1
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Stoltzfus MJ, Workman RE, Keith NC, Modell JW. A dynamic subpopulation of CRISPR-Cas overexpressers allows Streptococcus pyogenes to rapidly respond to phage. Nat Microbiol 2024; 9:2410-2421. [PMID: 38997519 DOI: 10.1038/s41564-024-01748-0] [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: 01/04/2024] [Accepted: 06/03/2024] [Indexed: 07/14/2024]
Abstract
Many CRISPR-Cas (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats and CRISPR-associated protein) systems, which provide bacteria with adaptive immunity against phages, are transcriptionally repressed in their native hosts. How CRISPR-Cas expression is induced as needed, for example, during a bacteriophage infection, remains poorly understood. In Streptococcus pyogenes, a non-canonical guide RNA tracr-L directs Cas9 to autorepress its own promoter. Here we describe a dynamic subpopulation of cells harbouring single mutations that disrupt Cas9 binding and cause CRISPR-Cas overexpression. Cas9 actively expands this population by elevating mutation rates at the tracr-L target site. Overexpressers show higher rates of memory formation, stronger potency of old memories and a larger memory storage capacity relative to wild-type cells, which are surprisingly vulnerable to phage infection. However, in the absence of phage, CRISPR-Cas overexpression reduces fitness. We propose that CRISPR-Cas overexpressers are critical players in phage defence, enabling bacterial populations to mount rapid transcriptional responses to phage without requiring transient changes in any one cell.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie J Stoltzfus
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Rachael E Workman
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Nicholas C Keith
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Joshua W Modell
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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2
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Otarbayev D, Myung K. Exploring factors influencing choice of DNA double-strand break repair pathways. DNA Repair (Amst) 2024; 140:103696. [PMID: 38820807 DOI: 10.1016/j.dnarep.2024.103696] [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: 04/17/2024] [Revised: 05/20/2024] [Accepted: 05/20/2024] [Indexed: 06/02/2024]
Abstract
DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) represent one of the most severe threats to genomic integrity, demanding intricate repair mechanisms within eukaryotic cells. A diverse array of factors orchestrates the complex choreography of DSB signaling and repair, encompassing repair pathways, such as non-homologous end-joining, homologous recombination, and polymerase-θ-mediated end-joining. This review looks into the intricate decision-making processes guiding eukaryotic cells towards a particular repair pathway, particularly emphasizing the processing of two-ended DSBs. Furthermore, we elucidate the transformative role of Cas9, a site-specific endonuclease, in revolutionizing our comprehension of DNA DSB repair dynamics. Additionally, we explore the burgeoning potential of Cas9's remarkable ability to induce sequence-specific DSBs, offering a promising avenue for precise targeting of tumor cells. Through this comprehensive exploration, we unravel the intricate molecular mechanisms of cellular responses to DSBs, shedding light on both fundamental repair processes and cutting-edge therapeutic strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniyar Otarbayev
- Center for Genomic Integrity, Institute for Basic Science, Ulsan 44919, South Korea; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, South Korea
| | - Kyungjae Myung
- Center for Genomic Integrity, Institute for Basic Science, Ulsan 44919, South Korea; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, South Korea.
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3
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Yao D, Binan L, Bezney J, Simonton B, Freedman J, Frangieh CJ, Dey K, Geiger-Schuller K, Eraslan B, Gusev A, Regev A, Cleary B. Scalable genetic screening for regulatory circuits using compressed Perturb-seq. Nat Biotechnol 2024; 42:1282-1295. [PMID: 37872410 PMCID: PMC11035494 DOI: 10.1038/s41587-023-01964-9] [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: 01/05/2023] [Accepted: 08/22/2023] [Indexed: 10/25/2023]
Abstract
Pooled CRISPR screens with single-cell RNA sequencing readout (Perturb-seq) have emerged as a key technique in functional genomics, but they are limited in scale by cost and combinatorial complexity. In this study, we modified the design of Perturb-seq by incorporating algorithms applied to random, low-dimensional observations. Compressed Perturb-seq measures multiple random perturbations per cell or multiple cells per droplet and computationally decompresses these measurements by leveraging the sparse structure of regulatory circuits. Applied to 598 genes in the immune response to bacterial lipopolysaccharide, compressed Perturb-seq achieves the same accuracy as conventional Perturb-seq with an order of magnitude cost reduction and greater power to learn genetic interactions. We identified known and novel regulators of immune responses and uncovered evolutionarily constrained genes with downstream targets enriched for immune disease heritability, including many missed by existing genome-wide association studies. Our framework enables new scales of interrogation for a foundational method in functional genomics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Douglas Yao
- Program in Systems, Synthetic, and Quantitative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Loic Binan
- Klarman Cell Observatory, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Jon Bezney
- Klarman Cell Observatory, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Genetics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Brooke Simonton
- Klarman Cell Observatory, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Jahanara Freedman
- Klarman Cell Observatory, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Chris J Frangieh
- Klarman Cell Observatory, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Kushal Dey
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
- Computational and Systems Biology Program, Sloan Kettering Institute, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
| | | | | | - Alexander Gusev
- Klarman Cell Observatory, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Aviv Regev
- Klarman Cell Observatory, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Computational and Systems Biology Program, Sloan Kettering Institute, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
- Genentech, South San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Brian Cleary
- Faculty of Computing and Data Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
- Program in Bioinformatics, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
- Biological Design Center, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
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4
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Zhan L, Wang Y, Wang A, Zhang Y, Cheng C, Zhao J, Zhang W, Chen J, Li P. A genome-scale deep learning model to predict gene expression changes of genetic perturbations from multiplex biological networks. Brief Bioinform 2024; 25:bbae433. [PMID: 39226889 PMCID: PMC11370636 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbae433] [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: 04/17/2024] [Revised: 07/17/2024] [Accepted: 08/19/2024] [Indexed: 09/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Systematic characterization of biological effects to genetic perturbation is essential to the application of molecular biology and biomedicine. However, the experimental exhaustion of genetic perturbations on the genome-wide scale is challenging. Here, we show TranscriptionNet, a deep learning model that integrates multiple biological networks to systematically predict transcriptional profiles to three types of genetic perturbations based on transcriptional profiles induced by genetic perturbations in the L1000 project: RNA interference, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat, and overexpression. TranscriptionNet performs better than existing approaches in predicting inducible gene expression changes for all three types of genetic perturbations. TranscriptionNet can predict transcriptional profiles for all genes in existing biological networks and increases perturbational gene expression changes for each type of genetic perturbation from a few thousand to 26 945 genes. TranscriptionNet demonstrates strong generalization ability when comparing predicted and true gene expression changes on different external tasks. Overall, TranscriptionNet can systemically predict transcriptional consequences induced by perturbing genes on a genome-wide scale and thus holds promise to systemically detect gene function and enhance drug development and target discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lingmin Zhan
- College of Basic Sciences, Shanxi Agricultural University, 1 Mingxian South Road, Taigu District, Jinzhong, 030801, China
| | - Yingdong Wang
- College of Basic Sciences, Shanxi Agricultural University, 1 Mingxian South Road, Taigu District, Jinzhong, 030801, China
| | - Aoyi Wang
- College of Basic Sciences, Shanxi Agricultural University, 1 Mingxian South Road, Taigu District, Jinzhong, 030801, China
| | - Yuanyuan Zhang
- College of Basic Sciences, Shanxi Agricultural University, 1 Mingxian South Road, Taigu District, Jinzhong, 030801, China
| | - Caiping Cheng
- College of Basic Sciences, Shanxi Agricultural University, 1 Mingxian South Road, Taigu District, Jinzhong, 030801, China
| | - Jinzhong Zhao
- College of Basic Sciences, Shanxi Agricultural University, 1 Mingxian South Road, Taigu District, Jinzhong, 030801, China
| | - Wuxia Zhang
- College of Basic Sciences, Shanxi Agricultural University, 1 Mingxian South Road, Taigu District, Jinzhong, 030801, China
| | - Jianxin Chen
- School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, 11 North Third Ring Road East, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Peng Li
- College of Basic Sciences, Shanxi Agricultural University, 1 Mingxian South Road, Taigu District, Jinzhong, 030801, China
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5
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Adapa SR, Sami A, Meshram P, Ferreira GC, Jiang RHY. Uncovering Porphyrin Accumulation in the Tumor Microenvironment. Genes (Basel) 2024; 15:961. [PMID: 39062740 PMCID: PMC11275590 DOI: 10.3390/genes15070961] [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: 05/13/2024] [Revised: 07/09/2024] [Accepted: 07/10/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Heme, an iron-containing tetrapyrrole, is essential in almost all organisms. Heme biosynthesis needs to be precisely regulated particularly given the potential cytotoxicity of protoporphyrin IX, the intermediate preceding heme formation. Here, we report on the porphyrin intermediate accumulation within the tumor microenvironment (TME), which we propose to result from dysregulation of heme biosynthesis concomitant with an enhanced cancer survival dependence on mid-step genes, a process we recently termed "Porphyrin Overdrive". Specifically, porphyrins build up in both lung cancer cells and stromal cells in the TME. Within the TME's stromal cells, evidence supports cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) actively producing porphyrins through an imbalanced pathway. Conversely, normal tissues exhibit no porphyrin accumulation, and CAFs deprived of tumor cease porphyrin overproduction, indicating that both cancer and tumor-stromal porphyrin overproduction is confined to the cancer-specific tissue niche. The clinical relevance of our findings is implied by establishing a correlation between imbalanced porphyrin production and overall poorer survival in more aggressive cancers. These findings illuminate the anomalous porphyrin dynamics specifically within the tumor microenvironment, suggesting a potential target for therapeutic intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Swamy R. Adapa
- USF Genomics Program, Center for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA;
- Global and Planetary Health, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA;
| | - Abdus Sami
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA; (A.S.); (G.C.F.)
| | - Pravin Meshram
- Global and Planetary Health, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA;
| | - Gloria C. Ferreira
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA; (A.S.); (G.C.F.)
- Department of Chemistry, College of Arts and Sciences, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620, USA
| | - Rays H. Y. Jiang
- USF Genomics Program, Center for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA;
- Global and Planetary Health, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA;
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6
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Vinceti A, Iannuzzi RM, Boyle I, Trastulla L, Campbell CD, Vazquez F, Dempster JM, Iorio F. A benchmark of computational methods for correcting biases of established and unknown origin in CRISPR-Cas9 screening data. Genome Biol 2024; 25:192. [PMID: 39030569 PMCID: PMC11264729 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-024-03336-1] [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: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 07/10/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND CRISPR-Cas9 dropout screens are formidable tools for investigating biology with unprecedented precision and scale. However, biases in data lead to potential confounding effects on interpretation and compromise overall quality. The activity of Cas9 is influenced by structural features of the target site, including copy number amplifications (CN bias). More worryingly, proximal targeted loci tend to generate similar gene-independent responses to CRISPR-Cas9 targeting (proximity bias), possibly due to Cas9-induced whole chromosome-arm truncations or other genomic structural features and different chromatin accessibility levels. RESULTS We benchmarked eight computational methods, rigorously evaluating their ability to reduce both CN and proximity bias in the two largest publicly available cell-line-based CRISPR-Cas9 screens to date. We also evaluated the capability of each method to preserve data quality and heterogeneity by assessing the extent to which the processed data allows accurate detection of true positive essential genes, established oncogenetic addictions, and known/novel biomarkers of cancer dependency. Our analysis sheds light on the ability of each method to correct biases under different scenarios. AC-Chronos outperforms other methods in correcting both CN and proximity biases when jointly processing multiple screens of models with available CN information, whereas CRISPRcleanR is the top performing method for individual screens or when CN information is not available. In addition, Chronos and AC-Chronos yield a final dataset better able to recapitulate known sets of essential and non-essential genes. CONCLUSIONS Overall, our investigation provides guidance for the selection of the most appropriate bias-correction method, based on its strengths, weaknesses and experimental settings.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Lucia Trastulla
- Computational Biology Research Centre, Human Technopole, Milan, Italy
| | | | | | | | - Francesco Iorio
- Computational Biology Research Centre, Human Technopole, Milan, Italy.
