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Zhu W, Li M, Zou J, Zhang D, Fang M, Sun Y, Li C, Tang M, Wang Y, Zhou Q, Zhao T, Li W, Hu Z, Hu B. Induction of local immunosuppression in allogeneic cell transplantation by cell-type-specific expression of PD-L1 and CTLA4Ig. Stem Cell Reports 2023; 18:2344-2355. [PMID: 37995700 PMCID: PMC10724073 DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2023.10.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2023] [Revised: 10/24/2023] [Accepted: 10/26/2023] [Indexed: 11/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Immune rejection has long hindered allogeneic cell transplantation therapy. Current genetic modification approaches, including direct targeting of major histocompatibility complex or constitutive expression of immune inhibitory molecules, exhibit drawbacks such as severe adverse effects or elevated tumorigenesis risks. To overcome these limitations, we introduce an innovative approach to induce cell-type-specific immune tolerance in differentiated cells. By engineering human embryonic stem cells, we ensure the exclusive production of the immune inhibitory molecules PD-L1/CTLA4Ig in differentiated cells. Using this strategy, we generated hepatocyte-like cells expressing PD-L1 and CTLA4Ig, which effectively induced local immunotolerance. This approach was evaluated in a humanized mouse model that mimics the human immune system dynamics. We thus demonstrate a robust and selective induction of immunotolerance specific to hepatocytes, improving graft survival without observed tumorigenesis. This precise immune tolerance strategy holds great promise for advancing the development of stem cell-based therapeutics in regenerative medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenliang Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Savaid Medical School, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Mengqi Li
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jun Zou
- Key Laboratory of Organ Regeneration and Transplantation of Ministry of Education, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Jilin, China; National-Local Joint Engineering Laboratory of Animal Models for Human Diseases, Jilin 130061, China
| | - Da Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Minghui Fang
- Key Laboratory of Organ Regeneration and Transplantation of Ministry of Education, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Jilin, China; National-Local Joint Engineering Laboratory of Animal Models for Human Diseases, Jilin 130061, China
| | - Yun Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Savaid Medical School, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Can Li
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Savaid Medical School, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Mingming Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Yukai Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Qi Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Tongbiao Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Savaid Medical School, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Beijing 100101, China.
| | - Wei Li
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Savaid Medical School, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Beijing 100101, China.
| | - Zheng Hu
- Key Laboratory of Organ Regeneration and Transplantation of Ministry of Education, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Jilin, China; National-Local Joint Engineering Laboratory of Animal Models for Human Diseases, Jilin 130061, China.
| | - Baoyang Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Savaid Medical School, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Beijing 100101, China.
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52
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Harb JF, Christensen CL, Kan SH, Rha AK, Andrade-Heckman P, Pollard L, Steet R, Huang JY, Wang RY. Base editing corrects the common Salla disease SLC17A5 c.115C>T variant. MOLECULAR THERAPY. NUCLEIC ACIDS 2023; 34:102022. [PMID: 37727271 PMCID: PMC10506058 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtn.2023.08.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/23/2023] [Indexed: 09/21/2023]
Abstract
Free sialic acid storage disorders (FSASDs) result from pathogenic variations in the SLC17A5 gene, which encodes the lysosomal transmembrane protein sialin. Loss or deficiency of sialin impairs FSA transport out of the lysosome, leading to cellular dysfunction and neurological impairment, with the most severe form of FSASD resulting in death during early childhood. There are currently no therapies for FSASDs. Here, we evaluated the efficacy of CRISPR-Cas9-mediated homology directed repair (HDR) and adenine base editing (ABE) targeting the founder variant, SLC17A5 c.115C>T (p.Arg39Cys) in human dermal fibroblasts. We observed minimal correction of the pathogenic variant in HDR samples with a high frequency of undesired insertions/deletions (indels) and significant levels of correction for ABE-treated samples with no detectable indels, supporting previous work showing that CRISPR-Cas9-mediated ABE outperforms HDR. Furthermore, ABE treatment of either homozygous or compound heterozygous SLC17A5 c.115C>T human dermal fibroblasts demonstrated significant FSA reduction, supporting amelioration of disease pathology. Translation of this ABE strategy to mouse embryonic fibroblasts harboring the Slc17a5 c.115C>T variant in homozygosity recapitulated these results. Our study demonstrates the feasibility of base editing as a therapeutic approach for the FSASD variant SLC17A5 c.115C>T and highlights the usefulness of base editing in monogenic diseases where transmembrane protein function is impaired.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jerry F Harb
- CHOC Children's Research Institute, Orange, CA 92868, USA
| | | | - Shih-Hsin Kan
- CHOC Children's Research Institute, Orange, CA 92868, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Raymond Y Wang
- Division of Metabolic Disorders, Children's Hospital of Orange County Specialists, Orange, CA 92868, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California-Irvine School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
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53
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Kulhankova K, Traore S, Cheng X, Benk-Fortin H, Hallée S, Harvey M, Roberge J, Couture F, Kohli S, Gross TJ, Meyerholz DK, Rettig GR, Thommandru B, Kurgan G, Wohlford-Lenane C, Hartigan-O'Connor DJ, Yates BP, Newby GA, Liu DR, Tarantal AF, Guay D, McCray PB. Shuttle peptide delivers base editor RNPs to rhesus monkey airway epithelial cells in vivo. Nat Commun 2023; 14:8051. [PMID: 38052872 PMCID: PMC10698009 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-43904-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2023] [Accepted: 11/23/2023] [Indexed: 12/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Gene editing strategies for cystic fibrosis are challenged by the complex barrier properties of airway epithelia. We previously reported that the amphiphilic S10 shuttle peptide non-covalently combined with CRISPR-associated (Cas) ribonucleoprotein (RNP) enabled editing of human and mouse airway epithelial cells. Here, we derive the S315 peptide as an improvement over S10 in delivering base editor RNP. Following intratracheal aerosol delivery of Cy5-labeled peptide in rhesus macaques, we confirm delivery throughout the respiratory tract. Subsequently, we target CCR5 with co-administration of ABE8e-Cas9 RNP and S315. We achieve editing efficiencies of up-to 5.3% in rhesus airway epithelia. Moreover, we document persistence of edited epithelia for up to 12 months in mice. Finally, delivery of ABE8e-Cas9 targeting the CFTR R553X mutation restores anion channel function in cultured human airway epithelia. These results demonstrate the therapeutic potential of base editor delivery with S315 to functionally correct the CFTR R553X mutation in respiratory epithelia.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Soumba Traore
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Sajeev Kohli
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Thomas J Gross
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | | | | | | | - Gavin Kurgan
- Integrated DNA Technologies, Coralville, IA, USA
| | | | - Dennis J Hartigan-O'Connor
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, UC Davis, Davis, CA, USA
- California National Primate Research Center, UC Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Bradley P Yates
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Gregory A Newby
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - David R Liu
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Alice F Tarantal
- California National Primate Research Center, UC Davis, Davis, CA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, UC Davis, Davis, CA, USA
- Department of Cell Biology and Human Anatomy, School of Medicine, UC Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | | | - Paul B McCray
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA.
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54
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Störtz F, Mak JK, Minary P. piCRISPR: Physically informed deep learning models for CRISPR/Cas9 off-target cleavage prediction. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN THE LIFE SCIENCES 2023; 3:None. [PMID: 38047242 PMCID: PMC10316064 DOI: 10.1016/j.ailsci.2023.100075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Revised: 04/02/2023] [Accepted: 04/30/2023] [Indexed: 12/05/2023]
Abstract
CRISPR/Cas programmable nuclease systems have become ubiquitous in the field of gene editing. With progressing development, applications in in vivo therapeutic gene editing are increasingly within reach, yet limited by possible adverse side effects from unwanted edits. Recent years have thus seen continuous development of off-target prediction algorithms trained on in vitro cleavage assay data gained from immortalised cell lines. It has been shown that in contrast to experimental epigenetic features, computed physically informed features are so far underutilised despite bearing considerably larger correlation with cleavage activity. Here, we implement state-of-the-art deep learning algorithms and feature encodings for off-target prediction with emphasis on physically informed features that capture the biological environment of the cleavage site, hence terming our approach piCRISPR. Features were gained from the large, diverse crisprSQL off-target cleavage dataset. We find that our best-performing models highlight the importance of sequence context and chromatin accessibility for cleavage prediction and compare favourably with literature standard prediction performance. We further show that our novel, environmentally sensitive features are crucial to accurate prediction on sequence-identical locus pairs, making them highly relevant for clinical guide design. The source code and trained models can be found ready to use at github.com/florianst/picrispr.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Störtz
- Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QD, UK
| | - Jeffrey K. Mak
- Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QD, UK
| | - Peter Minary
- Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QD, UK
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55
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Zhang Z, Lamson AR, Shelley M, Troyanskaya O. Interpretable neural architecture search and transfer learning for understanding CRISPR-Cas9 off-target enzymatic reactions. NATURE COMPUTATIONAL SCIENCE 2023; 3:1056-1066. [PMID: 38177723 DOI: 10.1038/s43588-023-00569-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2023] [Accepted: 11/08/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024]
Abstract
Finely tuned enzymatic pathways control cellular processes, and their dysregulation can lead to disease. Developing predictive and interpretable models for these pathways is challenging because of the complexity of the pathways and of the cellular and genomic contexts. Here we introduce Elektrum, a deep learning framework that addresses these challenges with data-driven and biophysically interpretable models for determining the kinetics of biochemical systems. First, it uses in vitro kinetic assays to rapidly hypothesize an ensemble of high-quality kinetically interpretable neural networks (KINNs) that predict reaction rates. It then employs a transfer learning step, where the KINNs are inserted as intermediary layers into deeper convolutional neural networks, fine-tuning the predictions for reaction-dependent in vivo outcomes. We apply Elektrum to predict CRISPR-Cas9 off-target editing probabilities and demonstrate that Elektrum achieves improved performance, regularizes neural network architectures and maintains physical interpretability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zijun Zhang
- Division of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Adam R Lamson
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Michael Shelley
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, New York City, NY, USA.
- Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University, New York City, NY, USA.
| | - Olga Troyanskaya
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, New York City, NY, USA.
- Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA.
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56
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Overton MS, Guy SE, Chen X, Martsul A, Carolino K, Akbari OS, Meyer JR, Kryazhimskiy S. Upper Bound on the Mutational Burden Imposed by a CRISPR-Cas9 Gene-Drive Element. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.11.28.569142. [PMID: 38076841 PMCID: PMC10705488 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.28.569142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
CRISPR-Cas9 gene drives (CCGDs) are powerful tools for genetic control of wild populations, useful for eradication of disease vectors, conservation of endangered species and other applications. However, Cas9 alone and in a complex with gRNA can cause double-stranded DNA breaks at off-target sites, which could increase the mutational load and lead to loss of heterozygosity (LOH). These undesired effects raise potential concerns about the long-term evolutionary safety of CCGDs, but the magnitude of these effects is unknown. To estimate how the presence of a CCGD or a Cas9 alone in the genome affects the rates of LOH events and de novo mutations, we carried out a mutation accumulation experiment in yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Despite its substantial statistical power, our experiment revealed no detectable effect of CCGD or Cas9 alone on the genome-wide rates of mutations or LOH events, suggesting that these rates are affected by less than 30%. Nevertheless, we found that Cas9 caused a slight but significant shift towards more interstitial and fewer terminal LOH events, and the CCGD caused a significant difference in the distribution of LOH events on Chromosome V. Taken together, our results show that these genetic elements impose a weak and likely localized additional mutational burden in the yeast model. Although the mutagenic effects of CCGDs need to be further evaluated in other systems, our results suggest that the effect of CCGDs on off-target mutation rates and genetic diversity may be acceptable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael S. Overton
- Department of Ecology, Behavior and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093
| | - Sean E. Guy
- Department of Ecology, Behavior and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093
- Current address: Bionano Genomics, San Diego, CA 92121
| | - Xingsen Chen
- Department of Ecology, Behavior and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093
- Current address: Department of Entomology, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
| | - Alena Martsul
- Department of Ecology, Behavior and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093
- Current address: Illumina Inc., San Diego, CA 92122
| | - Krypton Carolino
- Department of Ecology, Behavior and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093
| | - Omar S. Akbari
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Justin R. Meyer
- Department of Ecology, Behavior and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093
| | - Sergey Kryazhimskiy
- Department of Ecology, Behavior and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093
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57
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Chen Q, Chuai G, Zhang H, Tang J, Duan L, Guan H, Li W, Li W, Wen J, Zuo E, Zhang Q, Liu Q. Genome-wide CRISPR off-target prediction and optimization using RNA-DNA interaction fingerprints. Nat Commun 2023; 14:7521. [PMID: 37980345 PMCID: PMC10657421 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42695-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/19/2023] [Indexed: 11/20/2023] Open
Abstract
The powerful CRISPR genome editing system is hindered by its off-target effects, and existing computational tools achieved limited performance in genome-wide off-target prediction due to the lack of deep understanding of the CRISPR molecular mechanism. In this study, we propose to incorporate molecular dynamics (MD) simulations in the computational analysis of CRISPR system, and present CRISOT, an integrated tool suite containing four related modules, i.e., CRISOT-FP, CRISOT-Score, CRISOT-Spec, CRISORT-Opti for RNA-DNA molecular interaction fingerprint generation, genome-wide CRISPR off-target prediction, sgRNA specificity evaluation and sgRNA optimization of Cas9 system respectively. Our comprehensive computational and experimental tests reveal that CRISOT outperforms existing tools with extensive in silico validations and proof-of-concept experimental validations. In addition, CRISOT shows potential in accurately predicting off-target effects of the base editors and prime editors, indicating that the derived RNA-DNA molecular interaction fingerprint captures the underlying mechanisms of RNA-DNA interaction among distinct CRISPR systems. Collectively, CRISOT provides an efficient and generalizable framework for genome-wide CRISPR off-target prediction, evaluation and sgRNA optimization for improved targeting specificity in CRISPR genome editing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qinchang Chen
- Key Laboratory of Spine and Spinal Cord Injury Repair and Regeneration (Tongji University), Ministry of Education, Orthopaedic Department of Tongji Hospital, Frontier Science Center for Stem Cell Research, Bioinformatics Department, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
- Translational Medical Center for Stem Cell Therapy and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Shanghai East Hospital, Frontier Science Center for Stem Cell Research, Bioinformatics Department, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
- Research Institute of Intelligent Computing, Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, 311121, China
| | - Guohui Chuai
- Translational Medical Center for Stem Cell Therapy and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Shanghai East Hospital, Frontier Science Center for Stem Cell Research, Bioinformatics Department, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
- Shanghai Research Institute for Intelligent Autonomous Systems, Shanghai, 201210, China
| | - Haihang Zhang
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Jin Tang
- Research Institute of Intelligent Computing, Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, 311121, China
| | - Liwen Duan
- Research Institute of Intelligent Computing, Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, 311121, China
| | - Huan Guan
- Research Institute of Intelligent Computing, Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, 311121, China
| | - Wenhui Li
- Research Institute of Intelligent Computing, Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, 311121, China
| | - Wannian Li
- Key Laboratory of Spine and Spinal Cord Injury Repair and Regeneration (Tongji University), Ministry of Education, Orthopaedic Department of Tongji Hospital, Frontier Science Center for Stem Cell Research, Bioinformatics Department, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Jiaying Wen
- Key Laboratory of Spine and Spinal Cord Injury Repair and Regeneration (Tongji University), Ministry of Education, Orthopaedic Department of Tongji Hospital, Frontier Science Center for Stem Cell Research, Bioinformatics Department, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Erwei Zuo
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
| | - Qing Zhang
- Roche R&D Center (China) Ltd., China Innovation Center of Roche, Shanghai, 201203, China.
