Illustration of the American biochemist Jennifer Doudna (born 1964). Doudna is best known for her work on the CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing molecule. CRISPR/Cas9 is used by bacteria to recognise and destroy a viral pathogen's DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid). Along with French microbiologist Emmanuelle Charpentier, Doudna adapted the system so that it was able to recognise any given DNA sequence and so be used to edit any genome. Doudna and Charpentier were awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work, the first two women to share the award.