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7
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Xiao MS, Damodaran AP, Kumari B, Dickson E, Xing K, On TA, Parab N, King HE, Perez AR, Guiblet WM, Duncan G, Che A, Chari R, Andresson T, Vidigal JA, Weatheritt RJ, Aregger M, Gonatopoulos-Pournatzis T. Genome-scale exon perturbation screens uncover exons critical for cell fitness. Mol Cell 2024; 84:2553-2572.e19. [PMID: 38917794 PMCID: PMC11246229 DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2024.05.024] [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: 10/01/2023] [Revised: 04/04/2024] [Accepted: 05/24/2024] [Indexed: 06/27/2024]
Abstract
CRISPR-Cas technology has transformed functional genomics, yet understanding of how individual exons differentially shape cellular phenotypes remains limited. Here, we optimized and conducted massively parallel exon deletion and splice-site mutation screens in human cell lines to identify exons that regulate cellular fitness. Fitness-promoting exons are prevalent in essential and highly expressed genes and commonly overlap with protein domains and interaction interfaces. Conversely, fitness-suppressing exons are enriched in nonessential genes, exhibiting lower inclusion levels, and overlap with intrinsically disordered regions and disease-associated mutations. In-depth mechanistic investigation of the screen-hit TAF5 alternative exon-8 revealed that its inclusion is required for assembly of the TFIID general transcription initiation complex, thereby regulating global gene expression output. Collectively, our orthogonal exon perturbation screens established a comprehensive repository of phenotypically important exons and uncovered regulatory mechanisms governing cellular fitness and gene expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mei-Sheng Xiao
- RNA Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Arun Prasath Damodaran
- RNA Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Frederick, MD 21702, USA.
| | - Bandana Kumari
- RNA Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Ethan Dickson
- RNA Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Kun Xing
- RNA Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Tyler A On
- Molecular Targets Program, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Nikhil Parab
- RNA Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Helen E King
- EMBL Australia and Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, NSW 2010, Australia
| | - Alexendar R Perez
- Laboratory of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Care, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Wilfried M Guiblet
- RNA Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Gerard Duncan
- Protein Characterization Laboratory, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (FNLCR), Frederick, MD 21701, USA
| | - Anney Che
- Advanced Biomedical Computational Science, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (FNLCR), Frederick, MD 21701, USA
| | - Raj Chari
- Genome Modification Core, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (FNLCR), Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Thorkell Andresson
- Protein Characterization Laboratory, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (FNLCR), Frederick, MD 21701, USA
| | - Joana A Vidigal
- Laboratory of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Robert J Weatheritt
- EMBL Australia and Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, NSW 2010, Australia; School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2010, Australia
| | - Michael Aregger
- Molecular Targets Program, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Frederick, MD 21702, USA.
| | - Thomas Gonatopoulos-Pournatzis
- RNA Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Frederick, MD 21702, USA.
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8
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Adapa SR, Hunter GA, Amin NE, Marinescu C, Borsky A, Sagatys EM, Sebti SM, Reuther GW, Ferreira GC, Jiang RH. Porphyrin overdrive rewires cancer cell metabolism. Life Sci Alliance 2024; 7:e202302547. [PMID: 38649187 PMCID: PMC11035860 DOI: 10.26508/lsa.202302547] [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: 12/19/2023] [Revised: 04/11/2024] [Accepted: 04/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024] Open
Abstract
All cancer cells reprogram metabolism to support aberrant growth. Here, we report that cancer cells employ and depend on imbalanced and dynamic heme metabolic pathways, to accumulate heme intermediates, that is, porphyrins. We coined this essential metabolic rewiring "porphyrin overdrive" and determined that it is cancer-essential and cancer-specific. Among the major drivers are genes encoding mid-step enzymes governing the production of heme intermediates. CRISPR/Cas9 editing to engineer leukemia cell lines with impaired heme biosynthetic steps confirmed our whole-genome data analyses that porphyrin overdrive is linked to oncogenic states and cellular differentiation. Although porphyrin overdrive is absent in differentiated cells or somatic stem cells, it is present in patient-derived tumor progenitor cells, demonstrated by single-cell RNAseq, and in early embryogenesis. In conclusion, we identified a dependence of cancer cells on non-homeostatic heme metabolism, and we targeted this cancer metabolic vulnerability with a novel "bait-and-kill" strategy to eradicate malignant cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Swamy R Adapa
- USF Genomics Program, Center for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
- Global and Planetary Health, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Gregory A Hunter
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Narmin E Amin
- https://ror.org/01xf75524 Department of Molecular Oncology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Christopher Marinescu
- USF Genomics Program, Center for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Andrew Borsky
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Elizabeth M Sagatys
- https://ror.org/01xf75524 Department of Pathology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Said M Sebti
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA
| | - Gary W Reuther
- https://ror.org/01xf75524 Department of Molecular Oncology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Gloria C Ferreira
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
- Department of Chemistry, College of Arts and Sciences, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
- Global and Planetary Health, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Rays Hy Jiang
- USF Genomics Program, Center for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
- Global and Planetary Health, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
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9
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Lazar NH, Celik S, Chen L, Fay MM, Irish JC, Jensen J, Tillinghast CA, Urbanik J, Bone WP, Gibson CC, Haque IS. High-resolution genome-wide mapping of chromosome-arm-scale truncations induced by CRISPR-Cas9 editing. Nat Genet 2024; 56:1482-1493. [PMID: 38811841 PMCID: PMC11250378 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-024-01758-y] [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: 06/30/2023] [Accepted: 04/18/2024] [Indexed: 05/31/2024]
Abstract
Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9) is a powerful tool for introducing targeted mutations in DNA, but recent studies have shown that it can have unintended effects such as structural changes. However, these studies have not yet looked genome wide or across data types. Here we performed a phenotypic CRISPR-Cas9 scan targeting 17,065 genes in primary human cells, revealing a 'proximity bias' in which CRISPR knockouts show unexpected similarities to unrelated genes on the same chromosome arm. This bias was found to be consistent across cell types, laboratories, Cas9 delivery methods and assay modalities, and the data suggest that it is caused by telomeric truncations of chromosome arms, with cell cycle and apoptotic pathways playing a mediating role. Additionally, a simple correction is demonstrated to mitigate this pervasive bias while preserving biological relationships. This previously uncharacterized effect has implications for functional genomic studies using CRISPR-Cas9, with applications in discovery biology, drug-target identification, cell therapies and genetic therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Lu Chen
- Recursion, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
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10
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Misek SA, Fultineer A, Kalfon J, Noorbakhsh J, Boyle I, Roy P, Dempster J, Petronio L, Huang K, Saadat A, Green T, Brown A, Doench JG, Root DE, McFarland JM, Beroukhim R, Boehm JS. Germline variation contributes to false negatives in CRISPR-based experiments with varying burden across ancestries. Nat Commun 2024; 15:4892. [PMID: 38849329 PMCID: PMC11161638 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48957-z] [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: 12/05/2023] [Accepted: 05/20/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Reducing disparities is vital for equitable access to precision treatments in cancer. Socioenvironmental factors are a major driver of disparities, but differences in genetic variation likely also contribute. The impact of genetic ancestry on prioritization of cancer targets in drug discovery pipelines has not been systematically explored due to the absence of pre-clinical data at the appropriate scale. Here, we analyze data from 611 genome-scale CRISPR/Cas9 viability experiments in human cell line models to identify ancestry-associated genetic dependencies essential for cell survival. Surprisingly, we find that most putative associations between ancestry and dependency arise from artifacts related to germline variants. Our analysis suggests that for 1.2-2.5% of guides, germline variants in sgRNA targeting sequences reduce cutting by the CRISPR/Cas9 nuclease, disproportionately affecting cell models derived from individuals of recent African descent. We propose three approaches to mitigate this experimental bias, enabling the scientific community to address these disparities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean A Misek
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
- Departments of Cancer Biology and Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
- Koch Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Aaron Fultineer
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Jeremie Kalfon
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | | | - Isabella Boyle
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Priyanka Roy
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Joshua Dempster
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Lia Petronio
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Katherine Huang
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Alham Saadat
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Thomas Green
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Adam Brown
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - John G Doench
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - David E Root
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | | | - Rameen Beroukhim
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA.
- Departments of Cancer Biology and Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, 02215, USA.
| | - Jesse S Boehm
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA.
- Koch Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA.
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11
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Xu K, Feng H, Zhang H, He C, Kang H, Yuan T, Shi L, Zhou C, Hua G, Cao Y, Zuo Z, Zuo E. Structure-guided discovery of highly efficient cytidine deaminases with sequence-context independence. Nat Biomed Eng 2024:10.1038/s41551-024-01220-8. [PMID: 38831042 DOI: 10.1038/s41551-024-01220-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2023] [Accepted: 04/20/2024] [Indexed: 06/05/2024]
Abstract
The applicability of cytosine base editors is hindered by their dependence on sequence context and by off-target effects. Here, by using AlphaFold2 to predict the three-dimensional structure of 1,483 cytidine deaminases and by experimentally characterizing representative deaminases (selected from each structural cluster after categorizing them via partitional clustering), we report the discovery of a few deaminases with high editing efficiencies, diverse editing windows and increased ratios of on-target to off-target effects. Specifically, several deaminases induced C-to-T conversions with comparable efficiency at AC/TC/CC/GC sites, the deaminases could introduce stop codons in single-copy and multi-copy genes in mammalian cells without double-strand breaks, and some residue conversions at predicted DNA-interacting sites reduced off-target effects. Structure-based generative machine learning could be further leveraged to expand the applicability of base editors in gene therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kui Xu
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Hu Feng
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Haihang Zhang
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Chenfei He
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Huifang Kang
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Tanglong Yuan
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Lei Shi
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Chikai Zhou
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Guoying Hua
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yaqi Cao
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Zhenrui Zuo
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Erwei Zuo
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
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12
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Teh S, Bowland K, Halper-Stromberg E, Kotwal A, Bennett A, Skaist A, Tang J, Cai F, Macoretta A, Liang H, Kamiyama H, Wheelan S, Lin MT, Hruban R, Hung CF, Goldstein M, Scharpf R, Roberts N, Eshleman J. CRISPR-Cas9 for selective targeting of somatic mutations in pancreatic cancers. NAR Cancer 2024; 6:zcae028. [PMID: 38915758 PMCID: PMC11195629 DOI: 10.1093/narcan/zcae028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2023] [Revised: 05/23/2024] [Accepted: 06/03/2024] [Indexed: 06/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Somatic mutations are desirable targets for selective elimination of cancer, yet most are found within noncoding regions. We have adapted the CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tool as a novel, cancer-specific killing strategy by targeting the subset of somatic mutations that create protospacer adjacent motifs (PAMs), which have evolutionally allowed bacterial cells to distinguish between self and non-self DNA for Cas9-induced double strand breaks. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) of paired tumor minus normal (T-N) samples from three pancreatic cancer patients (Panc480, Panc504, and Panc1002) showed an average of 417 somatic PAMs per tumor produced from single base substitutions. Further analyses of 591 paired T-N samples from The International Cancer Genome Consortium found medians of ∼455 somatic PAMs per tumor in pancreatic, ∼2800 in lung, and ∼3200 in esophageal cancer cohorts. Finally, we demonstrated 69-99% selective cell death of three targeted pancreatic cancer cell lines using 4-9 sgRNAs designed using the somatic PAM discovery approach. We also showed no off-target activity from these tumor-specific sgRNAs in either the patient's normal cells or an irrelevant cancer using WGS. This study demonstrates the potential of CRISPR-Cas9 as a novel and selective anti-cancer strategy, and supports the genetic targeting of adult cancers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Selina Shiqing K Teh
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Kirsten Bowland
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Eitan Halper-Stromberg
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Akhil Kotwal
- Department of Radiation Oncology and Molecular Radiation Sciences, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Alexis Bennett
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Alyza Skaist
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Jacqueline Tang
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Fidel Cai
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Antonella Macoretta
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Hong Liang
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | - Sarah Wheelan
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Scientific Review Branch, National Human Genome Research Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Ming-Tseh Lin
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Ralph H Hruban
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Chien-Fu Hung
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Michael Goldstein
- Department of Radiation Oncology and Molecular Radiation Sciences, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Robert B Scharpf
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Nicholas J Roberts
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - James R Eshleman
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
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13
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Pacalin NM, Steinhart Z, Shi Q, Belk JA, Dorovskyi D, Kraft K, Parker KR, Shy BR, Marson A, Chang HY. Bidirectional epigenetic editing reveals hierarchies in gene regulation. Nat Biotechnol 2024:10.1038/s41587-024-02213-3. [PMID: 38760566 DOI: 10.1038/s41587-024-02213-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 03/19/2024] [Indexed: 05/19/2024]
Abstract
CRISPR perturbation methods are limited in their ability to study non-coding elements and genetic interactions. In this study, we developed a system for bidirectional epigenetic editing, called CRISPRai, in which we apply activating (CRISPRa) and repressive (CRISPRi) perturbations to two loci simultaneously in the same cell. We developed CRISPRai Perturb-seq by coupling dual perturbation gRNA detection with single-cell RNA sequencing, enabling study of pooled perturbations in a mixed single-cell population. We applied this platform to study the genetic interaction between two hematopoietic lineage transcription factors, SPI1 and GATA1, and discovered novel characteristics of their co-regulation on downstream target genes, including differences in SPI1 and GATA1 occupancy at genes that are regulated through different modes. We also studied the regulatory landscape of IL2 (interleukin-2) in Jurkat T cells, primary T cells and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells and elucidated mechanisms of enhancer-mediated IL2 gene regulation. CRISPRai facilitates investigation of context-specific genetic interactions, provides new insights into gene regulation and will enable exploration of non-coding disease-associated variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naomi M Pacalin
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Zachary Steinhart
- Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Quanming Shi
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Julia A Belk
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Dmytro Dorovskyi
- Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Katerina Kraft
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Kevin R Parker
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Program in Epithelial Biology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Cartography Biosciences, Inc., South San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Brian R Shy
- Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Alexander Marson
- Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Institute for Human Genetics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Diabetes Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Howard Y Chang
- Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
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14
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Hsiung CCS, Wilson CM, Sambold NA, Dai R, Chen Q, Teyssier N, Misiukiewicz S, Arab A, O'Loughlin T, Cofsky JC, Shi J, Gilbert LA. Engineered CRISPR-Cas12a for higher-order combinatorial chromatin perturbations. Nat Biotechnol 2024:10.1038/s41587-024-02224-0. [PMID: 38760567 DOI: 10.1038/s41587-024-02224-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2023] [Accepted: 03/28/2024] [Indexed: 05/19/2024]
Abstract
Multiplexed genetic perturbations are critical for testing functional interactions among coding or non-coding genetic elements. Compared to double-stranded DNA cutting, repressive chromatin formation using CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) avoids genotoxicity and is more effective for perturbing non-coding regulatory elements in pooled assays. However, current CRISPRi pooled screening approaches are limited to targeting one to three genomic sites per cell. We engineer an Acidaminococcus Cas12a (AsCas12a) variant, multiplexed transcriptional interference AsCas12a (multiAsCas12a), that incorporates R1226A, a mutation that stabilizes the ribonucleoprotein-DNA complex via DNA nicking. The multiAsCas12a-KRAB fusion improves CRISPRi activity over DNase-dead AsCas12a-KRAB fusions, often rescuing the activities of lentivirally delivered CRISPR RNAs (crRNA) that are inactive when used with the latter. multiAsCas12a-KRAB supports CRISPRi using 6-plex crRNA arrays in high-throughput pooled screens. Using multiAsCas12a-KRAB, we discover enhancer elements and dissect the combinatorial function of cis-regulatory elements in human cells. These results instantiate a group testing framework for efficiently surveying numerous combinations of chromatin perturbations for biological discovery and engineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- C C-S Hsiung
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Urology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Arc Institute, Palo Alto, CA, USA
| | - C M Wilson
- Department of Urology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Arc Institute, Palo Alto, CA, USA
- Tetrad Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | | | - R Dai
- Department of Urology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Arc Institute, Palo Alto, CA, USA
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Q Chen
- Department of Cancer Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - N Teyssier
- Biological and Medical Informatics Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - S Misiukiewicz
- Department of Urology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - A Arab
- Arc Institute, Palo Alto, CA, USA
| | - T O'Loughlin
- Department of Urology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - J C Cofsky
- Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - J Shi
- Department of Cancer Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - L A Gilbert
- Department of Urology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Arc Institute, Palo Alto, CA, USA.