- Ailomics Therapeutics, Shanghai, 201203, China.
| | - Qi Liu
- Key Laboratory of Spine and Spinal Cord Injury Repair and Regeneration (Tongji University), Ministry of Education, Orthopaedic Department of Tongji Hospital, Frontier Science Center for Stem Cell Research, Bioinformatics Department, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China.
- Translational Medical Center for Stem Cell Therapy and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Shanghai East Hospital, Frontier Science Center for Stem Cell Research, Bioinformatics Department, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China.
- Research Institute of Intelligent Computing, Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, 311121, China.
- Shanghai Research Institute for Intelligent Autonomous Systems, Shanghai, 201210, China.
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58
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Movahedi A, Aghaei-Dargiri S, Li H, Zhuge Q, Sun W. CRISPR Variants for Gene Editing in Plants: Biosafety Risks and Future Directions. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:16241. [PMID: 38003431 PMCID: PMC10671001 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242216241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2023] [Revised: 10/25/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023] Open
Abstract
The CRISPR genome editing technology is a crucial tool for enabling revolutionary advancements in plant genetic improvement. This review shows the latest developments in CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing system variants, discussing their benefits and limitations for plant improvement. While this technology presents immense opportunities for plant breeding, it also raises serious biosafety concerns that require careful consideration, including potential off-target effects and the unintended transfer of modified genes to other organisms. This paper highlights strategies to mitigate biosafety risks and explores innovative plant gene editing detection methods. Our review investigates the international biosafety guidelines for gene-edited crops, analyzing their broad implications for agricultural and biotechnology research and advancement. We hope to provide illuminating and refined perspectives for industry practitioners and policymakers by evaluating CRISPR genome enhancement in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ali Movahedi
- Department of Biology and the Environment, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
| | - Soheila Aghaei-Dargiri
- Department of Biological Control Research, Iranian Research Institute of Plant Protection, Agricultural Research Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Tehran 19858-13111, Iran
| | - Hongyan Li
- Department of Biology and the Environment, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
| | - Qiang Zhuge
- Department of Biology and the Environment, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
| | - Weibo Sun
- Department of Biology and the Environment, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
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59
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Ceglie G, Lecis M, Canciani G, Algeri M, Frati G. Genome editing for sickle cell disease: still time to correct? Front Pediatr 2023; 11:1249275. [PMID: 38027257 PMCID: PMC10652763 DOI: 10.3389/fped.2023.1249275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an inherited blood disorder, due to a single point mutation in the β-globin gene (HBB) leading to multisystemic manifestations and it affects millions of people worldwide. The monogenic nature of the disease and the availability of autologous hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) make this disorder an ideal candidate for gene modification strategies. Notably, significant advances in the field of gene therapy and genome editing that took place in the last decade enabled the possibility to develop several strategies for the treatment of SCD. These curative approaches were firstly based on the correction of disease-causing mutations holding the promise for a specific, effective and safe option for patients. Specifically, gene-editing approaches exploiting the homology directed repair pathway were investigated, but soon their limited efficacy in quiescent HSC has curbed their wider development. On the other hand, a number of studies on globin gene regulation, led to the development of several genome editing strategies based on the reactivation of the fetal γ-globin gene (HBG) by nuclease-mediated targeting of HBG-repressor elements. Although the efficiency of these strategies seems to be confirmed in preclinical and clinical studies, very little is known about the long-term consequences of these modifications. Moreover, the potential genotoxicity of these nuclease-based strategies must be taken into account, especially when associated with high targeting rates. The recent introduction of nuclease-free genome editing technologies brought along the potential for safer strategies for SCD gene correction, which may also harbor significant advantages over HBG-reactivating ones. In this Review, we discuss the recent advances in genome editing strategies for the correction of SCD-causing mutations trying to recapitulate the promising strategies currently available and their relative strengths and weaknesses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Ceglie
- Cell and Gene Therapy for Hematological Disorders Unit, Department of Oncology-Hematology, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, Rome, Italy
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Marco Lecis
- Cell and Gene Therapy for Hematological Disorders Unit, Department of Oncology-Hematology, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, Rome, Italy
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
- Pediatric Unit, Modena University Hospital, Modena, Italy
| | - Gabriele Canciani
- Cell and Gene Therapy for Hematological Disorders Unit, Department of Oncology-Hematology, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, Rome, Italy
- Residency School of Pediatrics, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Mattia Algeri
- Cell and Gene Therapy for Hematological Disorders Unit, Department of Oncology-Hematology, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, Rome, Italy
| | - Giacomo Frati
- Cell and Gene Therapy for Hematological Disorders Unit, Department of Oncology-Hematology, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, Rome, Italy
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Kevadiya BD, Islam F, Deol P, Zaman LA, Mosselhy DA, Ashaduzzaman M, Bajwa N, Routhu NK, Singh PA, Dawre S, Vora LK, Nahid S, Mathur D, Nayan MU, Baldi A, Kothari R, Patel TA, Madan J, Gounani Z, Bariwal J, Hettie KS, Gendelman HE. Delivery of gene editing therapeutics. NANOMEDICINE : NANOTECHNOLOGY, BIOLOGY, AND MEDICINE 2023; 54:102711. [PMID: 37813236 PMCID: PMC10843524 DOI: 10.1016/j.nano.2023.102711] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2023] [Revised: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 09/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/11/2023]
Abstract
For the past decades, gene editing demonstrated the potential to attenuate each of the root causes of genetic, infectious, immune, cancerous, and degenerative disorders. More recently, Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats-CRISPR-associated protein 9 (CRISPR-Cas9) editing proved effective for editing genomic, cancerous, or microbial DNA to limit disease onset or spread. However, the strategies to deliver CRISPR-Cas9 cargos and elicit protective immune responses requires safe delivery to disease targeted cells and tissues. While viral vector-based systems and viral particles demonstrate high efficiency and stable transgene expression, each are limited in their packaging capacities and secondary untoward immune responses. In contrast, the nonviral vector lipid nanoparticles were successfully used for as vaccine and therapeutic deliverables. Herein, we highlight each available gene delivery systems for treating and preventing a broad range of infectious, inflammatory, genetic, and degenerative diseases. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing for disease treatment and prevention is an emerging field that can change the outcome of many chronic debilitating disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bhavesh D Kevadiya
- Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5880, USA.
| | - Farhana Islam
- Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5880, USA; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5880, USA.
| | - Pallavi Deol
- Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5880, USA; Institute of Modeling Collaboration and Innovation and Department of Biological Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83844, USA.
| | - Lubaba A Zaman
- Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5880, USA.
| | - Dina A Mosselhy
- Department of Virology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 21, 00014 Helsinki, Finland; Department of Veterinary Biosciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, 00014 Helsinki, Finland; Microbiological Unit, Fish Diseases Department, Animal Health Research Institute, ARC, Dokki, Giza 12618, Egypt.
| | - Md Ashaduzzaman
- Department of Computer Science, University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha, NE 68182, USA.
| | - Neha Bajwa
- University Institute of Pharma Sciences, Chandigarh University, Mohali, Punjab, India.
| | - Nanda Kishore Routhu
- Emory Vaccine Center, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
| | - Preet Amol Singh
- University Institute of Pharma Sciences, Chandigarh University, Mohali, Punjab, India; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technology, Maharaja Ranjit Singh Punjab Technical University, Bathinda, Punjab.
| | - Shilpa Dawre
- Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy & Technology Management, SVKMs, NMIMS, Babulde Banks of Tapi River, MPTP Park, Mumbai-Agra Road, Shirpur, Maharashtra, 425405, India.
| | - Lalitkumar K Vora
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Medical Biology Centre, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, United Kingdom.
| | - Sumaiya Nahid
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5880, USA.
| | | | - Mohammad Ullah Nayan
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5880, USA.
| | - Ashish Baldi
- University Institute of Pharma Sciences, Chandigarh University, Mohali, Punjab, India; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technology, Maharaja Ranjit Singh Punjab Technical University, Bathinda, Punjab.
| | - Ramesh Kothari
- Department of Biosciences, Saurashtra University, Rajkot 360005, Gujarat, India.
| | - Tapan A Patel
- Department of Cellular and Integrative Physiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198, USA.
| | - Jitender Madan
- Department of Pharmaceutics, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research-NIPER, Hyderabad 500037, Telangana, India.
| | - Zahra Gounani
- Division of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, Viikinkaari 5, 00790 Helsinki, Finland.
| | - Jitender Bariwal
- Department of Cell Physiology and Molecular Biophysics, Center for Membrane Protein Research, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, School of Medicine, 3601 4th Street, Lubbock, TX 79430-6551, USA.
| | - Kenneth S Hettie
- Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford (MIPS), Department of Radiology, Department of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
| | - Howard E Gendelman
- Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5880, USA; Department of Pathology and Microbiology, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198, USA.
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Zhu W, Du W, Rameshbabu AP, Armstrong AM, Silver S, Kim Y, Wei W, Shu Y, Liu X, Lewis MA, Steel KP, Chen ZY. Targeted genome editing restores auditory function in adult mice with progressive hearing loss caused by a human microRNA mutation. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.10.26.564008. [PMID: 37961137 PMCID: PMC10634841 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.26.564008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
Mutations in microRNA-96 ( MIR96 ) cause dominant delayed onset hearing loss DFNA50 without treatment. Genome editing has shown efficacy in hearing recovery by intervention in neonatal mice, yet editing in the adult inner ear is necessary for clinical applications. Here, we developed an editing therapy for a C>A point mutation in the seed region of the Mir96 gene, Mir96 14C>A associated with hearing loss by screening gRNAs for genome editors and optimizing Cas9 and sgRNA scaffold for efficient and specific mutation editing in vitro. By AAV delivery in pre-symptomatic (3-week-old) and symptomatic (6-week-old) adult Mir96 14C>A mutant mice, hair cell on-target editing significantly improved hearing long-term, with an efficacy inversely correlated with injection age. We achieved transient Cas9 expression without the evidence of AAV genomic integration to significantly reduce the safety concerns associated with editing. We developed an AAV-sgmiR96-master system capable of targeting all known human MIR96 mutations. As mouse and human MIR96 sequences share 100% homology, our approach and sgRNA selection for efficient and specific hair cell editing for long-term hearing recovery lays the foundation for future treatment of DFNA50 caused by MIR96 mutations.
