For the first time, scientists have captured high-resolution, three-dimensional images of an enzyme in the process of precisely cutting DNA strands.

The images—captured using a technique called cryogenic electron microscopy, or cryo-EM—reveal new information about how a gene-editing tool called CRISPR-Cas9 works, which may help researchers develop versions of it that operate more efficiently and precisely to alter targeted genes.

The findings—published today in Nature Structural and Molecular Biology—hold promise for future treatment and prevention of a range of human diseases caused by DNA m