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15
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Sánchez Rivera FJ, Dow LE. How CRISPR Is Revolutionizing the Generation of New Models for Cancer Research. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med 2024; 14:a041384. [PMID: 37487630 PMCID: PMC11065179 DOI: 10.1101/cshperspect.a041384] [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] [Indexed: 07/26/2023]
Abstract
Cancers arise through acquisition of mutations in genes that regulate core biological processes like cell proliferation and cell death. Decades of cancer research have led to the identification of genes and mutations causally involved in disease development and evolution, yet defining their precise function across different cancer types and how they influence therapy responses has been challenging. Mouse models have helped define the in vivo function of cancer-associated alterations, and genome-editing approaches using CRISPR have dramatically accelerated the pace at which these models are developed and studied. Here, we highlight how CRISPR technologies have impacted the development and use of mouse models for cancer research and discuss the many ways in which these rapidly evolving platforms will continue to transform our understanding of this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francisco J Sánchez Rivera
- David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142, USA
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142, USA
| | - Lukas E Dow
- Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York 10065, USA
- Department of Biochemistry, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York 10065, USA
- Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York 10065, USA
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16
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Esmaeili Anvar N, Lin C, Ma X, Wilson LL, Steger R, Sangree AK, Colic M, Wang SH, Doench JG, Hart T. Efficient gene knockout and genetic interaction screening using the in4mer CRISPR/Cas12a multiplex knockout platform. Nat Commun 2024; 15:3577. [PMID: 38678031 PMCID: PMC11055879 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47795-3] [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: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 04/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/29/2024] Open
Abstract
Genetic interactions mediate the emergence of phenotype from genotype, but technologies for combinatorial genetic perturbation in mammalian cells are challenging to scale. Here, we identify background-independent paralog synthetic lethals from previous CRISPR genetic interaction screens, and find that the Cas12a platform provides superior sensitivity and assay replicability. We develop the in4mer Cas12a platform that uses arrays of four independent guide RNAs targeting the same or different genes. We construct a genome-scale library, Inzolia, that is ~30% smaller than a typical CRISPR/Cas9 library while also targeting ~4000 paralog pairs. Screens in cancer cells demonstrate discrimination of core and context-dependent essential genes similar to that of CRISPR/Cas9 libraries, as well as detection of synthetic lethal and masking/buffering genetic interactions between paralogs of various family sizes. Importantly, the in4mer platform offers a fivefold reduction in library size compared to other genetic interaction methods, substantially reducing the cost and effort required for these assays.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nazanin Esmaeili Anvar
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Chenchu Lin
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Xingdi Ma
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Lori L Wilson
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Ryan Steger
- Genetic Perturbation Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Annabel K Sangree
- Genetic Perturbation Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Medina Colic
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Sidney H Wang
- Center for Human Genetics, The Brown foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - John G Doench
- Genetic Perturbation Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Traver Hart
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
- Department of Cancer Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
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17
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Franks SN, Heon-Roberts R, Ryan BJ. CRISPRi: a way to integrate iPSC-derived neuronal models. Biochem Soc Trans 2024; 52:539-551. [PMID: 38526223 PMCID: PMC11088925 DOI: 10.1042/bst20230190] [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: 09/07/2023] [Revised: 02/28/2024] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/26/2024]
Abstract
The genetic landscape of neurodegenerative diseases encompasses genes affecting multiple cellular pathways which exert effects in an array of neuronal and glial cell-types. Deconvolution of the roles of genes implicated in disease and the effects of disease-associated variants remains a vital step in the understanding of neurodegeneration and the development of therapeutics. Disease modelling using patient induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) has enabled the generation of key cell-types associated with disease whilst maintaining the genomic variants that predispose to neurodegeneration. The use of CRISPR interference (CRISPRi), alongside other CRISPR-perturbations, allows the modelling of the effects of these disease-associated variants or identifying genes which modify disease phenotypes. This review summarises the current applications of CRISPRi in iPSC-derived neuronal models, such as fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS)-based screens, and discusses the future opportunities for disease modelling, identification of disease risk modifiers and target/drug discovery in neurodegeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah N.J. Franks
- Oxford Parkinson's Disease Centre and Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QU, UK
- Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery, Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin Building, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QU, UK
| | - Rachel Heon-Roberts
- Oxford Parkinson's Disease Centre and Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QU, UK
- Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery, Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin Building, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QU, UK
| | - Brent J. Ryan
- Oxford Parkinson's Disease Centre and Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QU, UK
- Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery, Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin Building, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QU, UK
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18
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Johnson GA, Gould SI, Sánchez-Rivera FJ. Deconstructing cancer with precision genome editing. Biochem Soc Trans 2024; 52:803-819. [PMID: 38629716 PMCID: PMC11088927 DOI: 10.1042/bst20230984] [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: 02/01/2024] [Revised: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024]
Abstract
Recent advances in genome editing technologies are allowing investigators to engineer and study cancer-associated mutations in their endogenous genetic contexts with high precision and efficiency. Of these, base editing and prime editing are quickly becoming gold-standards in the field due to their versatility and scalability. Here, we review the merits and limitations of these precision genome editing technologies, their application to modern cancer research, and speculate how these could be integrated to address future directions in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grace A. Johnson
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02142, MA, U.S.A
- David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02142, MA, U.S.A
| | - Samuel I. Gould
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02142, MA, U.S.A
- David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02142, MA, U.S.A
| | - Francisco J. Sánchez-Rivera
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02142, MA, U.S.A
- David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02142, MA, U.S.A
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19
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Montero JJ, Trozzo R, Sugden M, Öllinger R, Belka A, Zhigalova E, Waetzig P, Engleitner T, Schmidt-Supprian M, Saur D, Rad R. Genome-scale pan-cancer interrogation of lncRNA dependencies using CasRx. Nat Methods 2024; 21:584-596. [PMID: 38409225 PMCID: PMC11009108 DOI: 10.1038/s41592-024-02190-0] [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: 03/06/2023] [Accepted: 01/19/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024]
Abstract
Although long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) dominate the transcriptome, their functions are largely unexplored. The extensive overlap of lncRNAs with coding and regulatory sequences restricts their systematic interrogation by DNA-directed perturbation. Here we developed genome-scale lncRNA transcriptome screening using Cas13d/CasRx. We show that RNA targeting overcomes limitations inherent to other screening methods, thereby considerably expanding the explorable space of the lncRNAome. By evolving the screening system toward pan-cancer applicability, it supports molecular and phenotypic data integration to contextualize screening hits or infer lncRNA function. We thereby addressed challenges posed by the enormous transcriptome size and tissue specificity through a size-reduced multiplexed gRNA library termed Albarossa, targeting 24,171 lncRNA genes. Its rational design incorporates target prioritization based on expression, evolutionary conservation and tissue specificity, thereby reconciling high discovery power and pan-cancer representation with scalable experimental throughput. Applied across entities, the screening platform identified numerous context-specific and common essential lncRNAs. Our work sets the stage for systematic exploration of lncRNA biology in health and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan J Montero
- Institute of Molecular Oncology and Functional Genomics, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany.
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany.
| | - Riccardo Trozzo
- Institute of Molecular Oncology and Functional Genomics, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Maya Sugden
- Institute of Molecular Oncology and Functional Genomics, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Rupert Öllinger
- Institute of Molecular Oncology and Functional Genomics, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Alexander Belka
- Institute of Molecular Oncology and Functional Genomics, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Ekaterina Zhigalova
- Institute of Molecular Oncology and Functional Genomics, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Paul Waetzig
- Institute of Molecular Oncology and Functional Genomics, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Thomas Engleitner
- Institute of Molecular Oncology and Functional Genomics, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Marc Schmidt-Supprian
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, School of Medicine, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Dieter Saur
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Medicine II, Klinikum rechts der Isar, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Institute for Experimental Cancer Therapy, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Roland Rad
- Institute of Molecular Oncology and Functional Genomics, School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany.
- Center for Translational Cancer Research (TranslaTUM), School of Medicine, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany.
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.
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20
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Hsiung CC, Wilson CM, Sambold NA, Dai R, Chen Q, Misiukiewicz S, Arab A, Teyssier N, O'Loughlin T, Cofsky JC, Shi J, Gilbert LA. Higher-order combinatorial chromatin perturbations by engineered CRISPR-Cas12a for functional genomics. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.09.18.558350. [PMID: 37781594 PMCID: PMC10541102 DOI: 10.1101/2023.09.18.558350] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/03/2023]
Abstract
Multiplexed genetic perturbations are critical for testing functional interactions among coding or non-coding genetic elements. Compared to double-stranded DNA cutting, repressive chromatin formation using CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) avoids genotoxicity and is more effective for perturbing non-coding regulatory elements in pooled assays. However, current CRISPRi pooled screening approaches are limited to targeting 1-3 genomic sites per cell. To develop a tool for higher-order ( > 3) combinatorial targeting of genomic sites with CRISPRi in functional genomics screens, we engineered an Acidaminococcus Cas12a variant -- referred to as mul tiplexed transcriptional interference AsCas12a (multiAsCas12a). multiAsCas12a incorporates a key mutation, R1226A, motivated by the hypothesis of nicking-induced stabilization of the ribonucleoprotein:DNA complex for improving CRISPRi activity. multiAsCas12a significantly outperforms prior state-of-the-art Cas12a variants in combinatorial CRISPRi targeting using high-order multiplexed arrays of lentivirally transduced CRISPR RNAs (crRNA), including in high-throughput pooled screens using 6-plex crRNA array libraries. Using multiAsCas12a CRISPRi, we discover new enhancer elements and dissect the combinatorial function of cis-regulatory elements. These results instantiate a group testing framework for efficiently surveying potentially numerous combinations of chromatin perturbations for biological discovery and engineering.