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Yang Y, Li J, Zou Q, Ruan Y, Feng H. Prediction of CRISPR-Cas9 off-target activities with mismatches and indels based on hybrid neural network. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2023; 21:5039-5048. [PMID: 37867973 PMCID: PMC10589368 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2023.10.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2023] [Revised: 10/10/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The CRISPR/Cas9 system has significantly advanced the field of gene editing, yet its clinical application is constrained by the considerable challenge of off-target effects. Although numerous deep learning models for off-target prediction have been proposed, most struggle to effectively extract the nuanced features of guide RNA (gRNA) and DNA sequence pairs and to mitigate information loss during data transmission within the model. To address these limitations, we introduce a novel Hybrid Neural Network (HNN) model that employs a parallelized network structure to fully extract pertinent features from different positions and types of bases in the sequence to minimize information loss. Notably, this study marks the first application of word embedding techniques to extract information from sequence pairs that contain insertions and deletions (Indels). Comprehensive evaluation across diverse datasets indicates that our proposed model outperforms existing state-of-the-art prediction methods in off-target prediction. The datasets and source codes supporting this study can be found at https://github.com/Yang-k955/CRISPR-HW.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanpeng Yang
- School of Mathematics and Computer science, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, China
| | - Jian Li
- School of Mathematics and Computer science, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, China
| | - Quan Zou
- Yangtze Delta Region Institute (Quzhou), University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Quzhou 324000, China
- Institute of Fundamental and Frontier Sciences, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, China
| | - Yaoping Ruan
- School of Mathematics and Computer science, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, China
| | - Hailin Feng
- School of Mathematics and Computer science, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, China
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Tsuchida CA, Brandes N, Bueno R, Trinidad M, Mazumder T, Yu B, Hwang B, Chang C, Liu J, Sun Y, Hopkins CR, Parker KR, Qi Y, Hofman L, Satpathy AT, Stadtmauer EA, Cate JHD, Eyquem J, Fraietta JA, June CH, Chang HY, Ye CJ, Doudna JA. Mitigation of chromosome loss in clinical CRISPR-Cas9-engineered T cells. Cell 2023; 186:4567-4582.e20. [PMID: 37794590 PMCID: PMC10664023 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.08.041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Revised: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 08/31/2023] [Indexed: 10/06/2023]
Abstract
CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing has enabled advanced T cell therapies, but occasional loss of the targeted chromosome remains a safety concern. To investigate whether Cas9-induced chromosome loss is a universal phenomenon and evaluate its clinical significance, we conducted a systematic analysis in primary human T cells. Arrayed and pooled CRISPR screens revealed that chromosome loss was generalizable across the genome and resulted in partial and entire loss of the targeted chromosome, including in preclinical chimeric antigen receptor T cells. T cells with chromosome loss persisted for weeks in culture, implying the potential to interfere with clinical use. A modified cell manufacturing process, employed in our first-in-human clinical trial of Cas9-engineered T cells (NCT03399448), reduced chromosome loss while largely preserving genome editing efficacy. Expression of p53 correlated with protection from chromosome loss observed in this protocol, suggesting both a mechanism and strategy for T cell engineering that mitigates this genotoxicity in the clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Connor A Tsuchida
- University of California, Berkeley-University of California, San Francisco Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Nadav Brandes
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Raymund Bueno
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Marena Trinidad
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Thomas Mazumder
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Bingfei Yu
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA; Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Byungjin Hwang
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Christopher Chang
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Medical Scientist Training Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Jamin Liu
- University of California, Berkeley-University of California, San Francisco Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Yang Sun
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Caitlin R Hopkins
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Kevin R Parker
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Yanyan Qi
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Laura Hofman
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; Graduate School of Life Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Ansuman T Satpathy
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA; Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA; Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Edward A Stadtmauer
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Jamie H D Cate
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3), University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Justin Eyquem
- Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Joseph A Fraietta
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Carl H June
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Howard Y Chang
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA; Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Chun Jimmie Ye
- University of California, Berkeley-University of California, San Francisco Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA; Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA; Institute for Human Genetics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Institute for Computational Health Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
| | - Jennifer A Doudna
- University of California, Berkeley-University of California, San Francisco Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3), University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA; Department of Chemistry, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.
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Newton MD, Losito M, Smith QM, Parnandi N, Taylor BJ, Akcakaya P, Maresca M, van Eijk P, Reed SH, Boulton SJ, King GA, Cuomo ME, Rueda DS. Negative DNA supercoiling induces genome-wide Cas9 off-target activity. Mol Cell 2023; 83:3533-3545.e5. [PMID: 37802026 DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2023.09.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2022] [Revised: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 10/08/2023]
Abstract
CRISPR-Cas9 is a powerful gene-editing technology; however, off-target activity remains an important consideration for therapeutic applications. We have previously shown that force-stretching DNA induces off-target activity and hypothesized that distortions of the DNA topology in vivo, such as negative DNA supercoiling, could reduce Cas9 specificity. Using single-molecule optical-tweezers, we demonstrate that negative supercoiling λ-DNA induces sequence-specific Cas9 off-target binding at multiple sites, even at low forces. Using an adapted CIRCLE-seq approach, we detect over 10,000 negative-supercoiling-induced Cas9 off-target double-strand breaks genome-wide caused by increased mismatch tolerance. We further demonstrate in vivo that directed local DNA distortion increases off-target activity in cells and that induced off-target events can be detected during Cas9 genome editing. These data demonstrate that Cas9 off-target activity is regulated by DNA topology in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that cellular processes, such as transcription and replication, could induce off-target activity at previously overlooked sites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew D Newton
- Department of Infectious Disease, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Du Cane Road, London W12 0HS, UK; Single Molecule Imaging, MRC-London Institute of Medical Sciences, Du Cane Road, London W12 0HS, UK; DSB Repair Metabolism Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Marialucrezia Losito
- Department of Infectious Disease, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Du Cane Road, London W12 0HS, UK; Single Molecule Imaging, MRC-London Institute of Medical Sciences, Du Cane Road, London W12 0HS, UK; Discovery Sciences, BioPharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge CB2 0AA, UK
| | - Quentin M Smith
- Department of Infectious Disease, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Du Cane Road, London W12 0HS, UK; Single Molecule Imaging, MRC-London Institute of Medical Sciences, Du Cane Road, London W12 0HS, UK
| | - Nishita Parnandi
- DSB Repair Metabolism Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Benjamin J Taylor
- Discovery Sciences, BioPharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge CB2 0AA, UK
| | - Pinar Akcakaya
- Genome Engineering, Discovery Sciences, BioPharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca, 43183 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Marcello Maresca
- Genome Engineering, Discovery Sciences, BioPharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca, 43183 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Patrick van Eijk
- Division of Cancer and Genetics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF14 4AW, UK
| | - Simon H Reed
- Division of Cancer and Genetics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF14 4AW, UK
| | - Simon J Boulton
- DSB Repair Metabolism Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Graeme A King
- Institute of Structural and Molecular Biology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK.
| | | | - David S Rueda
- Department of Infectious Disease, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Du Cane Road, London W12 0HS, UK; Single Molecule Imaging, MRC-London Institute of Medical Sciences, Du Cane Road, London W12 0HS, UK.
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65
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Zhang Z, Lamson AR, Shelley M, Troyanskaya O. Interpretable neural architecture search and transfer learning for understanding CRISPR/Cas9 off-target enzymatic reactions. ARXIV 2023:arXiv:2305.11917v2. [PMID: 37808087 PMCID: PMC10557798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/10/2023]
Abstract
Finely-tuned enzymatic pathways control cellular processes, and their dysregulation can lead to disease. Creating predictive and interpretable models for these pathways is challenging because of the complexity of the pathways and of the cellular and genomic contexts. Here we introduce Elektrum, a deep learning framework which addresses these challenges with data-driven and biophysically interpretable models for determining the kinetics of biochemical systems. First, it uses in vitro kinetic assays to rapidly hypothesize an ensemble of high-quality Kinetically Interpretable Neural Networks (KINNs) that predict reaction rates. It then employs a novel transfer learning step, where the KINNs are inserted as intermediary layers into deeper convolutional neural networks, fine-tuning the predictions for reaction-dependent in vivo outcomes. Elektrum makes effective use of the limited, but clean in vitro data and the complex, yet plentiful in vivo data that captures cellular context. We apply Elektrum to predict CRISPR-Cas9 off-target editing probabilities and demonstrate that Elektrum achieves state-of-the-art performance, regularizes neural network architectures, and maintains physical interpretability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zijun Zhang
- Division of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, 116 N. Robertson Blvd, Los Angeles, 90048, CA, USA
| | - Adam R. Lamson
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, 162 5th Ave, New York City, 10010, NY, USA
| | - Michael Shelley
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, 162 5th Ave, New York City, 10010, NY, USA
- Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University, 251 Mercer Street, New York City, 10012, NY, USA
| | - Olga Troyanskaya
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, 162 5th Ave, New York City, 10010, NY, USA
- Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Carl Icahn Laboratory South Drive, Princeton, 08544, NJ, USA
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66
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Zhang G, Luo Y, Dai X, Dai Z. Benchmarking deep learning methods for predicting CRISPR/Cas9 sgRNA on- and off-target activities. Brief Bioinform 2023; 24:bbad333. [PMID: 37775147 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbad333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2023] [Revised: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/01/2023] Open
Abstract
In silico design of single guide RNA (sgRNA) plays a critical role in clustered regularly interspaced, short palindromic repeats/CRISPR-associated protein 9 (CRISPR/Cas9) system. Continuous efforts are aimed at improving sgRNA design with efficient on-target activity and reduced off-target mutations. In the last 5 years, an increasing number of deep learning-based methods have achieved breakthrough performance in predicting sgRNA on- and off-target activities. Nevertheless, it is worthwhile to systematically evaluate these methods for their predictive abilities. In this review, we conducted a systematic survey on the progress in prediction of on- and off-target editing. We investigated the performances of 10 mainstream deep learning-based on-target predictors using nine public datasets with different sample sizes. We found that in most scenarios, these methods showed superior predictive power on large- and medium-scale datasets than on small-scale datasets. In addition, we performed unbiased experiments to provide in-depth comparison of eight representative approaches for off-target prediction on 12 publicly available datasets with various imbalanced ratios of positive/negative samples. Most methods showed excellent performance on balanced datasets but have much room for improvement on moderate- and severe-imbalanced datasets. This study provides comprehensive perspectives on CRISPR/Cas9 sgRNA on- and off-target activity prediction and improvement for method development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guishan Zhang
- College of Engineering, Shantou University, Shantou 515063, China
| | - Ye Luo
- College of Engineering, Shantou University, Shantou 515063, China
| | - Xianhua Dai
- School of Cyber Science and Technology, Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518107, China
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory, Zhuhai 519000, China
| | - Zhiming Dai
- School of Computer Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Big Data Analysis and Processing, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
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67
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Kulcsár PI, Tálas A, Ligeti Z, Tóth E, Rakvács Z, Bartos Z, Krausz SL, Welker Á, Végi VL, Huszár K, Welker E. A cleavage rule for selection of increased-fidelity SpCas9 variants with high efficiency and no detectable off-targets. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5746. [PMID: 37717069 PMCID: PMC10505190 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41393-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2022] [Accepted: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 09/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 (SpCas9) has been employed as a genome engineering tool with a promising potential within therapeutics. However, its off-target effects present major safety concerns for applications requiring high specificity. Approaches developed to date to mitigate this effect, including any of the increased-fidelity (i.e., high-fidelity) SpCas9 variants, only provide efficient editing on a relatively small fraction of targets without detectable off-targets. Upon addressing this problem, we reveal a rather unexpected cleavability ranking of target sequences, and a cleavage rule that governs the on-target and off-target cleavage of increased-fidelity SpCas9 variants but not that of SpCas9-NG or xCas9. According to this rule, for each target, an optimal variant with matching fidelity must be identified for efficient cleavage without detectable off-target effects. Based on this insight, we develop here an extended set of variants, the CRISPRecise set, with increased fidelity spanning across a wide range, with differences in fidelity small enough to comprise an optimal variant for each target, regardless of its cleavability ranking. We demonstrate efficient editing with maximum specificity even on those targets that have not been possible in previous studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Péter István Kulcsár
- Institute of Enzymology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
| | - András Tálas
- Institute of Enzymology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Zoltán Ligeti
- Institute of Enzymology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
- Institute of Biochemistry, Biological Research Centre, Szeged, Hungary
- Doctoral School of Multidisciplinary Medical Science, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Eszter Tóth
- Institute of Enzymology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Zsófia Rakvács
- Institute of Enzymology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Zsuzsa Bartos
- Institute of Enzymology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Sarah Laura Krausz
- Institute of Enzymology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
- Biospiral-2006 Ltd, Szeged, Hungary
- School of Ph.D. Studies, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Ágnes Welker
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
- Gene Design Ltd, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Vanessza Laura Végi
- Institute of Enzymology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
- Biospiral-2006 Ltd, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Krisztina Huszár
- Institute of Enzymology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
- Gene Design Ltd, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Ervin Welker
- Institute of Enzymology, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary.
- Institute of Biochemistry, Biological Research Centre, Szeged, Hungary.
