scholarly journals Base editors: modular tools for the introduction of point mutations in living cells

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 483-491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mallory Evanoff ◽  
Alexis C. Komor

Base editors are a new family of programmable genome editing tools that fuse ssDNA (single-stranded DNA) modifying enzymes to catalytically inactive CRISPR-associated (Cas) endonucleases to induce highly efficient single base changes. With dozens of base editors now reported, it is apparent that these tools are highly modular; many combinations of ssDNA modifying enzymes and Cas proteins have resulted in a variety of base editors, each with its own unique properties and potential uses. In this perspective, we describe currently available base editors, highlighting their modular nature and describing the various options available for each component. Furthermore, we briefly discuss applications in synthetic biology and genome engineering where base editors have presented unique advantages over alternative techniques.

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-168 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Zhang ◽  
Caixia Gao

Genome-editing technologies based on the CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat) system have been widely used in plants to investigate gene function and improve crop traits. The recently developed DNA-free delivery methods and precise base-editing systems provide new opportunities for plant genome engineering. In this review, we describe the novel DNA-free genome-editing methods in plants. These methods reduce off-target effects and may alleviate regulatory concern about genetically modified plants. We also review applications of base-editing systems, which are highly effective in generating point mutations and are of great value for introducing agronomically valuable traits. Future perspectives for DNA-free editing and base editing are also discussed.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 402 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florian Veillet ◽  
Laura Perrot ◽  
Laura Chauvin ◽  
Marie-Paule Kermarrec ◽  
Anouchka Guyon-Debast ◽  
...  

Genome editing tools have rapidly been adopted by plant scientists for gene function discovery and crop improvement. The current technical challenge is to efficiently induce precise and predictable targeted point mutations valuable for crop breeding purposes. Cytidine base editors (CBEs) are CRISPR/Cas9 derived tools recently developed to direct a C-to-T base conversion. Stable genomic integration of CRISPR/Cas9 components through Agrobacterium-mediated transformation is the most widely used approach in dicotyledonous plants. However, elimination of foreign DNA may be difficult to achieve, especially in vegetatively propagated plants. In this study, we targeted the acetolactate synthase (ALS) gene in tomato and potato by a CBE using Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. We successfully and efficiently edited the targeted cytidine bases, leading to chlorsulfuron-resistant plants with precise base edition efficiency up to 71% in tomato. More importantly, we produced 12.9% and 10% edited but transgene-free plants in the first generation in tomato and potato, respectively. Such an approach is expected to decrease deleterious effects due to the random integration of transgene(s) into the host genome. Our successful approach opens up new perspectives for genome engineering by the co-edition of the ALS with other gene(s), leading to transgene-free plants harboring new traits of interest.


BioTech ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 14
Author(s):  
Kamand Tavakoli ◽  
Alireza Pour-Aboughadareh ◽  
Farzad Kianersi ◽  
Peter Poczai ◽  
Alireza Etminan ◽  
...  

Targeted nucleases are powerful genomic tools to precisely change the target genome of living cells, controlling functional genes with high exactness. The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats associated protein 9 (CRISPR-Cas9) genome editing system has been identified as one of the most useful biological tools in genetic engineering that is taken from adaptive immune strategies for bacteria. In recent years, this system has made significant progress and it has been widely used in genome editing to create gene knock-ins, knock-outs, and point mutations. This paper summarizes the application of this system in various biological sciences, including medicine, plant science, and animal breeding.


2021 ◽  
pp. 002367722199389
Author(s):  
Federico Caso ◽  
Benjamin Davies

Genome editing by programmable RNA-dependent Cas endonucleases has revolutionised the field of genome engineering, achieving targeted genomic change at unprecedented efficiencies with considerable application in laboratory animal research. Despite its ease of use and wide application, there remain concerns about the precision of this technology and a number of unpredictable consequences have been reported, mostly resulting from the DNA double-strand break (DSB) that conventional CRISPR editing induces. In order to improve editing precision, several iterations of the technology been developed over the years. Base editing is one of most successful developments, allowing for single base conversions but without the need for a DSB. Cytosine and adenine base editing are now established as reliable methods to achieve precise genome editing in animal research studies. Both cytosine and adenine base editors have been applied successfully to the editing of zygotes, resulting in the generation of animal models. Similarly, both base editors have achieved precise editing of point mutations in somatic cells, facilitating the development of gene therapy approaches. Despite rapid progress in optimising these tools, base editing can address only a subset of possible base conversions within a relatively narrow window and larger genomic manipulations are not possible. The recent development of prime editing, originally defined as a simple ‘search and replace’ editing tool, may help address these limitations and could widen the range of genome manipulations possible. Preliminary reports of prime editing in animals are being published, and this new technology may allow significant advancements for laboratory animal research.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyun Ju Kim ◽  
Se Young Oh ◽  
Sang Jun Lee