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21
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Huang CH, Chiu SY, Chou YC, Wu KJ. A refined Uni-vector prime editing system improves genome editing outcomes in mammalian cells. Biotechnol J 2024; 19:e2300353. [PMID: 38403398 DOI: 10.1002/biot.202300353] [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: 07/19/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
Prime editing is an advanced technology in CRISPR/Cas research with increasing numbers of improved methodologies. The original multi-vector method hampers the efficiency and precision of prime editing and also has inherent difficulty in generating homozygous mutations in mammalian cells. To overcome these technical issues, we developed a Uni-vector prime editing system, wherein the major components for prime editing were constructed in all-in-one plasmids, pPE3-pPuro and pePEmax-pPuro. The Uni-vector prime editing plasmids enhance the editing efficiency of prime editing and improved the generation of homozygous mutated mammalian cell lines. The editing efficiency is dependent of the transfection efficiency. Remarkably, the Uni-vector ePE5max system achieved an impressive editing rate approximately 79% in average, even in cell lines that are traditionally difficult to transfect, such as FaDu cell line. Furthermore, it resulted in a high frequency of homozygous knocked-in cells, with a rate of 99% in HeLa and 85% in FaDu cells. Together, our Uni-vector approach simplifies the delivery of editing components and improves the editing efficiency, especially in cells with low transfection efficiency. This approach presents an advancement in the field of prime editing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ching-Hui Huang
- Cancer Genome Research Center, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan City, Taiwan
| | - Szu-Ying Chiu
- Cancer Genome Research Center, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan City, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Chi Chou
- Biomedical Translation Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Kou-Juey Wu
- Cancer Genome Research Center, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan City, Taiwan
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22
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Geng K, Merino LG, Veiga RG, Sommerauer C, Epperlein J, Brinkman EK, Kutter C. Intrinsic deletion at 10q23.31, including the PTEN gene locus, is aggravated upon CRISPR-Cas9-mediated genome engineering in HAP1 cells mimicking cancer profiles. Life Sci Alliance 2024; 7:e202302128. [PMID: 37984988 PMCID: PMC10662290 DOI: 10.26508/lsa.202302128] [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: 05/02/2023] [Revised: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023] Open
Abstract
The CRISPR-Cas9 system is a powerful tool for studying gene functions and holds potential for disease treatment. However, precise genome editing requires thorough assessments to minimize unintended on- and off-target effects. Here, we report an unexpected 283-kb deletion on Chromosome 10 (10q23.31) in chronic myelogenous leukemia-derived HAP1 cells, which are frequently used in CRISPR screens. The deleted region encodes regulatory genes, including PAPSS2, ATAD1, KLLN, and PTEN We found that this deletion was not a direct consequence of CRISPR-Cas9 off-targeting but rather occurred frequently during the generation of CRISPR-Cas9-modified cells. The deletion was associated with global changes in histone acetylation and gene expression, affecting fundamental cellular processes such as cell cycle and DNA replication. We detected this deletion in cancer patient genomes. As in HAP1 cells, the deletion contributed to similar gene expression patterns among cancer patients despite interindividual differences. Our findings suggest that the unintended deletion of 10q23.31 can confound CRISPR-Cas9 studies and underscore the importance to assess unintended genomic changes in CRISPR-Cas9-modified cells, which could impact cancer research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keyi Geng
- https://ror.org/056d84691 Department of Microbiology, Tumor, and Cell Biology, Science for Life Laboratory, Karolinska Institute, Solna, Sweden
| | - Lara G Merino
- https://ror.org/056d84691 Department of Microbiology, Tumor, and Cell Biology, Science for Life Laboratory, Karolinska Institute, Solna, Sweden
| | - Raül G Veiga
- https://ror.org/056d84691 Department of Microbiology, Tumor, and Cell Biology, Science for Life Laboratory, Karolinska Institute, Solna, Sweden
| | - Christian Sommerauer
- https://ror.org/056d84691 Department of Microbiology, Tumor, and Cell Biology, Science for Life Laboratory, Karolinska Institute, Solna, Sweden
| | - Janine Epperlein
- https://ror.org/056d84691 Department of Microbiology, Tumor, and Cell Biology, Science for Life Laboratory, Karolinska Institute, Solna, Sweden
| | - Eva K Brinkman
- https://ror.org/056d84691 Department of Microbiology, Tumor, and Cell Biology, Science for Life Laboratory, Karolinska Institute, Solna, Sweden
| | - Claudia Kutter
- https://ror.org/056d84691 Department of Microbiology, Tumor, and Cell Biology, Science for Life Laboratory, Karolinska Institute, Solna, Sweden
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23
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Lin K, Chang YC, Billmann M, Ward HN, Le K, Hassan AZ, Bhojoo U, Chan K, Costanzo M, Moffat J, Boone C, Bielinsky AK, Myers CL. A scalable platform for efficient CRISPR-Cas9 chemical-genetic screens of DNA damage-inducing compounds. Sci Rep 2024; 14:2508. [PMID: 38291084 PMCID: PMC10828508 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-51735-y] [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: 09/20/2023] [Accepted: 01/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Current approaches to define chemical-genetic interactions (CGIs) in human cell lines are resource-intensive. We designed a scalable chemical-genetic screening platform by generating a DNA damage response (DDR)-focused custom sgRNA library targeting 1011 genes with 3033 sgRNAs. We performed five proof-of-principle compound screens and found that the compounds' known modes-of-action (MoA) were enriched among the compounds' CGIs. These scalable screens recapitulated expected CGIs at a comparable signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) relative to genome-wide screens. Furthermore, time-resolved CGIs, captured by sequencing screens at various time points, suggested an unexpected, late interstrand-crosslinking (ICL) repair pathway response to camptothecin-induced DNA damage. Our approach can facilitate screening compounds at scale with 20-fold fewer resources than commonly used genome-wide libraries and produce biologically informative CGI profiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Lin
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA
- Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Graduate Program, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Ya-Chu Chang
- Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biophysics, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Maximilian Billmann
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA
- Institute of Human Genetics, University of Bonn, School of Medicine and University Hospital Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Henry N Ward
- Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Graduate Program, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Khoi Le
- Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biophysics, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Arshia Z Hassan
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Urvi Bhojoo
- Donnelly Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Katherine Chan
- Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Michael Costanzo
- Donnelly Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jason Moffat
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Charles Boone
- Donnelly Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Anja-Katrin Bielinsky
- Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biophysics, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA.
| | - Chad L Myers
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
- Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Graduate Program, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
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24
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Nair NU, Schäffer AA, Gertz EM, Cheng K, Zerbib J, Sahu AD, Leor G, Shulman ED, Aldape KD, Ben-David U, Ruppin E. Chromosome 7 to the rescue: overcoming chromosome 10 loss in gliomas. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.01.17.576103. [PMID: 38313282 PMCID: PMC10836086 DOI: 10.1101/2024.01.17.576103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2024]
Abstract
The co-occurrence of chromosome 10 loss and chromosome 7 gain in gliomas is the most frequent loss-gain co-aneuploidy pair in human cancers, a phenomenon that has been investigated without resolution since the late 1980s. Expanding beyond previous gene-centric studies, we investigate the co-occurrence in a genome-wide manner taking an evolutionary perspective. First, by mining large tumor aneuploidy data, we predict that the more likely order is 10 loss followed by 7 gain. Second, by analyzing extensive genomic and transcriptomic data from both patients and cell lines, we find that this co-occurrence can be explained by functional rescue interactions that are highly enriched on 7, which can possibly compensate for any detrimental consequences arising from the loss of 10. Finally, by analyzing transcriptomic data from normal, non-cancerous, human brain tissues, we provide a plausible reason why this co-occurrence happens preferentially in cancers originating in certain regions of the brain.
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25
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Wu Y, Zhong A, Sidharta M, Kim TW, Ramirez B, Persily B, Studer L, Zhou T. A robust and inducible precise genome editing via an all-in-one prime editor in human pluripotent stem cells. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.01.18.576233. [PMID: 38293122 PMCID: PMC10827208 DOI: 10.1101/2024.01.18.576233] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2024]
Abstract
Prime editing (PE) allows for precise genome editing in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), such as introducing single nucleotide modifications, small deletions, or insertions at a specific genomic locus, a strategy that shows great promise for creating "Disease in a dish" models. To improve the effectiveness of prime editing in hPSCs, we systematically compared and combined the "inhibition of mismatch repair pathway and p53" on top of the "PEmax" to generate an all-in-one "PE-Plus" prime editor. We show that PE-Plus conducts the most efficient editing among the current PE tools in hPSCs. We further established an inducible prime editing platform in hPSCs by incorporating the all-in-one PE vector into a safe-harbor locus and demonstrated temporal control of precise editing in both hPSCs and differentiated cells. By evaluating disease-associated mutations, we show that this platform allows efficient creation of both monoallelic and biallelic disease-relevant mutations in hPSCs. In addition, this platform enables the efficient introduction of single or multiple edits in one step, demonstrating potential for multiplex editing. Therefore, our method presents an efficient and controllable multiplex prime editing tool in hPSCs and their differentiated progeny.
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26
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Dziubańska-Kusibab PJ, Nevedomskaya E, Haendler B. Preclinical Anticipation of On- and Off-Target Resistance Mechanisms to Anti-Cancer Drugs: A Systematic Review. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:705. [PMID: 38255778 PMCID: PMC10815614 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25020705] [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: 11/14/2023] [Revised: 12/22/2023] [Accepted: 12/28/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2024] Open
Abstract
The advent of targeted therapies has led to tremendous improvements in treatment options and their outcomes in the field of oncology. Yet, many cancers outsmart precision drugs by developing on-target or off-target resistance mechanisms. Gaining the ability to resist treatment is the rule rather than the exception in tumors, and it remains a major healthcare challenge to achieve long-lasting remission in most cancer patients. Here, we discuss emerging strategies that take advantage of innovative high-throughput screening technologies to anticipate on- and off-target resistance mechanisms before they occur in treated cancer patients. We divide the methods into non-systematic approaches, such as random mutagenesis or long-term drug treatment, and systematic approaches, relying on the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) system, saturated mutagenesis, or computational methods. All these new developments, especially genome-wide CRISPR-based screening platforms, have significantly accelerated the processes for identification of the mechanisms responsible for cancer drug resistance and opened up new avenues for future treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Bernard Haendler
- Research and Early Development Oncology, Pharmaceuticals, Bayer AG, Müllerstr. 178, 13353 Berlin, Germany; (P.J.D.-K.); (E.N.)
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27
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Li X, Chen Z, Ye W, Yu J, Zhang X, Li Y, Niu Y, Ran S, Wang S, Luo Z, Zhao J, Hao Y, Zong J, Xia C, Xia J, Wu J. High-throughput CRISPR technology: a novel horizon for solid organ transplantation. Front Immunol 2024; 14:1295523. [PMID: 38239344 PMCID: PMC10794540 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1295523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Organ transplantation is the gold standard therapy for end-stage organ failure. However, the shortage of available grafts and long-term graft dysfunction remain the primary barriers to organ transplantation. Exploring approaches to solve these issues is urgent, and CRISPR/Cas9-based transcriptome editing provides one potential solution. Furthermore, combining CRISPR/Cas9-based gene editing with an ex vivo organ perfusion system would enable pre-implantation transcriptome editing of grafts. How to determine effective intervention targets becomes a new problem. Fortunately, the advent of high-throughput CRISPR screening has dramatically accelerated the effective targets. This review summarizes the current advancements, utilization, and workflow of CRISPR screening in various immune and non-immune cells. It also discusses the ongoing applications of CRISPR/Cas-based gene editing in transplantation and the prospective applications of CRISPR screening in solid organ transplantation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaohan Li
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Zhang Chen
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Weicong Ye
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Jizhang Yu
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Xi Zhang
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Yuan Li
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Yuqing Niu
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Shuan Ran
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Song Wang
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Zilong Luo
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Jiulu Zhao
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Yanglin Hao
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Junjie Zong
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Chengkun Xia
- Department of Anesthesiology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Jiahong Xia
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Organ Transplantation, Ministry of Education, National Health Commission (NHC) Key Laboratory of Organ Transplantation, Key Laboratory of Organ Transplantation, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Jie Wu
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Center for Translational Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Organ Transplantation, Ministry of Education, National Health Commission (NHC) Key Laboratory of Organ Transplantation, Key Laboratory of Organ Transplantation, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Wuhan, China
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28
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Kolanu ND. CRISPR-Cas9 Gene Editing: Curing Genetic Diseases by Inherited Epigenetic Modifications. Glob Med Genet 2024; 11:113-122. [PMID: 38560484 PMCID: PMC10980556 DOI: 10.1055/s-0044-1785234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing, leveraging bacterial defense mechanisms, offers precise DNA modifications, holding promise in curing genetic diseases. This review critically assesses its potential, analyzing evidence on therapeutic applications, challenges, and future prospects. Examining diverse genetic disorders, it evaluates efficacy, safety, and limitations, emphasizing the need for a thorough understanding among medical professionals and researchers. Acknowledging its transformative impact, a systematic review is crucial for informed decision-making, responsible utilization, and guiding future research to unlock CRISPR-Cas9's full potential in realizing the cure for genetic diseases. Methods A comprehensive literature search across PubMed, Scopus, and the Web of Science identified studies applying CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing for genetic diseases, following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Inclusion criteria covered in vitro and in vivo models targeting various genetic diseases with reported outcomes on disease modification or potential cure. Quality assessment revealed a generally moderate to high risk of bias. Heterogeneity prevented quantitative meta-analysis, prompting a narrative synthesis of findings. Discussion CRISPR-Cas9 enables precise gene editing, correcting disease-causing mutations and offering hope for previously incurable genetic conditions. Leveraging inherited epigenetic modifications, it not only fixes mutations but also restores normal gene function and controls gene expression. The transformative potential of CRISPR-Cas9 holds promise for personalized treatments, improving therapeutic outcomes, but ethical considerations and safety concerns must be rigorously addressed to ensure responsible and safe application, especially in germline editing with potential long-term implications.