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68
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Huang S, Huang X. A massively parallel approach for assessing CRISPR off-targets in vitro. CELL REPORTS METHODS 2023; 3:100561. [PMID: 37671012 PMCID: PMC10475838 DOI: 10.1016/j.crmeth.2023.100561] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/07/2023]
Abstract
In a recent issue of Med, Tian et al.1 present AID-seq, an approach that enables massively parallel identification of off-targets for different CRISPR nucleases in vitro. By using a pooled strategy to simultaneously identify the on-/off-targets of multiple gRNAs, the authors could screen the most efficient and safe gRNA candidates.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Xingxu Huang
- Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 311121, China
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pancreatic Disease, The First Affiliated Hospital, and Institute of Translational Medicine, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310029, China
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69
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Tsai HH, Kao HJ, Kuo MW, Lin CH, Chang CM, Chen YY, Chen HH, Kwok PY, Yu AL, Yu J. Whole genomic analysis reveals atypical non-homologous off-target large structural variants induced by CRISPR-Cas9-mediated genome editing. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5183. [PMID: 37626063 PMCID: PMC10457329 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40901-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing has promising therapeutic potential for genetic diseases and cancers, but safety could be a concern. Here we use whole genomic analysis by 10x linked-read sequencing and optical genome mapping to interrogate the genome integrity after editing and in comparison to four parental cell lines. In addition to the previously reported large structural variants at on-target sites, we identify heretofore unexpected large chromosomal deletions (91.2 and 136 Kb) at atypical non-homologous off-target sites without sequence similarity to the sgRNA in two edited lines. The observed large structural variants induced by CRISPR-Cas9 editing in dividing cells may result in pathogenic consequences and thus limit the usefulness of the CRISPR-Cas9 editing system for disease modeling and gene therapy. In this work, our whole genomic analysis may provide a valuable strategy to ensure genome integrity after genomic editing to minimize the risk of unintended effects in research and clinical applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hsiu-Hui Tsai
- Institute of Stem Cell and Translational Cancer Research, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Hsiao-Jung Kao
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Ming-Wei Kuo
- Institute of Stem Cell and Translational Cancer Research, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Chin-Hsien Lin
- Department of Neurology, National Taiwan University Hospital and School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Chun-Min Chang
- Institute of Stem Cell and Translational Cancer Research, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Yin Chen
- Institute of Stem Cell and Translational Cancer Research, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Hsiao-Huei Chen
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Pui-Yan Kwok
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
- Cardiovascular Research Institute, Institute for Human Genetics, and Department of Dermatology, University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Alice L Yu
- Institute of Stem Cell and Translational Cancer Research, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan, Taiwan
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, USA
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - John Yu
- Institute of Stem Cell and Translational Cancer Research, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
- Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.
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70
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Stahl EC, Sabo JK, Kang MH, Allen R, Applegate E, Kim SE, Kwon Y, Seth A, Lemus N, Salinas-Rios V, Soczek KM, Trinidad M, Vo LT, Jeans C, Wozniak A, Morris T, Kimberlin A, Foti T, Savage DF, Doudna JA. Genome editing in the mouse brain with minimally immunogenic Cas9 RNPs. Mol Ther 2023; 31:2422-2438. [PMID: 37403358 PMCID: PMC10422012 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2023.06.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Revised: 05/18/2023] [Accepted: 06/29/2023] [Indexed: 07/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Transient delivery of CRISPR-Cas9 ribonucleoproteins (RNPs) into the central nervous system (CNS) for therapeutic genome editing could avoid limitations of viral vector-based delivery including cargo capacity, immunogenicity, and cost. Here, we tested the ability of cell-penetrant Cas9 RNPs to edit the mouse striatum when introduced using a convection-enhanced delivery system. These transient Cas9 RNPs showed comparable editing of neurons and reduced adaptive immune responses relative to one formulation of Cas9 delivered using AAV serotype 9. The production of ultra-low endotoxin Cas9 protein manufactured at scale further improved innate immunity. We conclude that injection-based delivery of minimally immunogenic CRISPR genome editing RNPs into the CNS provides a valuable alternative to virus-mediated genome editing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth C Stahl
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3), University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Jennifer K Sabo
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Min Hyung Kang
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Ryan Allen
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Elizabeth Applegate
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Shin Eui Kim
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Yoonjin Kwon
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Anmol Seth
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Nicholas Lemus
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Viviana Salinas-Rios
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Katarzyna M Soczek
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3), University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Marena Trinidad
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Linda T Vo
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Chris Jeans
- California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3), University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | | | | | | | | | - David F Savage
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Jennifer A Doudna
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3), University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; MBIB Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Gladstone Institutes, University of California, Berkeley, San Francisco, CA 94114, USA.
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71
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Zhang Z, Bao X, Lin CP. Progress and Prospects of Gene Editing in Pluripotent Stem Cells. Biomedicines 2023; 11:2168. [PMID: 37626665 PMCID: PMC10452926 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines11082168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Revised: 07/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Applying programmable nucleases in gene editing has greatly shaped current research in basic biology and clinical translation. Gene editing in human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs), including embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), is highly relevant to clinical cell therapy and thus should be examined with particular caution. First, since all mutations in PSCs will be carried to all their progenies, off-target edits of editors will be amplified. Second, due to the hypersensitivity of PSCs to DNA damage, double-strand breaks (DSBs) made by gene editing could lead to low editing efficiency and the enrichment of cell populations with defective genomic safeguards. In this regard, DSB-independent gene editing tools, such as base editors and prime editors, are favored due to their nature to avoid these consequences. With more understanding of the microbial world, new systems, such as Cas-related nucleases, transposons, and recombinases, are also expanding the toolbox for gene editing. In this review, we discuss current applications of programmable nucleases in PSCs for gene editing, the efforts researchers have made to optimize these systems, as well as new tools that can be potentially employed for differentiation modeling and therapeutic applications.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Chao-Po Lin
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai 201210, China; (Z.Z.); (X.B.)
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72
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Huang L, Wang D, Chen H, Hu J, Dai X, Liu C, Li A, Shen X, Qi C, Sun H, Zhang D, Chen T, Jiang Y. CRISPR-detector: fast and accurate detection, visualization, and annotation of genome-wide mutations induced by genome editing events. J Genet Genomics 2023; 50:563-572. [PMID: 37003351 DOI: 10.1016/j.jgg.2023.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2022] [Revised: 03/05/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2023] [Indexed: 04/01/2023]
Abstract
The leading-edge CRISPR/CRISPR-associated technology is revolutionizing biotechnologies through genome editing. To track on/off-target events with emerging new editing techniques, improved bioinformatic tools are indispensable. Existing tools suffer from limitations in speed and scalability, especially with whole-genome sequencing (WGS) data analysis. To address these limitations, we have developed a comprehensive tool called CRISPR-detector, a web-based and locally deployable pipeline for genome editing sequence analysis. The core analysis module of CRISPR-detector is based on the Sentieon TNscope pipeline, with additional novel annotation and visualization modules designed to fit CRISPR applications. Co-analysis of the treated and control samples is performed to remove existing background variants prior to genome editing. CRISPR-detector offers optimized scalability, enabling WGS data analysis beyond Browser Extensible Data file-defined regions, with improved accuracy due to haplotype-based variant calling to handle sequencing errors. In addition, the tool also provides integrated structural variation calling and includes functional and clinical annotations of editing-induced mutations appreciated by users. These advantages facilitate rapid and efficient detection of mutations induced by genome editing events, especially for datasets generated from WGS. The web-based version of CRISPR-detector is available at https://db.cngb.org/crispr-detector, and the locally deployable version is available at https://github.com/hlcas/CRISPR-detector.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Huang
- College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518083, China
| | - Dan Wang
- BNU-HKBU United International College, Zhuhai, Guangdong 519087, China.
| | | | - Jinnan Hu
- Sentieon Inc, San Jose, CA 94042, USA
| | - Xuechen Dai
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518083, China
| | - Chuan Liu
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518083, China
| | - Anduo Li
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518083, China
| | - Xuechun Shen
- School of Biology and Biological Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
| | - Chen Qi
- College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Haixi Sun
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518083, China
| | | | - Tong Chen
- National Resource Center for Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China.
| | - Yuan Jiang
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518083, China.
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73
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Tian R, Cao C, He D, Dong D, Sun L, Liu J, Chen Y, Wang Y, Huang Z, Li L, Jin Z, Huang Z, Xie H, Zhao T, Zhong C, Hong Y, Hu Z. Massively parallel CRISPR off-target detection enables rapid off-target prediction model building. MED 2023; 4:478-492.e6. [PMID: 37279759 DOI: 10.1016/j.medj.2023.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Revised: 04/16/2023] [Accepted: 05/12/2023] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) genome editing holds tremendous potential in clinical translation. However, the off-target effect has always been a major concern. METHODS Here, we have developed a novel sensitive and specific off-target detection method, AID-seq (adaptor-mediated off-target identification by sequencing), that can comprehensively and faithfully detect the low-frequency off targets generated by different CRISPR nucleases (including Cas9 and Cas12a). FINDINGS Based on AID-seq, we developed a pooled strategy to simultaneously identify the on/off targets of multiple gRNAs, as well as using mixed human and human papillomavirus (HPV) genomes to screen the most efficient and safe targets from 416 HPV gRNA candidates for antiviral therapy. Moreover, we used the pooled strategy with 2,069 single-guide RNAs (sgRNAs) at a pool size of about 500 to profile the properties of our newly discovered CRISPR, FrCas9. Importantly, we successfully built an off-target detection model using these off-target data via the CRISPR-Net deep learning method (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUROC] = 0.97, area under the precision recall curve [AUPRC] = 0.29). CONCLUSIONS To our knowledge, AID-seq is the most sensitive and specific in vitro off-target detection method to date. And the pooled AID-seq strategy can be used as a rapid and high-throughput platform to select the best sgRNAs and characterize the properties of new CRISPRs. FUNDING This work was supported by The National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant nos. 32171465 and 82102392), the General Program of Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province of China (grant no. 2021A1515012438), Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (grant no. 2020A1515110170), and the National Ten Thousand Plan-Young Top Talents of China (grant no. 80000-41180002).
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Tian
- Generulor Co., Ltd., Zhuhai 519000, Guangdong, China.
| | - Chen Cao
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Academician Expert Workstation, The Central Hospital of Wuhan, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, Hubei, China
| | - Dan He
- Department of Neurology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei, China
| | - Dirong Dong
- Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Women and Children's Hospital Affiliated to Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei, China
| | - Lili Sun
- Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Women and Children's Hospital Affiliated to Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei, China
| | - Jiashuo Liu
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong, China
| | - Ye Chen
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong, China
| | - Yuyan Wang
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong, China
| | - Zheying Huang
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong, China
| | - Lifang Li
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhuang Jin
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhaoyue Huang
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong, China
| | - Hongxian Xie
- Generulor Co., Ltd., Zhuhai 519000, Guangdong, China
| | - Tingting Zhao
- Generulor Co., Ltd., Zhuhai 519000, Guangdong, China
| | - Chaoyue Zhong
- Generulor Co., Ltd., Zhuhai 519000, Guangdong, China
| | - Yongfeng Hong
- Generulor Co., Ltd., Zhuhai 519000, Guangdong, China
| | - Zheng Hu
- Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Women and Children's Hospital Affiliated to Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei, China; Department of Radiation and Medical Oncology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei, China; Hubei Key Laboratory of Tumor Biological Behaviors, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei, China; Hubei Cancer Clinical Study Center, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei, China.
