(3), 806-10. (Read full article)
  16. Carroll D, Lehman CW, Jeong-Yu S, Dohrmann P, Dawson RJ, Trautman JK (1994). Distribution of exchanges upon homologous recombination of exogenous DNA in Xenopus laevis oocytes. Genetics, 138(2), 445-57. (Read full article)
  17. Lehman CW, Jeong-Yu S, Trautman JK, Carroll D (1994). Repair of heteroduplex DNA in Xenopus laevis oocytes. Genetics, 138(2), 459-70. (Read full article)
  18. Lehman CW, Trautman JK, Carroll D (1994). Illegitimate recombination in Xenopus: characterization of end-joined junctions. Nucleic Acids Res, 22(3), 434-42. (Read full article)
  19. Lehman CW, Clemens M, Worthylake DK, Trautman JK, Carroll D (1993). Homologous and illegitimate recombination in developing Xenopus oocytes and eggs. Mol Cell Biol, 13(11), 6897-906. (Read full article)
  20. Lehman CW, Carroll D (1993). Isolation of large quantities of functional, cytoplasm-free Xenopus laevis oocyte nuclei. Anal Biochem, 211(2), 311-9. (Read full article)
  21. Jeong-Yu S, Carroll D (1992). Effect of terminal nonhomologies on homologous recombination in Xenopus laevis oocytes. Mol Cell Biol, 12(12), 5426-37. (Read full article)
  22. Lehman CW, Carroll D (1991). Homologous recombination catalyzed by a nuclear extract from Xenopus oocytes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 88(23), 10840-4. (Read full article)
  23. Maryon E, Carroll D (1991). Characterization of recombination intermediates from DNA injected into Xenopus laevis oocytes: evidence for a nonconservative mechanism of homologous recombination. Mol Cell Biol, 11(6), 3278-87. (Read full article)
  24. Maryon E, Carroll D (1991). Involvement of single-stranded tails in homologous recombination of DNA injected into Xenopus laevis oocyte nuclei. Mol Cell Biol, 11(6), 3268-77. (Read full article)
  25. Carroll D, Lehman CW (1991). DNA recombination and repair in oocytes, eggs, and extracts. Methods Cell Biol, 36, 467-86. (Read full article)
  26. Urnes MS, Carroll D (1990). Amylase synthesis as a simple model system for translation and hybrid arrest in Xenopus oocytes. Gene, 95(2), 267-74. (Read full article)
  27. Sweigert SE, Carroll D (1990). Repair and recombination of X-irradiated plasmids in Xenopus laevis oocytes. Mol Cell Biol, 10(11), 5849-56. (Read full article)
  28. Maryon E, Carroll D (1989). Degradation of linear DNA by a strand-specific exonuclease activity in Xenopus laevis oocytes. Mol Cell Biol, 9(11), 4862-71. (Read full article)
  29. Garrett JE, Knutzon DS, Carroll D (1989). Composite transposable elements in the Xenopus laevis genome. Mol Cell Biol, 9(7), 3018-27. (Read full article)

Review

  1. Carroll D (2022). RNA in Therapeutics: CRISPR in the Clinic. [Review]. Mol Cells, 46(1), 4-9. (Read full article)
  2. Carroll D (2021). A short, idiosyncratic history of genome editing. [Review]. Gene Genome Ed, 1, 100002.
  3. Carroll D (2017). Genome Editing: Past, Present, and Future. [Review]. Yale J Biol Med, 90(4), 653-659. (Read full article)
  4. Chandrasegaran S, Carroll D (2015). Origins of Programmable Nucleases for Genome Engineering.LID - S0022-2836(15)00606-3 [pii]LID - 10.1016/j.jmb.2015.10.014 [doi]. [Review]. J Mol Biol, 428, 963-89. (Read full article)
  5. Carroll D, Charo RA (2015). The societal opportunities and challenges of genome editing. [Review]. Genome Biol, 16(1), 242. (Read full article)
  6. Carroll D (2015). Genome editing by targeted chromosomal mutagenesis. [Review]. Methods Mol Biol, 1239, 1-13. (Read full article)
  7. Pauwels K, Podevin N, Breyer D, Carroll D, Herman P (2014). Engineering nucleases for gene targeting: safety and regulatory considerations. [Review]. N Biotechnol, 31(1), 18-27. (Read full article)
  8. Carroll D (2014). Genome engineering with targetable nucleases. [Review]. Annu Rev Biochem, 83, 409-39. (Read full article)