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29
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Giordano M, Falbo E, Maddalena L, Piccirillo M, Granata I. Untangling the Context-Specificity of Essential Genes by Means of Machine Learning: A Constructive Experience. Biomolecules 2023; 14:18. [PMID: 38254618 PMCID: PMC10813179 DOI: 10.3390/biom14010018] [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: 10/18/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Gene essentiality is a genetic concept crucial for a comprehensive understanding of life and evolution. In the last decade, many essential genes (EGs) have been determined using different experimental and computational approaches, and this information has been used to reduce the genomes of model organisms. A growing amount of evidence highlights that essentiality is a property that depends on the context. Because of their importance in vital biological processes, recognising context-specific EGs (csEGs) could help for identifying new potential pharmacological targets and to improve precision therapeutics. Since most of the computational procedures proposed to identify and predict EGs neglect their context-specificity, we focused on this aspect, providing a theoretical and experimental overview of the literature, data and computational methods dedicated to recognising csEGs. To this end, we adapted existing computational methods to exploit a specific context (the kidney tissue) and experimented with four different prediction methods using the labels provided by four different identification approaches. The considerations derived from the analysis of the obtained results, confirmed and validated also by further experiments for a different tissue context, provide the reader with guidance on exploiting existing tools for achieving csEGs identification and prediction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maurizio Giordano
- Institute for High-Performance Computing and Networking (ICAR), National Research Council (CNR), V. Pietro Castellino 111, 80131 Naples, Italy; (E.F.); (L.M.); (M.P.); (I.G.)
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30
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Li YR, Lyu Z, Tian Y, Fang Y, Zhu Y, Chen Y, Yang L. Advancements in CRISPR screens for the development of cancer immunotherapy strategies. Mol Ther Oncolytics 2023; 31:100733. [PMID: 37876793 PMCID: PMC10591018 DOI: 10.1016/j.omto.2023.100733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2023] Open
Abstract
CRISPR screen technology enables systematic and scalable interrogation of gene function by using the CRISPR-Cas9 system to perturb gene expression. In the field of cancer immunotherapy, this technology has empowered the discovery of genes, biomarkers, and pathways that regulate tumor development and progression, immune reactivity, and the effectiveness of immunotherapeutic interventions. By conducting large-scale genetic screens, researchers have successfully identified novel targets to impede tumor growth, enhance anti-tumor immune responses, and surmount immunosuppression within the tumor microenvironment (TME). Here, we present an overview of CRISPR screens conducted in tumor cells for the purpose of identifying novel therapeutic targets. We also explore the application of CRISPR screens in immune cells to propel the advancement of cell-based therapies, encompassing T cells, natural killer cells, dendritic cells, and macrophages. Furthermore, we outline the crucial components necessary for the successful implementation of immune-specific CRISPR screens and explore potential directions for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan-Ruide Li
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Zibai Lyu
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Yanxin Tian
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Ying Fang
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Yichen Zhu
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Yuning Chen
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Lili Yang
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Molecular Biology Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
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31
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Tan IL, Perez AR, Lew RJ, Sun X, Baldwin A, Zhu YK, Shah MM, Berger MS, Doudna JA, Fellmann C. Targeting the non-coding genome and temozolomide signature enables CRISPR-mediated glioma oncolysis. Cell Rep 2023; 42:113339. [PMID: 37917583 PMCID: PMC10725516 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113339] [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: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 07/25/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common lethal primary brain cancer in adults. Despite treatment regimens including surgical resection, radiotherapy, and temozolomide (TMZ) chemotherapy, growth of residual tumor leads to therapy resistance and death. At recurrence, a quarter to a third of all gliomas have hypermutated genomes, with mutational burdens orders of magnitude greater than in normal tissue. Here, we quantified the mutational landscape progression in a patient's primary and recurrent GBM, and we uncovered Cas9-targetable repeat elements. We show that CRISPR-mediated targeting of highly repetitive loci enables rapid elimination of GBM cells, an approach we term "genome shredding." Importantly, in the patient's recurrent GBM, we identified unique repeat sequences with TMZ mutational signature and demonstrated that their CRISPR targeting enables cancer-specific cell ablation. "Cancer shredding" leverages the non-coding genome and therapy-induced mutational signatures for targeted GBM cell depletion and provides an innovative paradigm to develop treatments for hypermutated glioma.
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Affiliation(s)
- I-Li Tan
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA; Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Alexendar R Perez
- Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Care, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94131, USA; Silico Therapeutics, San Francisco, CA 94131, USA
| | - Rachel J Lew
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Xiaoyu Sun
- Silico Therapeutics, San Francisco, CA 94131, USA
| | - Alisha Baldwin
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA; Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Yong K Zhu
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA; Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Mihir M Shah
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Mitchel S Berger
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94131, USA
| | - Jennifer A Doudna
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA; 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
| | - Christof Fellmann
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA.
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32
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Wang Z, Luo M, Liang Q, Zhao K, Hu Y, Wang W, Feng X, Hu B, Teng J, You T, Li R, Bao Z, Pan W, Yang T, Zhang C, Li T, Dong X, Yi X, Liu B, Zhao L, Li M, Chen K, Song W, Yang J, Li MJ. Landscape of enhancer disruption and functional screen in melanoma cells. Genome Biol 2023; 24:248. [PMID: 37904237 PMCID: PMC10614365 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-023-03087-5] [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: 08/18/2022] [Accepted: 10/12/2023] [Indexed: 11/01/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The high mutation rate throughout the entire melanoma genome presents a major challenge in stratifying true driver events from the background mutations. Numerous recurrent non-coding alterations, such as those in enhancers, can shape tumor evolution, thereby emphasizing the importance in systematically deciphering enhancer disruptions in melanoma. RESULTS Here, we leveraged 297 melanoma whole-genome sequencing samples to prioritize highly recurrent regions. By performing a genome-scale CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) screen on highly recurrent region-associated enhancers in melanoma cells, we identified 66 significant hits which could have tumor-suppressive roles. These functional enhancers show unique mutational patterns independent of classical significantly mutated genes in melanoma. Target gene analysis for the essential enhancers reveal many known and hidden mechanisms underlying melanoma growth. Utilizing extensive functional validation experiments, we demonstrate that a super enhancer element could modulate melanoma cell proliferation by targeting MEF2A, and another distal enhancer is able to sustain PTEN tumor-suppressive potential via long-range interactions. CONCLUSIONS Our study establishes a catalogue of crucial enhancers and their target genes in melanoma growth and progression, and illuminates the identification of novel mechanisms of dysregulation for melanoma driver genes and new therapeutic targeting strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhao Wang
- Oujiang Laboratory (Zhejiang Lab for Regenerative Medicine, Vision and Brain Health), Institute of Aging, Key Laboratory of Alzheimer's Disease of Zhejiang Province, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China.
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Cancer Epidemiology, The Province and Ministry Co-Sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China.
| | - Menghan Luo
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Cancer Epidemiology, The Province and Ministry Co-Sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
- Department of Bioinformatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Qian Liang
- Oujiang Laboratory (Zhejiang Lab for Regenerative Medicine, Vision and Brain Health), Institute of Aging, Key Laboratory of Alzheimer's Disease of Zhejiang Province, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Cancer Epidemiology, The Province and Ministry Co-Sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
- Scientific Research Center, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Ke Zhao
- Department of Bioinformatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Yuelin Hu
- Oujiang Laboratory (Zhejiang Lab for Regenerative Medicine, Vision and Brain Health), Institute of Aging, Key Laboratory of Alzheimer's Disease of Zhejiang Province, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Wei Wang
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Cancer Epidemiology, The Province and Ministry Co-Sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Xiangling Feng
- Department of Bioinformatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Bolang Hu
- Oujiang Laboratory (Zhejiang Lab for Regenerative Medicine, Vision and Brain Health), Institute of Aging, Key Laboratory of Alzheimer's Disease of Zhejiang Province, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Jianjin Teng
- Department of Bioinformatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Tianyi You
- Department of Bioinformatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Ran Li
- Oujiang Laboratory (Zhejiang Lab for Regenerative Medicine, Vision and Brain Health), Institute of Aging, Key Laboratory of Alzheimer's Disease of Zhejiang Province, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Zhengkai Bao
- Oujiang Laboratory (Zhejiang Lab for Regenerative Medicine, Vision and Brain Health), Institute of Aging, Key Laboratory of Alzheimer's Disease of Zhejiang Province, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Wenhao Pan
- Oujiang Laboratory (Zhejiang Lab for Regenerative Medicine, Vision and Brain Health), Institute of Aging, Key Laboratory of Alzheimer's Disease of Zhejiang Province, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Tielong Yang
- Department of Bone and Soft Tissue Tumor, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Chao Zhang
- Department of Bone and Soft Tissue Tumor, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Ting Li
- Department of Bone and Soft Tissue Tumor, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Xiaobao Dong
- Department of Bioinformatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Xianfu Yi
- Department of Bioinformatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Ben Liu
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Cancer Epidemiology, The Province and Ministry Co-Sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Li Zhao
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Miaoxin Li
- Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Kexin Chen
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Cancer Epidemiology, The Province and Ministry Co-Sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Weihong Song
- Oujiang Laboratory (Zhejiang Lab for Regenerative Medicine, Vision and Brain Health), Institute of Aging, Key Laboratory of Alzheimer's Disease of Zhejiang Province, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China.
| | - Jilong Yang
- Department of Bone and Soft Tissue Tumor, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China.
| | - Mulin Jun Li
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Cancer Epidemiology, The Province and Ministry Co-Sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China.
- Department of Bioinformatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China.