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74
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Marchetti F, Cardoso R, Chen CL, Douglas GR, Elloway J, Escobar PA, Harper T, Heflich RH, Kidd D, Lynch AM, Myers MB, Parsons BL, Salk JJ, Settivari RS, Smith-Roe SL, Witt KL, Yauk CL, Young R, Zhang S, Minocherhomji S. Error-corrected next generation sequencing - Promises and challenges for genotoxicity and cancer risk assessment. MUTATION RESEARCH. REVIEWS IN MUTATION RESEARCH 2023; 792:108466. [PMID: 37643677 DOI: 10.1016/j.mrrev.2023.108466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Revised: 07/12/2023] [Accepted: 08/23/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
Error-corrected Next Generation Sequencing (ecNGS) is rapidly emerging as a valuable, highly sensitive and accurate method for detecting and characterizing mutations in any cell type, tissue or organism from which DNA can be isolated. Recent mutagenicity and carcinogenicity studies have used ecNGS to quantify drug-/chemical-induced mutations and mutational spectra associated with cancer risk. ecNGS has potential applications in genotoxicity assessment as a new readout for traditional models, for mutagenesis studies in 3D organotypic cultures, and for detecting off-target effects of gene editing tools. Additionally, early data suggest that ecNGS can measure clonal expansion of mutations as a mechanism-agnostic early marker of carcinogenic potential and can evaluate mutational load directly in human biomonitoring studies. In this review, we discuss promising applications, challenges, limitations, and key data initiatives needed to enable regulatory testing and adoption of ecNGS - including for advancing safety assessment, augmenting weight-of-evidence for mutagenicity and carcinogenicity mechanisms, identifying early biomarkers of cancer risk, and managing human health risk from chemical exposures.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Connie L Chen
- Health and Environmental Sciences Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
| | | | - Joanne Elloway
- Safety Sciences, Clinical Pharmacology & Safety Sciences, R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Tod Harper
- Amgen Research, Amgen Inc, Thousand Oaks, CA, USA
| | - Robert H Heflich
- US Food and Drug Administration/National Center for Toxicological Research, Jefferson, AR, USA
| | - Darren Kidd
- Labcorp Early Development Laboratories Limited, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, UK
| | | | - Meagan B Myers
- US Food and Drug Administration/National Center for Toxicological Research, Jefferson, AR, USA
| | - Barbara L Parsons
- US Food and Drug Administration/National Center for Toxicological Research, Jefferson, AR, USA
| | | | | | | | - Kristine L Witt
- NIEHS, Division of the National Toxicology Program, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA
| | | | - Robert Young
- MilliporeSigma, Rockville, MD, USA; Current: Consultant, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | | | - Sheroy Minocherhomji
- Amgen Research, Amgen Inc, Thousand Oaks, CA, USA; Current: Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, IN, USA
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75
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Mayuranathan T, Newby GA, Feng R, Yao Y, Mayberry KD, Lazzarotto CR, Li Y, Levine RM, Nimmagadda N, Dempsey E, Kang G, Porter SN, Doerfler PA, Zhang J, Jang Y, Chen J, Bell HW, Crossley M, Bhoopalan SV, Sharma A, Tisdale JF, Pruett-Miller SM, Cheng Y, Tsai SQ, Liu DR, Weiss MJ, Yen JS. Potent and uniform fetal hemoglobin induction via base editing. Nat Genet 2023; 55:1210-1220. [PMID: 37400614 PMCID: PMC10722557 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-023-01434-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2022] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 07/05/2023]
Abstract
Inducing fetal hemoglobin (HbF) in red blood cells can alleviate β-thalassemia and sickle cell disease. We compared five strategies in CD34+ hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells, using either Cas9 nuclease or adenine base editors. The most potent modification was adenine base editor generation of γ-globin -175A>G. Homozygous -175A>G edited erythroid colonies expressed 81 ± 7% HbF versus 17 ± 11% in unedited controls, whereas HbF levels were lower and more variable for two Cas9 strategies targeting a BCL11A binding motif in the γ-globin promoter or a BCL11A erythroid enhancer. The -175A>G base edit also induced HbF more potently than a Cas9 approach in red blood cells generated after transplantation of CD34+ hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells into mice. Our data suggest a strategy for potent, uniform induction of HbF and provide insights into γ-globin gene regulation. More generally, we demonstrate that diverse indels generated by Cas9 can cause unexpected phenotypic variation that can be circumvented by base editing.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gregory A Newby
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Ruopeng Feng
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Yu Yao
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Kalin D Mayberry
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Cicera R Lazzarotto
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Yichao Li
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Rachel M Levine
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Nikitha Nimmagadda
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Erin Dempsey
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Guolian Kang
- Department of Biostatistics, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Shaina N Porter
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Phillip A Doerfler
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Jingjing Zhang
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Yoonjeong Jang
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Jingjing Chen
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Henry W Bell
- School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Merlin Crossley
- School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | | | - Akshay Sharma
- Department of Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - John F Tisdale
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Shondra M Pruett-Miller
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Yong Cheng
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Shengdar Q Tsai
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - David R Liu
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
| | - Mitchell J Weiss
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA.
| | - Jonathan S Yen
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA.
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76
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Testa LC, Musunuru K. Base Editing and Prime Editing: Potential Therapeutic Options for Rare and Common Diseases. BioDrugs 2023:10.1007/s40259-023-00610-9. [PMID: 37314680 DOI: 10.1007/s40259-023-00610-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Collectively, genetic disorders affect approximately 350 million individuals worldwide and are a major global health burden. Despite substantial progress in identification of new disease-causing genes, variants, and molecular etiologies, nearly all rare diseases have no targeted therapeutics that can address their underlying molecular causes. Base editing (BE) and prime editing (PE), two newly described iterations of CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing, represent potential therapeutic strategies that could be used to precisely, efficiently, permanently, and safely correct patients' pathogenic variants and ameliorate disease sequelae. Unlike "standard" CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing, these technologies do not rely on double-strand break (DSB) formation, thus improving safety by decreasing the likelihood of undesired insertions and deletions (indels) at the target site. Here, we provide an overview of BE and PE, including their structures, mechanisms, and differences from standard CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing. We describe several examples of the use of BE and PE to improve rare and common disease phenotypes in preclinical models and human patients, with an emphasis on in vivo editing efficacy, safety, and delivery method. We also discuss recently developed delivery methods for these technologies that may be used in future clinical settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren C Testa
- Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Genetics, Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Kiran Musunuru
- Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Genetics, Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
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77
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Chinnapaiyan S, Santiago MJ, Panda K, Rahman MS, Alluin J, Rossi J, Unwalla HJ. A conditional RNA Pol II mono-promoter drives HIV-inducible, CRISPR-mediated cyclin T1 suppression and HIV inhibition. MOLECULAR THERAPY. NUCLEIC ACIDS 2023; 32:553-565. [PMID: 37215150 PMCID: PMC10192333 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtn.2023.04.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2022] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Gene editing using clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) targeted to HIV proviral DNA has shown excision of HIV from infected cells. However, CRISPR-based HIV excision is vulnerable to viral escape. Targeting cellular co-factors provides an attractive yet risky alternative to render viral escape irrelevant. Cyclin T1 is a critical modulator of HIV transcription and mediates recruitment of positive transcription elongation factor-b (P-TEFb) kinase for transcriptional elongation. Hence, a CRISPR-mediated cyclin T1 inactivation will silence HIV transcription, locking it in an inactive form in the cell and thereby serving as an effective antiviral and possibly effecting a functional cure. However, cellular genes play important roles, and their uncontrolled inhibition can promote undesirable effects. Here, we demonstrate a conditional inducible RNA polymerase II (RNA Pol II) mono-promoter-based co-expression of a CRISPR system targeting cyclin T1 from a single transcription unit. Co-expression of guide RNA (gRNA) and CRISPR-associated protein (Cas9) is observed only in HIV-infected cells and leads to sustained HIV suppression in stringent chronically infected cell lines as well as in T cell lines. We further show that incorporation of cis-acting ribozymes immediately upstream of the gRNA further enhances HIV silencing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Srinivasan Chinnapaiyan
- Department of Immunology and Nanomedicine, Institute of Neuroimmune Pharmacology, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Maria-Jose Santiago
- Department of Immunology and Nanomedicine, Institute of Neuroimmune Pharmacology, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Kingshuk Panda
- Department of Immunology and Nanomedicine, Institute of Neuroimmune Pharmacology, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Md. Sohanur Rahman
- Department of Immunology and Nanomedicine, Institute of Neuroimmune Pharmacology, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Jessica Alluin
- Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope National Medical Center, Monrovia Biomedical Research Center MBRC, 1218 S. Fifth Av., Monrovia, CA 91008, USA
| | - John Rossi
- Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope National Medical Center, Monrovia Biomedical Research Center MBRC, 1218 S. Fifth Av., Monrovia, CA 91008, USA
| | - Hoshang J. Unwalla
- Department of Immunology and Nanomedicine, Institute of Neuroimmune Pharmacology, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
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78
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Peterson KA, Khalouei S, Hanafi N, Wood JA, Lanza DG, Lintott LG, Willis BJ, Seavitt JR, Braun RE, Dickinson ME, White JK, Lloyd KCK, Heaney JD, Murray SA, Ramani A, Nutter LMJ. Whole genome analysis for 163 gRNAs in Cas9-edited mice reveals minimal off-target activity. Commun Biol 2023; 6:626. [PMID: 37301944 PMCID: PMC10257658 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-04974-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2021] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Genome editing with CRISPR-associated (Cas) proteins holds exceptional promise for "correcting" variants causing genetic disease. To realize this promise, off-target genomic changes cannot occur during the editing process. Here, we use whole genome sequencing to compare the genomes of 50 Cas9-edited founder mice to 28 untreated control mice to assess the occurrence of S. pyogenes Cas9-induced off-target mutagenesis. Computational analysis of whole-genome sequencing data detects 26 unique sequence variants at 23 predicted off-target sites for 18/163 guides used. While computationally detected variants are identified in 30% (15/50) of Cas9 gene-edited founder animals, only 38% (10/26) of the variants in 8/15 founders validate by Sanger sequencing. In vitro assays for Cas9 off-target activity identify only two unpredicted off-target sites present in genome sequencing data. In total, only 4.9% (8/163) of guides tested have detectable off-target activity, a rate of 0.2 Cas9 off-target mutations per founder analyzed. In comparison, we observe ~1,100 unique variants in each mouse regardless of genome exposure to Cas9 indicating off-target variants comprise a small fraction of genetic heterogeneity in Cas9-edited mice. These findings will inform future design and use of Cas9-edited animal models as well as provide context for evaluating off-target potential in genetically diverse patient populations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sam Khalouei
- The Centre for Computational Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Personalis, Inc. 1330 O'Brien Drive, Menlo Park, CA, USA
| | - Nour Hanafi
- The Centre for Computational Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Joshua A Wood
- Mouse Biology Program, University of California Davis, California, CA, USA
- The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine, ME, USA
| | - Denise G Lanza
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Lauri G Lintott
- The Centre for Phenogenomics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Brandon J Willis
- Mouse Biology Program, University of California Davis, California, CA, USA
| | - John R Seavitt
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | | | - Mary E Dickinson
- Department of Integrative Physiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | | | - K C Kent Lloyd
- Mouse Biology Program, University of California Davis, California, CA, USA
| | - Jason D Heaney
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | | | - Arun Ramani
- The Centre for Computational Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Invitae, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Lauryl M J Nutter
- The Centre for Phenogenomics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada.
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79
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Tang PZ, Ding B, Reyes C, Papp D, Potter J. Target-seq: single workflow for detection of genome integration site, DNA translocation and off-target events. Biotechniques 2023. [PMID: 37161298 DOI: 10.2144/btn-2023-0013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Designed donor DNA delivery through viral or nonviral systems to target loci in the host genome is a critical step for gene therapy. Adeno-associated virus and lentivirus are leading vehicles for in vivo and ex vivo delivery of therapeutic genes due to their high delivery and editing efficiency. Nonviral editing tools, such as CRISPR/Cas9, are getting more attention for gene modification. However, there are safety concerns; for example, tumorigenesis due to off-target effects and DNA rearrangement. Analysis tools to detect and characterize on-target and off-target genome modification post editing in the host genome are pivotal for evaluating the success and safety of gene therapy. We developed Target-seq combined with different analysis tools to detect the genome integration site, DNA translocation and off-target events.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Bo Ding
- Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc., MA, USA
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80
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Jiménez C, Crosetto N. Discovering CRISPR-Cas off-target breaks. Nat Methods 2023; 20:641-642. [PMID: 37024652 DOI: 10.1038/s41592-023-01847-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/08/2023]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Nicola Crosetto
- Human Technopole, Milan, Italy.
- Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
- Science for Life Laboratory, Solna, Sweden.
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81
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Everette KA, Newby GA, Levine RM, Mayberry K, Jang Y, Mayuranathan T, Nimmagadda N, Dempsey E, Li Y, Bhoopalan SV, Liu X, Davis JR, Nelson AT, Chen PJ, Sousa AA, Cheng Y, Tisdale JF, Weiss MJ, Yen JS, Liu DR. Ex vivo prime editing of patient haematopoietic stem cells rescues sickle-cell disease phenotypes after engraftment in mice. Nat Biomed Eng 2023; 7:616-628. [PMID: 37069266 PMCID: PMC10195679 DOI: 10.1038/s41551-023-01026-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2023] [Accepted: 03/22/2023] [Indexed: 04/19/2023]
Abstract
Sickle-cell disease (SCD) is caused by an A·T-to-T·A transversion mutation in the β-globin gene (HBB). Here we show that prime editing can correct the SCD allele (HBBS) to wild type (HBBA) at frequencies of 15%-41% in haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) from patients with SCD. Seventeen weeks after transplantation into immunodeficient mice, prime-edited SCD HSPCs maintained HBBA levels and displayed engraftment frequencies, haematopoietic differentiation and lineage maturation similar to those of unedited HSPCs from healthy donors. An average of 42% of human erythroblasts and reticulocytes isolated 17 weeks after transplantation of prime-edited HSPCs from four SCD patient donors expressed HBBA, exceeding the levels predicted for therapeutic benefit. HSPC-derived erythrocytes carried less sickle haemoglobin, contained HBBA-derived adult haemoglobin at 28%-43% of normal levels and resisted hypoxia-induced sickling. Minimal off-target editing was detected at over 100 sites nominated experimentally via unbiased genome-wide analysis. Our findings support the feasibility of a one-time prime editing SCD treatment that corrects HBBS to HBBA, does not require any viral or non-viral DNA template and minimizes undesired consequences of DNA double-strand breaks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelcee A Everette
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Gregory A Newby
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Rachel M Levine
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Kalin Mayberry
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Yoonjeong Jang
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | | | - Nikitha Nimmagadda
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Erin Dempsey
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Yichao Li
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | | | - Xiong Liu
- Molecular and Clinical Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Jessie R Davis
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Andrew T Nelson
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Peter J Chen
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Alexander A Sousa
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Yong Cheng
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - John F Tisdale
- Molecular and Clinical Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Mitchell J Weiss
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Jonathan S Yen
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA.