Commentary

  1. Carroll D (2022). Rewriting Nature: The case of heritable human genome editing. Boston University Law Review Online, 102, 1-6.
  2. Carroll D, Meyer BJ (2021). Life 2.0 - A CRISPR approach to a sustainable planet. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 118(22), e2107418118.
  3. Carroll D (2018). p53 Throws CRISPR a Curve. Trends Pharmacol Sci, 39(9), 783-784. (Read full article)
  4. Chandrasegaran S, Bullen CK, Carroll D (2017 Oct 2). Genome editing of human embryos: to edit or not to edit, that is the question. J Clin Invest, 127(10), 3588-3590. (Read full article)
  5. Carroll D (2016 Nov 15). Genome editing: progress and challenges for medical applications. Genome Med, 8(1), 120. (Read full article)
  6. Carroll D (2016). A Perspective on the State of Genome Editing. Mol Ther, 24(3), 412-3. (Read full article)
  7. Bosley KS, Botchan M, Bredenoord AL, Carroll D, Charo RA, Charpentier E, Cohen R, Corn J, Doudna J, Feng G, Greely HT, Isasi R, Ji W, Kim JS, Knoppers B, Lanphier E, Li J, Lovell-Badge R, Martin GS, Moreno J, Naldini L, Pera M, Perry AC, Venter JC, Zhang F, Zhou Q (2015). CRISPR germline engineering--the community speaks. Nat Biotechnol, 33(5), 478-86. (Read full article)
  8. Baltimore D, Berg P, Botchan M, Carroll D, Charo RA, Church G, Corn JE, Daley GQ, Doudna JA, Fenner M, Greely HT, Jinek M, Martin GS, Penhoet E, Puck J, Sternberg SH, Weissman JS, Yamamoto KR (2015). Biotechnology. A prudent path forward for genomic engineering and germline gene modification. Science, 348(6230), 36-8. (Read full article)
  9. Carroll D (2014). Precision genome engineering. Curr Biol, 24(3), R102-3. (Read full article)
  10. Carroll D (2013). Staying on target with CRISPR-Cas. Nat Biotechnol, 31(9), 807-9. (Read full article)
  11. Carroll D (2012). A CRISPR approach to gene targeting. Mol Ther, 20(9), 1658-60. (Read full article)

Editorial

  1. Carroll D (2019). Collateral damage: benchmarking off-target effects in genome editing. Genome Biol, 20(1), 114. (Read full article)

Letter

  1. Urnov FD, Ronald PC, Carroll D (2018). A call for science-based review of the European court's decision on gene-edited crops. [Letter to the editor]. Nat Biotechnol, 36(9), 800-802. (Read full article)
  2. Carroll D, Van Eenennaam AL, Taylor JF, Seger J, Voytas DF (2016). Regulate genome-edited products, not genome editing itself. [Letter to the editor]. Nat Biotechnol, 34(5), 477-9. (Read full article)
  3. Hackett P, Carroll D (2015). Regulatory hurdles for agriculture GMOs. [Letter to the editor]. Science, 347(6228), 1324. (Read full article)

Patent

  1. Carroll D, Bibikova M, Golic KG, Golic M, Drews GN (2012). Target Chromosomal Mutagenesis Using Zinc Finger Nucleases. U.S. Patent No. 8106255. Washington, D.C.:U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
  2. Carroll D, Bibikova M, Golic KG, Golic M, Drews GN (2006). Target Chromosomal Mutagenesis Using Zinc Finger Nucleases. U.S. Patent No. European Patent No. 1476547. Washington, D.C.:U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
  3. Dana Carroll (1988). Taped Technologies (Dr. Carroll's Video).