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Teh SSK, Bowland K, Bennett A, Halper-Stromberg E, Skaist A, Tang J, Cai F, Macoretta A, Liang H, Kamiyama H, Wheelan S, Lin MT, Hruban RH, Scharpf RB, Roberts NJ, Eshleman JR. CRISPR-Cas9 for selective targeting of somatic mutations in pancreatic cancers. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.04.15.537042. [PMID: 37131822 PMCID: PMC10153132 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.15.537042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Somatic mutations are desirable targets for selective elimination of cancer, yet most are found within the noncoding regions. We propose a novel, cancer-specific killing approach using CRISPR-Cas9 which exploits the requirement of a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) for Cas9 activity. Through whole genome sequencing (WGS) of paired tumor minus normal (T-N) samples from three pancreatic cancer patients (Panc480, Panc504, and Panc1002), we identified an average of 417 somatic PAMs per tumor produced from single base substitutions. We analyzed 591 paired T-N samples from The International Cancer Genome Consortium and discovered medians of ~455 somatic PAMs per tumor in pancreatic, ~2800 in lung, and ~3200 in esophageal cancer cohorts. Finally, we demonstrated >80% selective cell death of two targeted pancreatic cancer cell lines in co-cultures using 4-9 sgRNAs, targeting noncoding regions, designed from the somatic PAM discovery approach. We also showed no off-target activity from these tumor-specific sgRNAs through WGS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Selina Shiqing K. Teh
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Kirsten Bowland
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Alexis Bennett
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Eitan Halper-Stromberg
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Alyza Skaist
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Jacqueline Tang
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Fidel Cai
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Antonella Macoretta
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Hong Liang
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | - Sarah Wheelan
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Scientific Review Branch, National Human Genome Research Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Ming-Tseh Lin
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Ralph H. Hruban
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Robert B. Scharpf
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Nicholas J. Roberts
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - James R. Eshleman
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
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Stuart DD, Guzman-Perez A, Brooijmans N, Jackson EL, Kryukov GV, Friedman AA, Hoos A. Precision Oncology Comes of Age: Designing Best-in-Class Small Molecules by Integrating Two Decades of Advances in Chemistry, Target Biology, and Data Science. Cancer Discov 2023; 13:2131-2149. [PMID: 37712571 PMCID: PMC10551669 DOI: 10.1158/2159-8290.cd-23-0280] [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: 03/06/2023] [Revised: 04/27/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/16/2023]
Abstract
Small-molecule drugs have enabled the practice of precision oncology for genetically defined patient populations since the first approval of imatinib in 2001. Scientific and technology advances over this 20-year period have driven the evolution of cancer biology, medicinal chemistry, and data science. Collectively, these advances provide tools to more consistently design best-in-class small-molecule drugs against known, previously undruggable, and novel cancer targets. The integration of these tools and their customization in the hands of skilled drug hunters will be necessary to enable the discovery of transformational therapies for patients across a wider spectrum of cancers. SIGNIFICANCE Target-centric small-molecule drug discovery necessitates the consideration of multiple approaches to identify chemical matter that can be optimized into drug candidates. To do this successfully and consistently, drug hunters require a comprehensive toolbox to avoid following the "law of instrument" or Maslow's hammer concept where only one tool is applied regardless of the requirements of the task. Combining our ever-increasing understanding of cancer and cancer targets with the technological advances in drug discovery described below will accelerate the next generation of small-molecule drugs in oncology.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Axel Hoos
- Scorpion Therapeutics, Boston, Massachusetts
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35
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Sun G, Zhao S, Fan Z, Wang Y, Liu H, Cao H, Sun G, Huang T, Cai H, Pan H, Rong D, Gao Y, Tang W. CHSY1 promotes CD8 + T cell exhaustion through activation of succinate metabolism pathway leading to colorectal cancer liver metastasis based on CRISPR/Cas9 screening. J Exp Clin Cancer Res 2023; 42:248. [PMID: 37749638 PMCID: PMC10519095 DOI: 10.1186/s13046-023-02803-0] [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: 01/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/19/2023] [Indexed: 09/27/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The most common site of metastasis in colorectal cancer (CRC) is the liver and liver metastases occur in more than 50% of patients during diagnosis or treatment. The occurrence of metastasis depends on a series of events known as the invasive-metastasis cascade. Currently, the underlying genes and pathways regulating metastasis initiation in the liver microenvironment are unknown. METHODS We performed systematic CRISPR/Cas9 screening using an in vivo mouse model of CRC liver metastasis to identify key regulators of CRC metastasis. We present the full results of this screen,which included a list of genes that promote or repress CRC liver colonization. By silencing these genes individually, we found that chondroitin sulfate synthase 1 (CHSY1) may be involved in CRC metastasis. We verified the function of CHSY1 and its involvement in liver metastasis of CRC through in vivo and in vitro experiments. RESULT The results of TCGA and CRISPR/Cas9 showed that CHSY1 was overexpressed in CRC primary and liver metastasis tissues and indicated a worse clinical prognosis. In vitro and in vivo experiments confirmed that CHSY1 facilitated the liver metastasis of CRC and CHSY1 induced CD8+ T cell exhaustion and upregulated PD-L1 expression. The metabolomic analysis indicated that CHSY1 promoted CD8+ T cell exhaustion by activating the succinate metabolism pathway leading to liver metastasis of CRC. Artemisinin as a CHSY1 inhibitor reduced liver metastasis and enhanced the effect of anti-PD1 in CRC. PLGA-loaded Artemisinin and ICG probe reduced liver metastasis and increased the efficiency of anti-PD1 treatment in CRC. CONCLUSION CHSY1 could promote CD8+ T cell exhaustion through activation of the succinate metabolic and PI3K/AKT/HIF1A pathway, leading to CRC liver metastasis. The combination of CHSY1 knockdown and anti-PD1 contributes to synergistic resistance to CRC liver metastasis. Artemisinin significantly inhibits CHSY1 activity and in combination with anti-PD1 could synergistically treat CRC liver metastases. This study provides new targets and specific strategies for the treatment of CRC liver metastases, bringing new hope and benefits to patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guangshun Sun
- Hepatobiliary/Liver Transplantation Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Key Laboratory of Living Donor Transplantation, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Nanjing, China
- Department of Breast Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital With Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Siqi Zhao
- Department of Surgery, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University, Jiaxing, Zhejiang, China
| | - Zhongguo Fan
- Department of Cardiology Zhongda Hospital, School of Medicine, Southeast University, Nanjing, China
| | - Yuliang Wang
- School of Basic Medicine, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Hanyuan Liu
- Department of General Surgery, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Hengsong Cao
- Hepatobiliary/Liver Transplantation Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Key Laboratory of Living Donor Transplantation, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Nanjing, China
| | - Guoqiang Sun
- Hepatobiliary/Liver Transplantation Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Key Laboratory of Living Donor Transplantation, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Nanjing, China
| | - Tian Huang
- Hepatobiliary/Liver Transplantation Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Key Laboratory of Living Donor Transplantation, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Nanjing, China
| | - Hongzhou Cai
- Department of Urology, Jiangsu Cancer Hospital &The Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Nanjing Medical University& Jiangsu Institute of Cancer Research, Nanjing, China.
| | - Hong Pan
- Department of Breast Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital With Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
| | - Dawei Rong
- Hepatobiliary/Liver Transplantation Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Key Laboratory of Living Donor Transplantation, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Nanjing, China.
| | - Yun Gao
- Hepatobiliary/Liver Transplantation Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Key Laboratory of Living Donor Transplantation, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Nanjing, China.
| | - Weiwei Tang
- Hepatobiliary/Liver Transplantation Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Key Laboratory of Living Donor Transplantation, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Nanjing, China.
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36
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Dorso M, Patel PT, Pankov A, Boyer JA, Soni RK, Del Priore IS, Hayatt O, Kulick A, Hagen CJ, de Stanchina E, Junttila MR, Daemen A, Friedman LS, Hendrickson RC, Chandarlapaty S. A Druggable FOXA1-Glucocorticoid Receptor Transcriptional Axis Drives Tumor Growth in a Subset of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer. CANCER RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS 2023; 3:1788-1799. [PMID: 37691854 PMCID: PMC10484118 DOI: 10.1158/2767-9764.crc-23-0310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2023] [Revised: 08/13/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/12/2023]
Abstract
The FOXA1 pioneer factor is an essential mediator of steroid receptor function in multiple hormone-dependent cancers, including breast and prostate cancers, enabling nuclear receptors such as estrogen receptor (ER) and androgen receptor (AR) to activate lineage-specific growth programs. FOXA1 is also highly expressed in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but whether and how it regulates tumor growth in this context is not known. Analyzing data from loss-of-function screens, we identified a subset of NSCLC tumor lines where proliferation is FOXA1 dependent. Using rapid immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry of endogenous protein, we identified chromatin-localized interactions between FOXA1 and glucocorticoid receptor (GR) in these tumor cells. Knockdown of GR inhibited proliferation of FOXA1-dependent, but not FOXA1-independent NSCLC cells. In these FOXA1-dependent models, FOXA1 and GR cooperate to regulate gene targets involved in EGF signaling and G1-S cell-cycle progression. To investigate the therapeutic potential for targeting this complex, we examined the effects of highly selective inhibitors of the GR ligand-binding pocket and found that GR antagonism with ORIC-101 suppressed FOXA1/GR target expression, activation of EGF signaling, entry into the S-phase, and attendant proliferation in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, our findings point to a subset of NSCLCs harboring a dependence on the FOXA1/GR growth program and provide rationale for its therapeutic targeting. Significance NSCLC is the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide. There is a need to identify novel druggable dependencies. We identify a subset of NSCLCs dependent on FOXA1-GR and sensitive to GR antagonism.
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Affiliation(s)
- M. Dorso
- Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
- Pharmacology Graduate Program, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York
| | - Payal T. Patel
- Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
- Pharmacology Graduate Program, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York
| | | | - Jacob A. Boyer
- Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate Program, Sloan Kettering Institute, New York, New York
| | - Rajesh K. Soni
- Microchemistry and Proteomics Core, Sloan Kettering Institute, New York, New York
| | - Isabella S. Del Priore
- Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - Omar Hayatt
- Antitumor Assessment Core, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - Amanda Kulick
- Antitumor Assessment Core, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - Connor J. Hagen
- Antitumor Assessment Core, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - Elisa de Stanchina
- Antitumor Assessment Core, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | | | | | | | | | - Sarat Chandarlapaty
- Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
- Breast Medicine Service, Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
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37
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Yang Q, Li M, Yang X, Xiao Z, Tong X, Tuerdi A, Li S, Lei L. Flourishing tumor organoids: History, emerging technology, and application. Bioeng Transl Med 2023; 8:e10559. [PMID: 37693042 PMCID: PMC10487342 DOI: 10.1002/btm2.10559] [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: 03/03/2023] [Revised: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 05/25/2023] [Indexed: 09/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Malignant tumors are one of the leading causes of death which impose an increasingly heavy burden on all countries. Therefore, the establishment of research models that closely resemble original tumor characteristics is crucial to further understanding the mechanisms of malignant tumor development, developing safer and more effective drugs, and formulating personalized treatment plans. Recently, organoids have been widely used in tumor research owing to their advantages including preserving the structure, heterogeneity, and cellular functions of the original tumor, together with the ease of manipulation. This review describes the history and characteristics of tumor organoids and the synergistic combination of three-dimensional (3D) culture approaches for tumor organoids with emerging technologies, including tissue-engineered cell scaffolds, microfluidic devices, 3D bioprinting, rotating wall vessels, and clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats-CRISPR-associated protein 9 (CRISPR-Cas9). Additionally, the progress in research and the applications in basic and clinical research of tumor organoid models are summarized. This includes studies of the mechanism of tumor development, drug development and screening, precision medicine, immunotherapy, and simulation of the tumor microenvironment. Finally, the existing shortcomings of tumor organoids and possible future directions are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Yang
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, the Second Xiangya HospitalCentral South UniversityChangshaHunanChina
| | - Mengmeng Li
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, the Second Xiangya HospitalCentral South UniversityChangshaHunanChina
| | - Xinming Yang
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, the Second Xiangya HospitalCentral South UniversityChangshaHunanChina
| | - Zian Xiao
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, the Second Xiangya HospitalCentral South UniversityChangshaHunanChina
| | - Xinying Tong
- Department of Hemodialysis, the Second Xiangya HospitalCentral South UniversityChangshaHunanChina
| | - Ayinuer Tuerdi
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, the Second Xiangya HospitalCentral South UniversityChangshaHunanChina
| | - Shisheng Li
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, the Second Xiangya HospitalCentral South UniversityChangshaHunanChina
| | - Lanjie Lei
- State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, School of Biological Science and Medical EngineeringSoutheast UniversityNanjingChina
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38
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Konda P, Garinet S, Van Allen EM, Viswanathan SR. Genome-guided discovery of cancer therapeutic targets. Cell Rep 2023; 42:112978. [PMID: 37572322 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112978] [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] [Received: 04/12/2023] [Revised: 07/22/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 08/14/2023] Open
Abstract
The success of precision oncology-which aims to match the right therapies to the right patients based on molecular status-is predicated on a robust pipeline of molecular targets against which therapies can be developed. Recent advances in genomics and functional genetics have enabled the unbiased discovery of novel molecular targets at scale. We summarize the promise and challenges in integrating genomic and functional genetic landscapes of cancer to establish the next generation of cancer targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prathyusha Konda
- Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Simon Garinet
- Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Eliezer M Van Allen
- Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA; Cancer Program, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Srinivas R Viswanathan
- Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA; Cancer Program, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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39
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Yang X, Zhang Q, Li S, Devarajan R, Luo B, Tan Z, Wang Z, Giannareas N, Wenta T, Ma W, Li Y, Yang Y, Manninen A, Wu S, Wei GH. GATA2 co-opts TGFβ1/SMAD4 oncogenic signaling and inherited variants at 6q22 to modulate prostate cancer progression. J Exp Clin Cancer Res 2023; 42:198. [PMID: 37550764 PMCID: PMC10408074 DOI: 10.1186/s13046-023-02745-7] [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: 01/21/2023] [Accepted: 06/30/2023] [Indexed: 08/09/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Aberrant somatic genomic alteration including copy number amplification is a hallmark of cancer genomes. We previously profiled genomic landscapes of prostate cancer (PCa), yet the underlying causal genes with prognostic potential has not been defined. It remains unclear how a somatic genomic event cooperates with inherited germline variants contribute to cancer predisposition and progression. METHODS We applied integrated genomic and clinical data, experimental models and bioinformatic analysis to identify GATA2 as a highly prevalent metastasis-associated genomic amplification in PCa. Biological roles of GATA2 in PCa metastasis was determined in vitro and in vivo. Global chromatin co-occupancy and co-regulation of GATA2 and SMAD4 was investigated by coimmunoprecipitation, ChIP-seq and RNA-seq assays. Tumor cellular assays, qRT-PCR, western blot, ChIP, luciferase assays and CRISPR-Cas9 editing methods were performed to mechanistically understand the cooperation of GATA2 with SMAD4 in promoting TGFβ1 and AR signaling and mediating inherited PCa risk and progression. RESULTS In this study, by integrated genomics and experimental analysis, we identified GATA2 as a prevalent metastasis-associated genomic amplification to transcriptionally augment its own expression in PCa. Functional experiments demonstrated that GATA2 physically interacted and cooperated with SMAD4 for genome-wide chromatin co-occupancy and co-regulation of PCa genes and metastasis pathways like TGFβ signaling. Mechanistically, GATA2 was cooperative with SMAD4 to enhance TGFβ and AR signaling pathways, and activated the expression of TGFβ1 via directly binding to a distal enhancer of TGFβ1. Strinkingly, GATA2 and SMAD4 globally mediated inherited PCa risk and formed a transcriptional complex with HOXB13 at the PCa risk-associated rs339331/6q22 enhancer, leading to increased expression of the PCa susceptibility gene RFX6. CONCLUSIONS Our study prioritizes causal genomic amplification genes with prognostic values in PCa and reveals the pivotal roles of GATA2 in transcriptionally activating the expression of its own and TGFβ1, thereby co-opting to TGFβ1/SMAD4 signaling and RFX6 at 6q22 to modulate PCa predisposition and progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiayun Yang
- Disease Networks Research Unit, Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine & Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
- Institute of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University (Luohu Hospital Group), Shenzhen, China
| | - Qin Zhang
- Disease Networks Research Unit, Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine & Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Shuxuan Li
- Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center & MOE Key Laboratory of Metabolism and Molecular Medicine and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Raman Devarajan
- Disease Networks Research Unit, Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine & Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Binjie Luo
- Disease Networks Research Unit, Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine & Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Zenglai Tan
- Disease Networks Research Unit, Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine & Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Zixian Wang
- Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center & MOE Key Laboratory of Metabolism and Molecular Medicine and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Nikolaos Giannareas
- Disease Networks Research Unit, Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine & Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Tomasz Wenta
- Disease Networks Research Unit, Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine & Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Wenlong Ma
- Institute of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University (Luohu Hospital Group), Shenzhen, China
| | - Yuqing Li
- Institute of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University (Luohu Hospital Group), Shenzhen, China
| | - Yuehong Yang
- Disease Networks Research Unit, Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine & Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Aki Manninen
- Disease Networks Research Unit, Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine & Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
| | - Song Wu
- Institute of Urology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University (Luohu Hospital Group), Shenzhen, China.