| | - David R Liu
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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82
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Fu R, Xianyu Y. Gold Nanomaterials-Implemented CRISPR-Cas Systems for Biosensing. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2023; 19:e2300057. [PMID: 36840654 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202300057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2023] [Revised: 02/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Due to their superiority in the simple design and precise targeting, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-Cas systems have attracted significant interest for biosensing. On the one hand, CRISPR-Cas systems have the capacity to precisely recognize and cleave specific DNA and RNA sequences. On the other hand, CRISPR-Cas systems such as orthologs of Cas9, Cas12, and Cas13 exhibit cis-cleavage or trans-cleavage activities after recognizing the target sequence. Owing to the cleavage activities, CRISPR-Cas systems can be designed for biosensing by degrading tagged nucleic acids to produce detectable signals. To meet the requirements of point-of-care detection and versatile signal readouts, gold nanomaterials with excellent properties such as high extinction coefficients, easy surface functionalization, and biocompatibility are implemented in CRISPR-Cas-based biosensors. In combination with gold nanomaterials such as gold nanoparticles, gold nanorods, and gold nanostars, great efforts are devoted to fabricating CRISPR-Cas-based biosensors for the detection of diverse targets. This review focuses on the current advances in gold nanomaterials-implemented CRISPR-Cas-based biosensors, particularly the working mechanism and the performance of these biosensors. CRISPR-Cas systems, including CRISPR-Cas9, CRISPR-Cas12a, and CRISPR-Cas13a are discussed and highlighted. Meanwhile, prospects and challenges are also discussed in the design of biosensing strategies based on gold nanomaterials and CRISPR-Cas systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruijie Fu
- State Key Laboratory of Fluid Power and Mechatronic Systems, College of Biosystems Engineering and Food Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, P. R. China
| | - Yunlei Xianyu
- State Key Laboratory of Fluid Power and Mechatronic Systems, College of Biosystems Engineering and Food Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, P. R. China
- Future Food Laboratory, Innovation Center of Yangtze River Delta, Zhejiang University, Jiaxing, 314100, P. R. China
- Ningbo Research Institute, Zhejiang University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315100, P. R. China
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83
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Zou RS, Liu Y, Gaido OER, Konig MF, Mog BJ, Shen LL, Aviles-Vazquez F, Marin-Gonzalez A, Ha T. Improving the sensitivity of in vivo CRISPR off-target detection with DISCOVER-Seq. Nat Methods 2023; 20:706-713. [PMID: 37024653 PMCID: PMC10172116 DOI: 10.1038/s41592-023-01840-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2022] [Accepted: 03/06/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023]
Abstract
Discovery of off-target CRISPR-Cas activity in patient-derived cells and animal models is crucial for genome editing applications, but currently exhibits low sensitivity. We demonstrate that inhibition of DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit accumulates the repair protein MRE11 at CRISPR-Cas-targeted sites, enabling high-sensitivity mapping of off-target sites to positions of MRE11 binding using chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by sequencing. This technique, termed DISCOVER-Seq+, discovered up to fivefold more CRISPR off-target sites in immortalized cell lines, primary human cells and mice compared with previous methods. We demonstrate applicability to ex vivo knock-in of a cancer-directed transgenic T cell receptor in primary human T cells and in vivo adenovirus knock-out of cardiovascular risk gene PCSK9 in mice. Thus, DISCOVER-Seq+ is, to our knowledge, the most sensitive method to-date for discovering off-target genome editing in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roger S Zou
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Yang Liu
- Department of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Biophysics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Oscar E Reyes Gaido
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Maximilian F Konig
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Brian J Mog
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Ludwig Center, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Lustgarten Pancreatic Cancer Research Laboratory, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Leo L Shen
- Department of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Franklin Aviles-Vazquez
- Department of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Alberto Marin-Gonzalez
- Department of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Biophysics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Taekjip Ha
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Department of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Department of Biophysics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, MD, USA.
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84
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Li C, Georgakopoulou A, Newby GA, Chen PJ, Everette KA, Paschoudi K, Vlachaki E, Gil S, Anderson AK, Koob T, Huang L, Wang H, Kiem HP, Liu DR, Yannaki E, Lieber A. In vivo HSC prime editing rescues sickle cell disease in a mouse model. Blood 2023; 141:2085-2099. [PMID: 36800642 PMCID: PMC10163316 DOI: 10.1182/blood.2022018252] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2022] [Revised: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 01/24/2023] [Indexed: 02/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a monogenic disease caused by a nucleotide mutation in the β-globin gene. Current gene therapy studies are mainly focused on lentiviral vector-mediated gene addition or CRISPR/Cas9-mediated fetal globin reactivation, leaving the root cause unfixed. We developed a vectorized prime editing system that can directly repair the SCD mutation in hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) in vivo in a SCD mouse model (CD46/Townes mice). Our approach involved a single intravenous injection of a nonintegrating, prime editor-expressing viral vector into mobilized CD46/Townes mice and low-dose drug selection in vivo. This procedure resulted in the correction of ∼40% of βS alleles in HSCs. On average, 43% of sickle hemoglobin was replaced by adult hemoglobin, thereby greatly mitigating the SCD phenotypes. Transplantation in secondary recipients demonstrated that long-term repopulating HSCs were edited. Highly efficient target site editing was achieved with minimal generation of insertions and deletions and no detectable off-target editing. Because of its simplicity and portability, our in vivo prime editing approach has the potential for application in resource-poor countries where SCD is prevalent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chang Li
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
| | - Aphrodite Georgakopoulou
- Gene and Cell Therapy Center, Hematology Department, George Papanicolaou Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Gregory A. Newby
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
| | - Peter J. Chen
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
| | - Kelcee A. Everette
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
| | - Kiriaki Paschoudi
- Gene and Cell Therapy Center, Hematology Department, George Papanicolaou Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece
- School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Efthymia Vlachaki
- Hematological Laboratory, Second Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Hippokration General Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Sucheol Gil
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
| | - Anna K. Anderson
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
| | - Theodore Koob
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
| | - Lishan Huang
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
| | - Hongjie Wang
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
| | - Hans-Peter Kiem
- Stem and Gene Therapy Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA
| | - David R. Liu
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
| | - Evangelia Yannaki
- Gene and Cell Therapy Center, Hematology Department, George Papanicolaou Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - André Lieber
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
- Department of Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
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85
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Esquerra-Ruvira B, Baquedano I, Ruiz R, Fernandez A, Montoliu L, Mojica FJM. Identification of the EH CRISPR-Cas9 system on a metagenome and its application to genome engineering. Microb Biotechnol 2023. [PMID: 37097160 DOI: 10.1111/1751-7915.14266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2023] [Revised: 04/04/2023] [Accepted: 04/12/2023] [Indexed: 04/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Non-coding RNAs (crRNAs) produced from clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) loci and CRISPR-associated (Cas) proteins of the prokaryotic CRISPR-Cas systems form complexes that interfere with the spread of transmissible genetic elements through Cas-catalysed cleavage of foreign genetic material matching the guide crRNA sequences. The easily programmable targeting of nucleic acids enabled by these ribonucleoproteins has facilitated the implementation of CRISPR-based molecular biology tools for in vivo and in vitro modification of DNA and RNA targets. Despite the diversity of DNA-targeting Cas nucleases so far identified, native and engineered derivatives of the Streptococcus pyogenes SpCas9 are the most widely used for genome engineering, at least in part due to their catalytic robustness and the requirement of an exceptionally short motif (5'-NGG-3' PAM) flanking the target sequence. However, the large size of the SpCas9 variants impairs the delivery of the tool to eukaryotic cells and smaller alternatives are desirable. Here, we identify in a metagenome a new CRISPR-Cas9 system associated with a smaller Cas9 protein (EHCas9) that targets DNA sequences flanked by 5'-NGG-3' PAMs. We develop a simplified EHCas9 tool that specifically cleaves DNA targets and is functional for genome editing applications in prokaryotes and eukaryotic cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Belen Esquerra-Ruvira
- Department of Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Alicante, Alicante, Spain
| | - Ignacio Baquedano
- Department of Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Alicante, Alicante, Spain
| | - Raul Ruiz
- Department of Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Alicante, Alicante, Spain
| | - Almudena Fernandez
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC), Madrid, Spain
- Centre for Biomedical Network Research on Rare Diseases (CIBERER-ISCIII), Madrid, Spain
| | - Lluis Montoliu
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC), Madrid, Spain
- Centre for Biomedical Network Research on Rare Diseases (CIBERER-ISCIII), Madrid, Spain
| | - Francisco J M Mojica
- Department of Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Alicante, Alicante, Spain
- Multidisciplinary Institute for Environmental Studies "Ramón Margalef", University of Alicante, Alicante, Spain
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86
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Allen D, Kalter N, Rosenberg M, Hendel A. Homology-Directed-Repair-Based Genome Editing in HSPCs for the Treatment of Inborn Errors of Immunity and Blood Disorders. Pharmaceutics 2023; 15:pharmaceutics15051329. [PMID: 37242571 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics15051329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Revised: 04/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Genome engineering via targeted nucleases, specifically CRISPR-Cas9, has revolutionized the field of gene therapy research, providing a potential treatment for diseases of the blood and immune system. While numerous genome editing techniques have been used, CRISPR-Cas9 homology-directed repair (HDR)-mediated editing represents a promising method for the site-specific insertion of large transgenes for gene knock-in or gene correction. Alternative methods, such as lentiviral/gammaretroviral gene addition, gene knock-out via non-homologous end joining (NHEJ)-mediated editing, and base or prime editing, have shown great promise for clinical applications, yet all possess significant drawbacks when applied in the treatment of patients suffering from inborn errors of immunity or blood system disorders. This review aims to highlight the transformational benefits of HDR-mediated gene therapy and possible solutions for the existing problems holding the methodology back. Together, we aim to help bring HDR-based gene therapy in CD34+ hematopoietic stem progenitor cells (HSPCs) from the lab bench to the bedside.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Allen
- Institute of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials, The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Nechama Kalter
- Institute of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials, The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Michael Rosenberg
- Institute of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials, The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Ayal Hendel
- Institute of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials, The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
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87
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Arbab M, Matuszek Z, Kray KM, Du A, Newby GA, Blatnik AJ, Raguram A, Richter MF, Zhao KT, Levy JM, Shen MW, Arnold WD, Wang D, Xie J, Gao G, Burghes AHM, Liu DR. Base editing rescue of spinal muscular atrophy in cells and in mice. Science 2023; 380:eadg6518. [PMID: 36996170 PMCID: PMC10270003 DOI: 10.1126/science.adg6518] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 43.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Accepted: 03/21/2023] [Indexed: 04/01/2023]
Abstract
Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), the leading genetic cause of infant mortality, arises from survival motor neuron (SMN) protein insufficiency resulting from SMN1 loss. Approved therapies circumvent endogenous SMN regulation and require repeated dosing or may wane. We describe genome editing of SMN2, an insufficient copy of SMN1 harboring a C6>T mutation, to permanently restore SMN protein levels and rescue SMA phenotypes. We used nucleases or base editors to modify five SMN2 regulatory regions. Base editing converted SMN2 T6>C, restoring SMN protein levels to wild type. Adeno-associated virus serotype 9-mediated base editor delivery in Δ7SMA mice yielded 87% average T6>C conversion, improved motor function, and extended average life span, which was enhanced by one-time base editor and nusinersen coadministration (111 versus 17 days untreated). These findings demonstrate the potential of a one-time base editing treatment for SMA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mandana Arbab
- Department of Neurology, Rosamund Stone Zander Translational Neuroscience Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Zaneta Matuszek
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA
| | - Kaitlyn M. Kray
- Department of Biological Chemistry and Pharmacology, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, 1060 Carmack Road, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Ailing Du
- Horae Gene Therapy Center, University of Massachusetts, Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Gregory A. Newby
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Anton J. Blatnik
- Department of Biological Chemistry and Pharmacology, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, 1060 Carmack Road, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Aditya Raguram
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Michelle F. Richter
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Kevin T. Zhao
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Jonathan M. Levy
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Max W. Shen
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
- Computational and Systems Biology Program, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - W. David Arnold
- Department of Neurology, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, 1060 Carmack Road, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- NextGen Precision Health, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65212, USA
| | - Dan Wang
- Horae Gene Therapy Center, University of Massachusetts, Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
- Horae Gene Therapy Center and RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts, Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Jun Xie
- Horae Gene Therapy Center, University of Massachusetts, Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Guangping Gao
- Horae Gene Therapy Center, University of Massachusetts, Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
- Microbiology and Physiological Systems, University of Massachusetts, Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Arthur H. M. Burghes
- Department of Biological Chemistry and Pharmacology, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, 1060 Carmack Road, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - David R. Liu
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
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88
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Marinov GK, Kim SH, Bagdatli ST, Higashino SI, Trevino AE, Tycko J, Wu T, Bintu L, Bassik MC, He C, Kundaje A, Greenleaf WJ. CasKAS: direct profiling of genome-wide dCas9 and Cas9 specificity using ssDNA mapping. Genome Biol 2023; 24:85. [PMID: 37085898 PMCID: PMC10120127 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-023-02930-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2022] [Accepted: 04/07/2023] [Indexed: 04/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Detecting and mitigating off-target activity is critical to the practical application of CRISPR-mediated genome and epigenome editing. While numerous methods have been developed to map Cas9 binding specificity genome-wide, they are generally time-consuming and/or expensive, and not applicable to catalytically dead CRISPR enzymes. We have developed CasKAS, a rapid, inexpensive, and facile assay for identifying off-target CRISPR enzyme binding and cleavage by chemically mapping the unwound single-stranded DNA structures formed upon binding of a sgRNA-loaded Cas9 protein. We demonstrate this method in both in vitro and in vivo contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgi K Marinov
- Department of Genetics, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
| | - Samuel H Kim
- Cancer Biology Program, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - S Tansu Bagdatli
- Department of Genetics, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Soon Il Higashino
- Department of Genetics, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Alexandro E Trevino
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Josh Tycko
- Department of Genetics, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Tong Wu
- Department of Chemistry, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA
| | - Lacramioara Bintu
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Michael C Bassik
- Department of Genetics, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
- Chemistry, Engineering, and Medicine for Human Health (ChEM-H), Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Chuan He
- Department of Chemistry, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Institute for Biophysical Dynamics, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA
| | - Anshul Kundaje
- Department of Genetics, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
- Department of Computer Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - William J Greenleaf
- Department of Genetics, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
- Department of Applied Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA.
