In the 1970s, asparaginase (ASNase), an enzyme extracted from Escherichia coli (E. coli) was found to decrease Asn levels by catalyzing the hydrolysis of Asn, leading to the clinical application of L-asparaginase as an anti-cancer therapy for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patients (Clarkson et al., 1970). The gene discussed is ASPG; the disease is cancer.