- Institute of Urology, South China Hospital of Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China.
| | - Gong-Hong Wei
- Disease Networks Research Unit, Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine & Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
- Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center & MOE Key Laboratory of Metabolism and Molecular Medicine and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
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Xie L, Liu H, You Z, Wang L, Li Y, Zhang X, Ji X, He H, Yuan T, Zheng W, Wu Z, Xiong M, Wei W, Chen Y. Comprehensive spatiotemporal mapping of single-cell lineages in developing mouse brain by CRISPR-based barcoding. Nat Methods 2023; 20:1244-1255. [PMID: 37460718 DOI: 10.1038/s41592-023-01947-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2023] [Indexed: 08/09/2023]
Abstract
A fundamental interest in developmental neuroscience lies in the ability to map the complete single-cell lineages within the brain. To this end, we developed a CRISPR editing-based lineage-specific tracing (CREST) method for clonal tracing in Cre mice. We then used two complementary strategies based on CREST to map single-cell lineages in developing mouse ventral midbrain (vMB). By applying snapshotting CREST (snapCREST), we constructed a spatiotemporal lineage landscape of developing vMB and identified six progenitor archetypes that could represent the principal clonal fates of individual vMB progenitors and three distinct clonal lineages in the floor plate that specified glutamatergic, dopaminergic or both neurons. We further created pandaCREST (progenitor and derivative associating CREST) to associate the transcriptomes of progenitor cells in vivo with their differentiation potentials. We identified multiple origins of dopaminergic neurons and demonstrated that a transcriptome-defined progenitor type comprises heterogeneous progenitors, each with distinct clonal fates and molecular signatures. Therefore, the CREST method and strategies allow comprehensive single-cell lineage analysis that could offer new insights into the molecular programs underlying neural specification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lianshun Xie
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Hengxin Liu
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhiwen You
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Luyue Wang
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Yiwen Li
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Xinyue Zhang
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaoshan Ji
- Department of Neonatology, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, National Children's Medical Center, Shanghai, China
| | - Hui He
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Tingli Yuan
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Wenping Zheng
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Ziyan Wu
- UniXell Biotechnology, Shanghai, China
| | - Man Xiong
- State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology-Ministry of Education Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Institutes of Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wu Wei
- CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
- Center for Biomedical Informatics, Shanghai Engineering Research Center for Big Data in Pediatric Precision Medicine, Shanghai Children's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
- Lingang Laboratory, Shanghai, China.
| | - Yuejun Chen
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
- Shanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence Technology, Shanghai, China.
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Song Z, Zhang G, Huang S, Liu Y, Li G, Zhou X, Sun J, Gao P, Chen Y, Huang X, Liu J, Wang X. PE-STOP: A versatile tool for installing nonsense substitutions amenable for precise reversion. J Biol Chem 2023; 299:104942. [PMID: 37343700 PMCID: PMC10365944 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.104942] [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: 04/03/2023] [Revised: 06/08/2023] [Accepted: 06/11/2023] [Indexed: 06/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The rapid advances in genome editing technologies have revolutionized the study of gene functions in cell or animal models. The recent generation of double-stranded DNA cleavage-independent base editors has been suitably adapted for interrogation of protein-coding genes on the basis of introducing premature stop codons or disabling the start codons. However, such versions of stop/start codon-oriented genetic tools still present limitations on their versatility, base-level precision, and target specificity. Here, we exploit a newly developed prime editor (PE) that differs from base editors by its adoption of a reverse transcriptase activity, which enables incorporation of various types of precise edits templated by a specialized prime editing guide RNA. Based on such a versatile platform, we established a prime editing-empowered method (PE-STOP) for installation of nonsense substitutions, providing a complementary approach to the present gene-targeting tools. PE-STOP is bioinformatically predicted to feature substantially expanded coverage in the genome space. In practice, PE-STOP introduces stop codons with good efficiencies in human embryonic kidney 293T and N2a cells (with medians of 29% [ten sites] and 25% [four sites] editing efficiencies, respectively), while exhibiting minimal off-target effects and high on-target precision. Furthermore, given the fact that PE installs prime editing guide RNA-templated mutations, we introduce a unique strategy for precise genetic rescue of PE-STOP-dependent nonsense mutation via the same PE platform. Altogether, the present work demonstrates a versatile and specific tool for gene inactivation and for functional interrogation of nonsense mutations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziguo Song
- International Joint Agriculture Research Center for Animal Bio-Breeding of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
| | - Guiquan Zhang
- Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China; State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology and MOE Key Laboratory of Model Animals for Disease Study, Model Animal Research Center at Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
| | - Shuhong Huang
- International Joint Agriculture Research Center for Animal Bio-Breeding of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
| | - Yao Liu
- International Joint Agriculture Research Center for Animal Bio-Breeding of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
| | - Guanglei Li
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xianhui Zhou
- International Joint Agriculture Research Center for Animal Bio-Breeding of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
| | - Jiayuan Sun
- International Joint Agriculture Research Center for Animal Bio-Breeding of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
| | - Pengfei Gao
- International Joint Agriculture Research Center for Animal Bio-Breeding of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
| | - Yulin Chen
- International Joint Agriculture Research Center for Animal Bio-Breeding of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China; Key Laboratory of Livestock Biology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
| | - Xingxu Huang
- Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China; School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, China; CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Jianghuai Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology and MOE Key Laboratory of Model Animals for Disease Study, Model Animal Research Center at Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
| | - Xiaolong Wang
- International Joint Agriculture Research Center for Animal Bio-Breeding of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China; Key Laboratory of Livestock Biology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China.
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42
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Drosos Y, Konstantakou EG, Bassogianni AS, Nikolakopoulos KS, Koumoundourou DG, Markaki SP, Tsitsilonis OE, Voutsinas GE, Valakos D, Anastasiadou E, Thanos D, Velentzas AD, Stravopodis DJ. Microtubule Dynamics Deregulation Induces Apoptosis in Human Urothelial Bladder Cancer Cells via a p53-Independent Pathway. Cancers (Basel) 2023; 15:3730. [PMID: 37509392 PMCID: PMC10378115 DOI: 10.3390/cancers15143730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2023] [Revised: 07/11/2023] [Accepted: 07/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Bladder cancer (BLCA) is the sixth most common type of cancer and has a dismal prognosis if diagnosed late. To identify treatment options for BLCA, we systematically evaluated data from the Broad Institute DepMap project. We found that urothelial BLCA cell lines are among the most sensitive to microtubule assembly inhibition by paclitaxel treatment. Strikingly, we revealed that the top dependencies in BLCA cell lines include genes encoding proteins involved in microtubule assembly. This highlights the importance of microtubule network dynamics as a major vulnerability in human BLCA. In cancers such as ovarian and breast, where paclitaxel is the gold standard of care, resistance to paclitaxel treatment has been linked to p53-inactivating mutations. To study the response of BLCA to microtubule assembly inhibition and its mechanistic link with the mutational status of the p53 protein, we treated a collection of BLCA cell lines with a dose range of paclitaxel and performed a detailed characterization of the response. We discovered that BLCA cell lines are significantly sensitive to low concentrations of paclitaxel, independently of their p53 status. Paclitaxel induced a G2/M cell cycle arrest and growth inhibition, followed by robust activation of apoptosis. Most importantly, we revealed that paclitaxel triggered a robust DNA-damage response and apoptosis program without activating the p53 pathway. Integration of transcriptomics, epigenetic, and dependency data demonstrated that the response of BLCA to paclitaxel is independent of p53 mutational signatures but strongly depends on the expression of DNA repair genes. Our work highlights urothelial BLCA as an exceptional candidate for paclitaxel treatment. It paves the way for the rational use of a combination of paclitaxel and DNA repair inhibitors as an effective, novel therapeutic strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiannis Drosos
- Section of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Department of Biology, School of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 15701 Athens, Greece
| | - Eumorphia G Konstantakou
- Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center (MGHCC), Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Aggeliki-Stefania Bassogianni
- Section of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Department of Biology, School of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 15701 Athens, Greece
| | - Konstantinos-Stylianos Nikolakopoulos
- Section of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Department of Biology, School of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 15701 Athens, Greece
| | - Dimitra G Koumoundourou
- Section of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Department of Biology, School of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 15701 Athens, Greece
| | - Sophia P Markaki
- Section of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Department of Biology, School of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 15701 Athens, Greece
| | - Ourania E Tsitsilonis
- Section of Animal and Human Physiology, Department of Biology, School of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 15701 Athens, Greece
| | - Gerassimos E Voutsinas
- Laboratory of Molecular Carcinogenesis and Rare Disease Genetics, Institute of Biosciences and Applications (IBA), National Center for Scientific Research (NCSR) "Demokritos", 15310 Athens, Greece
| | - Dimitrios Valakos
- Center of Basic Research, Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens (BRFAA), 11527 Athens, Greece
| | - Ema Anastasiadou
- Center of Basic Research, Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens (BRFAA), 11527 Athens, Greece
| | - Dimitris Thanos
- Center of Basic Research, Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens (BRFAA), 11527 Athens, Greece
| | - Athanassios D Velentzas
- Section of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Department of Biology, School of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 15701 Athens, Greece
| | - Dimitrios J Stravopodis
- Section of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Department of Biology, School of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 15701 Athens, Greece
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43
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Esposito R, Lanzós A, Uroda T, Ramnarayanan S, Büchi I, Polidori T, Guillen-Ramirez H, Mihaljevic A, Merlin BM, Mela L, Zoni E, Hovhannisyan L, McCluggage F, Medo M, Basile G, Meise DF, Zwyssig S, Wenger C, Schwarz K, Vancura A, Bosch-Guiteras N, Andrades Á, Tham AM, Roemmele M, Medina PP, Ochsenbein AF, Riether C, Kruithof-de Julio M, Zimmer Y, Medová M, Stroka D, Fox A, Johnson R. Tumour mutations in long noncoding RNAs enhance cell fitness. Nat Commun 2023; 14:3342. [PMID: 37291246 PMCID: PMC10250536 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39160-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2022] [Accepted: 06/01/2023] [Indexed: 06/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are linked to cancer via pathogenic changes in their expression levels. Yet, it remains unclear whether lncRNAs can also impact tumour cell fitness via function-altering somatic "driver" mutations. To search for such driver-lncRNAs, we here perform a genome-wide analysis of fitness-altering single nucleotide variants (SNVs) across a cohort of 2583 primary and 3527 metastatic tumours. The resulting 54 mutated and positively-selected lncRNAs are significantly enriched for previously-reported cancer genes and a range of clinical and genomic features. A number of these lncRNAs promote tumour cell proliferation when overexpressed in in vitro models. Our results also highlight a dense SNV hotspot in the widely-studied NEAT1 oncogene. To directly evaluate the functional significance of NEAT1 SNVs, we use in cellulo mutagenesis to introduce tumour-like mutations in the gene and observe a significant and reproducible increase in cell fitness, both in vitro and in a mouse model. Mechanistic studies reveal that SNVs remodel the NEAT1 ribonucleoprotein and boost subnuclear paraspeckles. In summary, this work demonstrates the utility of driver analysis for mapping cancer-promoting lncRNAs, and provides experimental evidence that somatic mutations can act through lncRNAs to enhance pathological cancer cell fitness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberta Esposito
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland.
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland.