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89
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Sherkatghanad Z, Abdar M, Charlier J, Makarenkov V. Using traditional machine learning and deep learning methods for on- and off-target prediction in CRISPR/Cas9: a review. Brief Bioinform 2023; 24:7130974. [PMID: 37080758 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbad131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/13/2023] [Indexed: 04/22/2023] Open
Abstract
CRISPR/Cas9 (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats and CRISPR-associated protein 9) is a popular and effective two-component technology used for targeted genetic manipulation. It is currently the most versatile and accurate method of gene and genome editing, which benefits from a large variety of practical applications. For example, in biomedicine, it has been used in research related to cancer, virus infections, pathogen detection, and genetic diseases. Current CRISPR/Cas9 research is based on data-driven models for on- and off-target prediction as a cleavage may occur at non-target sequence locations. Nowadays, conventional machine learning and deep learning methods are applied on a regular basis to accurately predict on-target knockout efficacy and off-target profile of given single-guide RNAs (sgRNAs). In this paper, we present an overview and a comparative analysis of traditional machine learning and deep learning models used in CRISPR/Cas9. We highlight the key research challenges and directions associated with target activity prediction. We discuss recent advances in the sgRNA-DNA sequence encoding used in state-of-the-art on- and off-target prediction models. Furthermore, we present the most popular deep learning neural network architectures used in CRISPR/Cas9 prediction models. Finally, we summarize the existing challenges and discuss possible future investigations in the field of on- and off-target prediction. Our paper provides valuable support for academic and industrial researchers interested in the application of machine learning methods in the field of CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zeinab Sherkatghanad
- Departement d'Informatique, Universite du Quebec a Montreal, H2X 3Y7, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Moloud Abdar
- Institute for Intelligent Systems Research and Innovation (IISRI), Deakin University, 3216, Geelong, VIC, Australia
| | - Jeremy Charlier
- Departement d'Informatique, Universite du Quebec a Montreal, H2X 3Y7, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Vladimir Makarenkov
- Departement d'Informatique, Universite du Quebec a Montreal, H2X 3Y7, Montreal, QC, Canada
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90
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Badat M, Ejaz A, Hua P, Rice S, Zhang W, Hentges LD, Fisher CA, Denny N, Schwessinger R, Yasara N, Roy NBA, Issa F, Roy A, Telfer P, Hughes J, Mettananda S, Higgs DR, Davies JOJ. Direct correction of haemoglobin E β-thalassaemia using base editors. Nat Commun 2023; 14:2238. [PMID: 37076455 PMCID: PMC10115876 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-37604-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Accepted: 03/23/2023] [Indexed: 04/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Haemoglobin E (HbE) β-thalassaemia causes approximately 50% of all severe thalassaemia worldwide; equating to around 30,000 births per year. HbE β-thalassaemia is due to a point mutation in codon 26 of the human HBB gene on one allele (GAG; glutamatic acid → AAG; lysine, E26K), and any mutation causing severe β-thalassaemia on the other. When inherited together in compound heterozygosity these mutations can cause a severe thalassaemic phenotype. However, if only one allele is mutated individuals are carriers for the respective mutation and have an asymptomatic phenotype (β-thalassaemia trait). Here we describe a base editing strategy which corrects the HbE mutation either to wildtype (WT) or a normal variant haemoglobin (E26G) known as Hb Aubenas and thereby recreates the asymptomatic trait phenotype. We have achieved editing efficiencies in excess of 90% in primary human CD34 + cells. We demonstrate editing of long-term repopulating haematopoietic stem cells (LT-HSCs) using serial xenotransplantation in NSG mice. We have profiled the off-target effects using a combination of circularization for in vitro reporting of cleavage effects by sequencing (CIRCLE-seq) and deep targeted capture and have developed machine-learning based methods to predict functional effects of candidate off-target mutations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohsin Badat
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Department of Clinical Haematology, Royal London Hospital, Barts Health NHS Trust, London, UK
| | - Ayesha Ejaz
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Peng Hua
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- State Key Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Siobhan Rice
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Weijiao Zhang
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Lance D Hentges
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- MRC WIMM Centre for Computational Biology, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Oxford National Institute of Health Research Biomedical Research Centre, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Christopher A Fisher
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Nicholas Denny
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Ron Schwessinger
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Nirmani Yasara
- Department of Paediatrics, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka
| | - Noemi B A Roy
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Fadi Issa
- Transplantation Research and Immunology Group, Nuffield Department of Surgical Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Andi Roy
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Department of Paediatrics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Paul Telfer
- Department of Clinical Haematology, Royal London Hospital, Barts Health NHS Trust, London, UK
| | - Jim Hughes
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- MRC WIMM Centre for Computational Biology, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | | | - Douglas R Higgs
- Laboratory of Gene Regulation, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - James O J Davies
- MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
- Department of Clinical Haematology, Royal London Hospital, Barts Health NHS Trust, London, UK.
- National Institute of Health Research Blood and Transplant Research Unit in Precision Cellular Therapeutics, Oxford, UK.
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91
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Cromer MK, Majeti KR, Rettig GR, Murugan K, Kurgan GL, Bode NM, Hampton JP, Vakulskas CA, Behlke MA, Porteus MH. Comparative analysis of CRISPR off-target discovery tools following ex vivo editing of CD34 + hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. Mol Ther 2023; 31:1074-1087. [PMID: 36793210 PMCID: PMC10124080 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2023.02.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2022] [Revised: 01/11/2023] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 02/17/2023] Open
Abstract
While a number of methods exist to investigate CRISPR off-target (OT) editing, few have been compared head-to-head in primary cells after clinically relevant editing processes. Therefore, we compared in silico tools (COSMID, CCTop, and Cas-OFFinder) and empirical methods (CHANGE-Seq, CIRCLE-Seq, DISCOVER-Seq, GUIDE-Seq, and SITE-Seq) after ex vivo hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell (HSPC) editing. We performed editing using 11 different gRNAs complexed with Cas9 protein (high-fidelity [HiFi] or wild-type versions), then performed targeted next-generation sequencing of nominated OT sites identified by in silico and empirical methods. We identified an average of less than one OT site per guide RNA (gRNA) and all OT sites generated using HiFi Cas9 and a 20-nt gRNA were identified by all OT detection methods with the exception of SITE-seq. This resulted in high sensitivity for the majority of OT nomination tools and COSMID, DISCOVER-Seq, and GUIDE-Seq attained the highest positive predictive value (PPV). We found that empirical methods did not identify OT sites that were not also identified by bioinformatic methods. This study supports that refined bioinformatic algorithms could be developed that maintain both high sensitivity and PPV, thereby enabling more efficient identification of potential OT sites without compromising a thorough examination for any given gRNA.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Kyle Cromer
- Department of Surgery, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regeneration Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA.
| | - Kiran R Majeti
- Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | | | - Karthik Murugan
- Integrated DNA Technologies, Inc., Coralville, IA 52241, USA
| | - Gavin L Kurgan
- Integrated DNA Technologies, Inc., Coralville, IA 52241, USA
| | - Nicole M Bode
- Integrated DNA Technologies, Inc., Coralville, IA 52241, USA
| | - Jessica P Hampton
- Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | | | - Mark A Behlke
- Integrated DNA Technologies, Inc., Coralville, IA 52241, USA
| | - Matthew H Porteus
- Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
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92
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Vora DS, Yadav S, Sundar D. Hybrid Multitask Learning Reveals Sequence Features Driving Specificity in the CRISPR/Cas9 System. Biomolecules 2023; 13:biom13040641. [PMID: 37189388 DOI: 10.3390/biom13040641] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2023] [Revised: 03/27/2023] [Accepted: 03/28/2023] [Indexed: 04/05/2023] Open
Abstract
CRISPR/Cas9 technology is capable of precisely editing genomes and is at the heart of various scientific and medical advances in recent times. The advances in biomedical research are hindered because of the inadvertent burden on the genome when genome editors are employed—the off-target effects. Although experimental screens to detect off-targets have allowed understanding the activity of Cas9, that knowledge remains incomplete as the rules do not extrapolate well to new target sequences. Off-target prediction tools developed recently have increasingly relied on machine learning and deep learning techniques to reliably understand the complete threat of likely off-targets because the rules that drive Cas9 activity are not fully understood. In this study, we present a count-based as well as deep-learning-based approach to derive sequence features that are important in deciding on Cas9 activity at a sequence. There are two major challenges in off-target determination—the identification of a likely site of Cas9 activity and the prediction of the extent of Cas9 activity at that site. The hybrid multitask CNN–biLSTM model developed, named CRISP–RCNN, simultaneously predicts off-targets and the extent of activity on off-targets. Employing methods of integrated gradients and weighting kernels for feature importance approximation, analysis of nucleotide and position preference, and mismatch tolerance have been performed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dhvani Sandip Vora
- Department of Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, India
| | - Shashank Yadav
- Department of Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, India
| | - Durai Sundar
- Department of Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, India
- Yardi School of Artificial Intelligence, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, India
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93
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Panda A, Suvakov M, Mariani J, Drucker KL, Park Y, Jang Y, Kollmeyer TM, Sarkar G, Bae T, Kim JJ, Yoon WH, Jenkins RB, Vaccarino FM, Abyzov A. Clonally Selected Lines After CRISPR-Cas Editing Are Not Isogenic. CRISPR J 2023; 6:176-182. [PMID: 37071670 PMCID: PMC10123805 DOI: 10.1089/crispr.2022.0050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2022] [Accepted: 02/21/2023] [Indexed: 04/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The CRISPR-Cas9 system has enabled researchers to precisely modify/edit the sequence of a genome. A typical editing experiment consists of two steps: (1) editing cultured cells; (2) cell cloning and selection of clones with and without intended edit, presumed to be isogenic. The application of CRISPR-Cas9 system may result in off-target edits, whereas cloning will reveal culture-acquired mutations. We analyzed the extent of the former and the latter by whole genome sequencing in three experiments involving separate genomic loci and conducted by three independent laboratories. In all experiments we hardly found any off-target edits, whereas detecting hundreds to thousands of single nucleotide mutations unique to each clone after relatively short culture of 10-20 passages. Notably, clones also differed in copy number alterations (CNAs) that were several kb to several mb in size and represented the largest source of genomic divergence among clones. We suggest that screening of clones for mutations and CNAs acquired in culture is a necessary step to allow correct interpretation of DNA editing experiments. Furthermore, since culture associated mutations are inevitable, we propose that experiments involving derivation of clonal lines should compare a mix of multiple unedited lines and a mix of multiple edited lines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arijit Panda
- Department of Quantitative Health Sciences, Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Milovan Suvakov
- Department of Quantitative Health Sciences, Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Jessica Mariani
- Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Kristen L. Drucker
- Department of Lab Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Yohan Park
- Aging and Metabolism Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA
| | - Yeongjun Jang
- Department of Quantitative Health Sciences, Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Thomas M. Kollmeyer
- Department of Lab Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Gobinda Sarkar
- Department of Lab Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Taejeong Bae
- Department of Quantitative Health Sciences, Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Jean J. Kim
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Wan Hee Yoon
- Aging and Metabolism Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA
| | - Robert B. Jenkins
- Department of Lab Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Flora M. Vaccarino
- Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Alexej Abyzov
- Department of Quantitative Health Sciences, Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
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94
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McAuley GE, Yiu G, Chang PC, Newby GA, Campo-Fernandez B, Fitz-Gibbon ST, Wu X, Kang SHL, Garibay A, Butler J, Christian V, Wong RL, Everette KA, Azzun A, Gelfer H, Seet CS, Narendran A, Murguia-Favela L, Romero Z, Wright N, Liu DR, Crooks GM, Kohn DB. Human T cell generation is restored in CD3δ severe combined immunodeficiency through adenine base editing. Cell 2023; 186:1398-1416.e23. [PMID: 36944331 PMCID: PMC10876291 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.02.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2022] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/23/2023]
Abstract
CD3δ SCID is a devastating inborn error of immunity caused by mutations in CD3D, encoding the invariant CD3δ chain of the CD3/TCR complex necessary for normal thymopoiesis. We demonstrate an adenine base editing (ABE) strategy to restore CD3δ in autologous hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs). Delivery of mRNA encoding a laboratory-evolved ABE and guide RNA into a CD3δ SCID patient's HSPCs resulted in a 71.2% ± 7.85% (n = 3) correction of the pathogenic mutation. Edited HSPCs differentiated in artificial thymic organoids produced mature T cells exhibiting diverse TCR repertoires and TCR-dependent functions. Edited human HSPCs transplanted into immunodeficient mice showed 88% reversion of the CD3D defect in human CD34+ cells isolated from mouse bone marrow after 16 weeks, indicating correction of long-term repopulating HSCs. These findings demonstrate the preclinical efficacy of ABE in HSPCs for the treatment of CD3δ SCID, providing a foundation for the development of a one-time treatment for CD3δ SCID patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grace E McAuley
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Gloria Yiu
- Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Patrick C Chang
- Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Gregory A Newby
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Beatriz Campo-Fernandez
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Sorel T Fitz-Gibbon
- Department of Molecular, Cell & Developmental Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Xiaomeng Wu
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Sung-Hae L Kang
- Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Amber Garibay
- Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Jeffrey Butler
- Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Valentina Christian
- Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Ryan L Wong
- Department of Molecular & Medical Pharmacology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Kelcee A Everette
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Anthony Azzun
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Hila Gelfer
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Christopher S Seet
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology-Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Broad Stem Cell Research Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Aru Narendran
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Luis Murguia-Favela
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Zulema Romero
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Nicola Wright
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - David R Liu
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Gay M Crooks
- Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Broad Stem Cell Research Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Division of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Donald B Kohn
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Department of Molecular & Medical Pharmacology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Division of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
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95
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Tsuchida CA, Brandes N, Bueno R, Trinidad M, Mazumder T, Yu B, Hwang B, Chang C, Liu J, Sun Y, Hopkins CR, Parker KR, Qi Y, Satpathy AT, Stadtmauer EA, Cate JH, Eyquem J, Fraietta JA, June CH, Chang HY, Ye CJ, Doudna JA. Mitigation of chromosome loss in clinical CRISPR-Cas9-engineered T cells. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.03.22.533709. [PMID: 36993359 PMCID: PMC10055432 DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.22.533709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/31/2023]
Abstract
CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing has enabled advanced T cell therapies, but occasional loss of the targeted chromosome remains a safety concern. To investigate whether Cas9-induced chromosome loss is a universal phenomenon and evaluate its clinical significance, we conducted a systematic analysis in primary human T cells. Arrayed and pooled CRISPR screens revealed that chromosome loss was generalizable across the genome and resulted in partial and entire loss of the chromosome, including in pre-clinical chimeric antigen receptor T cells. T cells with chromosome loss persisted for weeks in culture, implying the potential to interfere with clinical use. A modified cell manufacturing process, employed in our first-in-human clinical trial of Cas9-engineered T cells, 1 dramatically reduced chromosome loss while largely preserving genome editing efficacy. Expression of p53 correlated with protection from chromosome loss observed in this protocol, suggesting both a mechanism and strategy for T cell engineering that mitigates this genotoxicity in the clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Connor A. Tsuchida
- University of California, Berkeley - University of California, San Francisco Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Nadav Brandes
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Raymund Bueno
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- These authors contributed equally to this work
- Present address: BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., Novato, CA, USA
| | - Marena Trinidad
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Thomas Mazumder
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Bingfei Yu
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Byungjin Hwang
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Present address: Severance Biomedical Science Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Christopher Chang
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Medical Scientist Training Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Jamin Liu
- University of California, Berkeley - University of California, San Francisco Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Present address: Altos Labs, Redwood City, CA, USA
| | - Yang Sun
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Caitlin R. Hopkins
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Kevin R. Parker
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Present address: Cartography Biosciences, South San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Yanyan Qi
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Ansuman T. Satpathy
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Edward A. Stadtmauer
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Jamie H.D. Cate
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3), University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Justin Eyquem
- Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Joseph A. Fraietta
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Carl H. June
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Howard Y. Chang
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Chun Jimmie Ye
- University of California, Berkeley - University of California, San Francisco Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Institute for Human Genetics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Institute for Computational Health Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Jennifer A. Doudna
- University of California, Berkeley - University of California, San Francisco Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3), University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
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96
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Ye L, Lam SZ, Yang L, Suzuki K, Zou Y, Lin Q, Zhang Y, Clark P, Peng L, Chen S. Therapeutic immune cell engineering with an mRNA : AAV- Sleeping Beauty composite system. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.03.14.532651. [PMID: 36993594 PMCID: PMC10055155 DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.14.532651] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
Adoptive cell therapy has shown clinical success in patients with hematological malignancies. Immune cell engineering is critical for production, research, and development of cell therapy; however, current approaches for generation of therapeutic immune cells face various limitations. Here, we establish a composite gene delivery system for the highly efficient engineering of therapeutic immune cells. This system, termed MAJESTIC ( m RNA A AV-Sleeping-Beauty J oint E ngineering of S table T herapeutic I mmune C ells), combines the merits of mRNA, AAV vector, and transposon into one composite system. In MAJESTIC, the transient mRNA component encodes a transposase that mediates permanent genomic integration of the Sleeping Beauty (SB) transposon, which carries the gene-of-interest and is embedded within the AAV vector. This system can transduce diverse immune cell types with low cellular toxicity and achieve highly efficient and stable therapeutic cargo delivery. Compared with conventional gene delivery systems, such as lentiviral vector, DNA transposon plasmid, or minicircle electroporation, MAJESTIC shows higher cell viability, chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) transgene expression, therapeutic cell yield, as well as prolonged transgene expression. CAR-T cells generated by MAJESTIC are functional and have strong anti-tumor activity in vivo . This system also demonstrates versatility for engineering different cell therapy constructs such as canonical CAR, bi-specific CAR, kill switch CAR, and synthetic TCR; and for CAR delivery into various immune cells, including T cells, natural killer cells, myeloid cells, and induced pluripotent stem cells.
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97
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Guo C, Ma X, Gao F, Guo Y. Off-target effects in CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2023; 11:1143157. [PMID: 36970624 PMCID: PMC10034092 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2023.1143157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 63.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 03/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Gene editing stands for the methods to precisely make changes to a specific nucleic acid sequence. With the recent development of the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas9 system, gene editing has become efficient, convenient and programmable, leading to promising translational studies and clinical trials for both genetic and non-genetic diseases. A major concern in the applications of the CRISPR/Cas9 system is about its off-target effects, namely the deposition of unexpected, unwanted, or even adverse alterations to the genome. To date, many methods have been developed to nominate or detect the off-target sites of CRISPR/Cas9, which laid the basis for the successful upgrades of CRISPR/Cas9 derivatives with enhanced precision. In this review, we summarize these technological advancements and discuss about the current challenges in the management of off-target effects for future gene therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Congting Guo
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing, China
- Peking University Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaoteng Ma
- Department of Cardiology, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Fei Gao
- Department of Cardiology, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Fei Gao, ; Yuxuan Guo,
| | - Yuxuan Guo
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing, China
- Peking University Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, Beijing, China
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Science, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Receptors Research, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Fei Gao, ; Yuxuan Guo,
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98
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Padmaswari MH, Agrawal S, Jia MS, Ivy A, Maxenberger DA, Burcham LA, Nelson CE. Delivery challenges for CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. BIOPHYSICS REVIEWS 2023; 4:011307. [PMID: 36864908 PMCID: PMC9969352 DOI: 10.1063/5.0131452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2022] [Accepted: 01/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Duchene muscular dystrophy (DMD) is an X-linked neuromuscular disorder that affects about one in every 5000 live male births. DMD is caused by mutations in the gene that codes for dystrophin, which is required for muscle membrane stabilization. The loss of functional dystrophin causes muscle degradation that leads to weakness, loss of ambulation, cardiac and respiratory complications, and eventually, premature death. Therapies to treat DMD have advanced in the past decade, with treatments in clinical trials and four exon-skipping drugs receiving conditional Food and Drug Administration approval. However, to date, no treatment has provided long-term correction. Gene editing has emerged as a promising approach to treating DMD. There is a wide range of tools, including meganucleases, zinc finger nucleases, transcription activator-like effector nucleases, and, most notably, RNA-guided enzymes from the bacterial adaptive immune system clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR). Although challenges in using CRISPR for gene therapy in humans still abound, including safety and efficiency of delivery, the future for CRISPR gene editing for DMD is promising. This review will summarize the progress in CRISPR gene editing for DMD including key summaries of current approaches, delivery methodologies, and the challenges that gene editing still faces as well as prospective solutions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Shilpi Agrawal
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, USA
| | - Mary S. Jia
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, USA
| | - Allie Ivy
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, USA
| | - Daniel A. Maxenberger
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, USA
| | - Landon A. Burcham
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, USA
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99
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Yin S, Zhang M, Liu Y, Sun X, Guan Y, Chen X, Yang L, Huo Y, Yang J, Zhang X, Han H, Zhang J, Xiao MM, Liu M, Hu J, Wang L, Li D. Engineering of efficiency-enhanced Cas9 and base editors with improved gene therapy efficacies. Mol Ther 2023; 31:744-759. [PMID: 36457249 PMCID: PMC10014233 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2022.11.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2022] [Revised: 10/31/2022] [Accepted: 11/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Editing efficiency is pivotal for the efficacies of CRISPR-based gene therapies. We found that fusing an HMG-D domain to the N terminus of SpCas9 (named efficiency-enhanced Cas9 [eeCas9]) significantly increased editing efficiency by 1.4-fold on average. The HMG-D domain also enhanced the activities of non-NGG PAM Cas9 variants, high-fidelity Cas9 variants, smaller Cas9 orthologs, Cas9-based epigenetic regulators, and base editors in cell lines. Furthermore, we discovered that eeCas9 exhibits comparable off-targeting effects with Cas9, and its specificity could be increased through ribonucleoprotein delivery or using hairpin single-guide RNAs and high-fidelity Cas9s. The entire eeCas9 could be packaged into an adeno-associated virus vector and exhibited a 1.7- to 2.6-fold increase in editing efficiency targeting the Pcsk9 gene in mice, leading to a greater reduction of serum cholesterol levels. Moreover, the efficiency of eeA3A-BE3 also surpasses that of A3A-BE3 in targeting the promoter region of γ-globin genes or BCL11A enhancer in human hematopoietic stem cells to reactivate γ-globin expression for the treatment of β-hemoglobinopathy. Together, eeCas9 and its derivatives are promising editing tools that exhibit higher activity and therapeutic efficacy for both in vivo and ex vivo therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuming Yin
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Mei Zhang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Yang Liu
- The MOE Key Laboratory of Cell Proliferation and Differentiation, Genome Editing Research Center, School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Xiaoyue Sun
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Yuting Guan
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Xi Chen
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Lei Yang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Yanan Huo
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Jing Yang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Xiaohui Zhang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Honghui Han
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Jiqin Zhang
- Bioray Laboratories Inc., Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Min-Min Xiao
- Clinical Laboratory, Second Peoples Hospital of Wuhu City, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Mingyao Liu
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
| | - Jiazhi Hu
- The MOE Key Laboratory of Cell Proliferation and Differentiation, Genome Editing Research Center, School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
| | - Liren Wang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China.
| | - Dali Li
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China.
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100
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Genome editing in cancer: Challenges and potential opportunities. Bioact Mater 2023; 21:394-402. [PMID: 36185740 PMCID: PMC9483578 DOI: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2022.08.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2022] [Revised: 08/21/2022] [Accepted: 08/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Ever since its mechanism was discovered back in 2012, the CRISPR/Cas9 system have revolutionized the field of genome editing. While at first it was seen as a therapeutic tool mostly relevant for curing genetic diseases, it has been recently shown to also hold the potential to become a clinically relevant therapy for cancer. However, there are multiple challenges that must be addressed prior to clinical testing. Predominantly, the safety of the system when used for in-vivo therapies, including off-target activity and the effects of the double strand break induction on genomic stability. Here, we will focus on the inherent challenges in the CRISPR/Cas9 system and discuss various opportunities to overcoming these challenges. In recent years, several works have shown that knocking down key genes by CRISPR/Cas9 based could potentially be a new type of cancer therapy. This has been made possible due to advances in the fields of In-vivo delivery, such as lentiviral vectors and lipid nanoparticles. Limiting CRISPR/Cas9 activity to the tumor and minimizing off-target activity are challenges that must be overcome before proceeding to the clinic. We review approaches arising from multiple disciplines that could overcome these challenges. The combination of these multi-disciplinary approaches should be able to overcome the different challenges and open the way to the clinic.
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