- Institute of Genetics and Biophysics "Adriano Buzzati-Traverso", CNR, 80131, Naples, Italy.
| | - Andrés Lanzós
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Graduate School of Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of Bern, 3012, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Tina Uroda
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland
- Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland
| | - Sunandini Ramnarayanan
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland
- Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland
- The SFI Centre for Research Training in Genomics Data Science, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Isabel Büchi
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Visceral Surgery and Medicine, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Taisia Polidori
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Hugo Guillen-Ramirez
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland
- Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland
| | - Ante Mihaljevic
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Bernard Mefi Merlin
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Lia Mela
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Eugenio Zoni
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Urology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Lusine Hovhannisyan
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital and University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Finn McCluggage
- School of Molecular Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia
- School of Human Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia
| | - Matúš Medo
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital and University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Giulia Basile
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Dominik F Meise
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Sandra Zwyssig
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Corina Wenger
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Kyriakos Schwarz
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Adrienne Vancura
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Núria Bosch-Guiteras
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Graduate School of Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of Bern, 3012, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Álvaro Andrades
- GENYO, Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research, Pfizer/University of Granada/Andalusian Regional Government, Granada, 18016, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria, Granada, 18014, Spain
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I, University of Granada, Granada, 18071, Spain
| | - Ai Ming Tham
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland
- Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland
| | - Michaela Roemmele
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Pedro P Medina
- GENYO, Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research, Pfizer/University of Granada/Andalusian Regional Government, Granada, 18016, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria, Granada, 18014, Spain
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I, University of Granada, Granada, 18071, Spain
| | - Adrian F Ochsenbein
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Carsten Riether
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Marianna Kruithof-de Julio
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Urology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Yitzhak Zimmer
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital and University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Michaela Medová
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital and University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Deborah Stroka
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Visceral Surgery and Medicine, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Archa Fox
- School of Molecular Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia
- School of Human Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia
| | - Rory Johnson
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland.
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland.
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland.
- Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland.
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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:bbad131. [PMID: 37080758 PMCID: PMC10199778 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbad131] [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: 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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Zhang HH, Xiang J, Yin BC, Ye BC. Overcoming Multidrug Resistance by Base-Editing-Induced Codon Mutation. ACS Pharmacol Transl Sci 2023; 6:812-819. [PMID: 37200813 PMCID: PMC10186359 DOI: 10.1021/acsptsci.3c00037] [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: 02/22/2023] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Multidrug resistance (MDR) is the main obstacle in cancer chemotherapy. ATP binding cassette (ABC) transporters on the MDR cell membrane can transport a wide range of antitumor drugs out of cells, which is one of the main causes of MDR. Therefore, disturbing ABC transporters becomes the key to reversing MDR. In this study, we implement a cytosine base editor (CBE) system to knock out the gene encoding ABC transporters by base editing. When the CBE system works in MDR cells, the MDR cells are manipulated, and the genes encoding ABC transporters can be inactivated by precisely changing single in-frame nucleotides to induce stop (iSTOP) codons. In this way, the expression of ABC efflux transporters is reduced and intracellular drug retention is significantly increased in MDR cells. Ultimately, the drug shows considerable cytotoxicity to the MDR cancer cells. Moreover, the substantial downregulation of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP) implies the successful application of the CBE system in the knockout of different ABC efflux transporters. The recovery of chemosensitivity of MDR cancer cells to the chemotherapeutic drugs revealed that the system has a satisfactory universality and applicability. We believe that the CBE system will provide valuable clues for the use of CRISPR technology to defeat the MDR of cancer cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- He-Hua Zhang
- Lab
of Biosystem and Microanalysis, State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor
Engineering, Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center for Biomanufacturing
Technology, East China University of Science
and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Jian Xiang
- Lab
of Biosystem and Microanalysis, State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor
Engineering, Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center for Biomanufacturing
Technology, East China University of Science
and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Bin-Cheng Yin
- Lab
of Biosystem and Microanalysis, State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor
Engineering, Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center for Biomanufacturing
Technology, East China University of Science
and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
- Institute
of Engineering Biology and Health, Collaborative Innovation Center
of Yangtze River Delta Region Green Pharmaceuticals, College of Pharmaceutical
Sciences, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, Zhejiang, China
| | - Bang-Ce Ye
- Lab
of Biosystem and Microanalysis, State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor
Engineering, Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center for Biomanufacturing
Technology, East China University of Science
and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
- Institute
of Engineering Biology and Health, Collaborative Innovation Center
of Yangtze River Delta Region Green Pharmaceuticals, College of Pharmaceutical
Sciences, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, Zhejiang, China
- School
of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Shihezi
University, Shihezi 832000, Xinjiang, China
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Yang H, Hulbatte RS, Kelleher A, Gratsch N, Wang Y, Palmbos PL, Ljungman M. KLIPP - a precision CRISPR approach to target structural variant junctions in cancer. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.05.10.540176. [PMID: 37214957 PMCID: PMC10197680 DOI: 10.1101/2023.05.10.540176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Current cancer therapies typically give rise to dose-limiting normal tissue toxicity. We have developed KLIPP, a precision cancer approach that specifically kills cancer cells using CRISPR/Cas9 technology. The approach consists of guide RNAs that target cancer-specific structural variant junctions to nucleate two parts of a dCas9-conjugated endonuclease, Fok1, leading to its activation. We show that KLIPP causes induction of DNA double strand breaks (DSBs) at the targeted junctions and cell death. When cancer cells were grown orthotopically in mice, activation of Fok1 at only two junctions led to the disappearance of tumor cells in 7/11 mice. This therapeutic approach has high specificity for tumor cells and is independent of tumor-specific drivers. Individualized translation of KLIPP to patients would be transformative and lead to consistent and simplified cancer treatment decisions.
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Wenger A, Karlsson I, Kling T, Carén H. CRISPR-Cas9 knockout screen identifies novel treatment targets in childhood high-grade glioma. Clin Epigenetics 2023; 15:80. [PMID: 37161535 PMCID: PMC10170782 DOI: 10.1186/s13148-023-01498-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/11/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Brain tumours are the leading cause of cancer-related death in children, and there is no effective treatment. A growing body of evidence points to deregulated epigenetics as a tumour driver, particularly in paediatric cancers as they have relatively few genomic alterations, and key driver mutations have been identified in histone 3 (H3). Cancer stem cells (CSC) are implicated in tumour development, relapse and therapy resistance and thus particularly important to target. We therefore aimed to identify novel epigenetic treatment targets in CSC derived from H3-mutated high-grade glioma (HGG) through a CRISPR-Cas9 knockout screen. RESULTS The knockout screen identified more than 100 novel genes essential for the growth of CSC derived from paediatric HGG with H3K27M mutation. We successfully validated 12 of the 13 selected hits by individual knockout in the same two CSC lines, and for the top six hits we included two additional CSC lines derived from H3 wild-type paediatric HGG. Knockout of these genes led to a significant decrease in CSC growth, and altered stem cell and differentiation markers. CONCLUSIONS The screen robustly identified essential genes known in the literature, but also many novel genes essential for CSC growth in paediatric HGG. Six of the novel genes (UBE2N, CHD4, LSM11, KANSL1, KANSL3 and EED) were validated individually thus demonstrating their importance for CSC growth in H3-mutated and wild-type HGG. These genes should be further studied and evaluated as novel treatment targets in paediatric HGG.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Wenger
- Sahlgrenska Center for Cancer Research, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Medicinaregatan 1F, 405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Ida Karlsson
- Sahlgrenska Center for Cancer Research, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Medicinaregatan 1F, 405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Teresia Kling
- Sahlgrenska Center for Cancer Research, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Medicinaregatan 1F, 405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Helena Carén
- Sahlgrenska Center for Cancer Research, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Medicinaregatan 1F, 405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden.
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Sharifnia T, Wawer MJ, Goodale A, Lee Y, Kazachkova M, Dempster JM, Muller S, Levy J, Freed DM, Sommer J, Kalfon J, Vazquez F, Hahn WC, Root DE, Clemons PA, Schreiber SL. Mapping the landscape of genetic dependencies in chordoma. Nat Commun 2023; 14:1933. [PMID: 37024492 PMCID: PMC10079670 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-37593-8] [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: 05/31/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Identifying the spectrum of genes required for cancer cell survival can reveal essential cancer circuitry and therapeutic targets, but such a map remains incomplete for many cancer types. We apply genome-scale CRISPR-Cas9 loss-of-function screens to map the landscape of selectively essential genes in chordoma, a bone cancer with few validated targets. This approach confirms a known chordoma dependency, TBXT (T; brachyury), and identifies a range of additional dependencies, including PTPN11, ADAR, PRKRA, LUC7L2, SRRM2, SLC2A1, SLC7A5, FANCM, and THAP1. CDK6, SOX9, and EGFR, genes previously implicated in chordoma biology, are also recovered. We find genomic and transcriptomic features that predict specific dependencies, including interferon-stimulated gene expression, which correlates with ADAR dependence and is elevated in chordoma. Validating the therapeutic relevance of dependencies, small-molecule inhibitors of SHP2, encoded by PTPN11, have potent preclinical efficacy against chordoma. Our results generate an emerging map of chordoma dependencies to enable biological and therapeutic hypotheses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanaz Sharifnia
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA.
| | - Mathias J Wawer
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
- Kojin Therapeutics, Boston, MA, 02210, USA
| | - Amy Goodale
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Yenarae Lee
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Mariya Kazachkova
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
- University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA
| | | | - Sandrine Muller
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Joan Levy
- Chordoma Foundation, Durham, NC, 27702, USA
- Melanoma Research Alliance, Washington, D.C., 20005, USA
| | | | | | - Jérémie Kalfon
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | | | - William C Hahn
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - David E Root
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Paul A Clemons
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Stuart L Schreiber
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA.
- Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA.
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Teh SSK, Halper-Stromberg E, Morsberger L, Bennett A, Bowland K, Skaist A, Cai F, Liang H, Hruban RH, Roberts NJ, Scharpf RB, Zou YS, Eshleman JR. Mechanism of delayed cell death following simultaneous CRISPR-Cas9 targeting in pancreatic cancers. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.04.03.535384. [PMID: 37066222 PMCID: PMC10103988 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.03.535384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/25/2023]
Abstract
When we transduced pancreatic cancers with sgRNAs that targeted 2-16 target sites in the human genome, we found that increasing the number of CRISPR-Cas9 target sites produced greater cytotoxicity, with >99% growth inhibition observed by targeting only 12 sites. However, cell death was delayed by 2-3 weeks after sgRNA transduction, in contrast to the repair of double strand DNA breaks (DSBs) that happened within 3 days after transduction. To explain this discrepancy, we used both cytogenetics and whole genome sequencing to interrogate the genome. We first detected chromatid and chromosome breaks, followed by radial formations, dicentric, ring chromosomes, and other chromosomal aberrations that peaked at 14 days after transduction. Structural variants (SVs) were detected at sites that were directly targeted by CRISPR-Cas9, including SVs generated from two sites that were targeted, but the vast majority of SVs (89.4%) were detected elsewhere in the genome that arose later than those directly targeted. Cells also underwent polyploidization that peaked at day 10 as detected by XY FISH assay, and ultimately died via apoptosis. Overall, we found that the simultaneous DSBs induced by CRISPR-Cas9 in pancreatic cancers caused chromosomal instability and polyploidization that ultimately led to delayed cell death.
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Affiliation(s)
- Selina Shiqing K. Teh
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Eitan Halper-Stromberg
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Laura Morsberger
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Alexis Bennett
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Kirsten Bowland
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Alyza Skaist
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Fidel Cai
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Hong Liang
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Ralph H. Hruban
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Nicholas J. Roberts
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Robert B. Scharpf
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Ying S. Zou
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - James R. Eshleman
- Department of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
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50
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Usluer S, Hallast P, Crepaldi L, Zhou Y, Urgo K, Dincer C, Su J, Noell G, Alasoo K, El Garwany O, Gerety SS, Newman B, Dovey OM, Parts L. Optimized whole-genome CRISPR interference screens identify ARID1A-dependent growth regulators in human induced pluripotent stem cells. Stem Cell Reports 2023; 18:1061-1074. [PMID: 37028423 DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2023.03.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2022] [Revised: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/13/2023] [Indexed: 04/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Perturbing expression is a powerful way to understand the role of individual genes, but can be challenging in important models. CRISPR-Cas screens in human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are of limited efficiency due to DNA break-induced stress, while the less stressful silencing with an inactive Cas9 has been considered less effective so far. Here, we developed the dCas9-KRAB-MeCP2 fusion protein for screening in iPSCs from multiple donors. We found silencing in a 200 bp window around the transcription start site in polyclonal pools to be as effective as using wild-type Cas9 for identifying essential genes, but with much reduced cell numbers. Whole-genome screens to identify ARID1A-dependent dosage sensitivity revealed the PSMB2 gene, and enrichment of proteasome genes among the hits. This selective dependency was replicated with a proteasome inhibitor, indicating a targetable drug-gene interaction. Many more plausible targets in challenging cell models can be efficiently identified with our approach.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Yan Zhou
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | - Katie Urgo
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Jing Su
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Kaur Alasoo
- Department of Computer Science, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | | | | | - Ben Newman
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Leopold Parts
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK; Department of Computer Science, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia.
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