Abstract Background CRISPR/Cpf1 has emerged as a new CRISPR-based genome editing tool because, in comparison with CRIPSR/Cas9, it has a different T-rich PAM sequence to expand the target DNA sequence. Base editing in the microbial genome can be facilitated by oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis (ODM) followed by negative selection with the CRISPR/Cpf1 system. However, single point mutations aided by Cpf1 negative selection have been rarely reported in C. glutamicum.Results This study aimed to introduce an amber stop codon in crtEb encoding lycopene hydratase, through ODM and Cpf1-mediated negative selection; deficiency of this enzyme causes pink coloration due to lycopene accumulation in Corynebacterium glutamicum. Consequently, on using double-, triple-, and quadruple-base-mutagenic oligonucleotides, 91.5–95.3% pink cells were obtained among the total live C. glutamicum cells. However, among the negatively selected live cells, 0.6% pink cells were obtained using single-base-mutagenic oligonucleotides, indicating that very few single-base mutations were introduced, possibly owing to mismatch tolerance. This led to the consideration of various target-mismatched crRNAs to prevent the death of single-base-edited cells. Consequently, we obtained 99.7% pink colonies after CRISPR/Cpf1-mediated negative selection using an appropriate single-mismatched crRNA. Furthermore, Sanger sequencing revealed that single-base mutations were successfully edited in the 99.7% of pink cells, while only two of nine among 0.6% of pink cells were accurately edited.Conclusions The present results indicate that the target-mismatched Cpf1 negative selection method is not only efficient in C. glutamicum, but also an accurate single-base genome editing method.


Molecules ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taegeun Bae ◽  
Hanseop Kim ◽  
Jeong Hee Kim ◽  
Yong Jun Kim ◽  
Seung Hwan Lee ◽  
...  

In CRISPR genome editing, CRISPR proteins form ribonucleoprotein complexes with guide RNAs to bind and cleave the target DNAs with complete sequence complementarity. CRISPR genome editing has a high potential for use in precision gene therapy for various diseases, including cancer and genetic disorders, which are caused by DNA mutations within the genome. However, several studies have shown that targeting the DNA via sequence complementarity is imperfect and subject to unintended genome editing of other genomic loci with similar sequences. These off-target problems pose critical safety issues in the therapeutic applications of CRISPR technology, with particular concerns in terms of the genome editing of pathogenic point mutations, where non-mutant alleles can become an off-target with only a one-base difference. In this study, we sought to assess a novel CRISPR genome editing technique that has been proposed to achieve a high specificity by positioning the mismatches within the protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) sequence. To this end, we compared the genome editing specificities of the PAM-based and conventional methods on an oncogenic single-base mutation in the endothelial growth factor receptor (EGFR). The results indicated that the PAM-based method provided a significantly increased genome editing specificity for pathogenic mutant alleles with single-base precision.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fanglei Zuo ◽  
Zhu Zeng ◽  
Lennart Hammarström ◽  
Harold Marcotte

ABSTRACTGenome engineering is essential for application of synthetic biology in probiotics including lactobacilli and bifidobacteria. Several homologous recombination system-based mutagenesis tools have been developed for these bacteria but still, have many limitations in different species or strains. Here we developed a genome engineering method based on an inducible self-destruction plasmid delivering homologous DNA into bacteria. Excision of the replicon by induced recombinase facilitates selection of homologous recombination events. This new genome editing tool called Inducible Plasmid Self-Destruction (IPSD) was successfully used to perform gene knock-out and knock-in in lactobacilli and bifidobacteria. Due to its simplicity and universality, the IPSD strategy may provide a general approach for genetic engineering of various bacterial species.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuu Asano ◽  
Kensuke Yamashita ◽  
Aoi Hasegawa ◽  
Takanori Ogasawara ◽  
Hoshie Iriki ◽  
...  

AbstractThe powerful genome editing tool Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 (SpCas9) requires the trinucleotide NGG as a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM). The PAM requirement is limitation for precise genome editing such as single amino-acid substitutions and knock-ins at specific genomic loci since it occurs in narrow editing window. Recently, SpCas9 variants (i.e., xCas9 3.7, SpCas9-NG, and SpRY) were developed that recognise the NG dinucleotide or almost any other PAM sequences in human cell lines. In this study, we evaluated these variants in Dictyostelium discoideum. In the context of targeted mutagenesis at an NG PAM site, we found that SpCas9-NG and SpRY were more efficient than xCas9 3.7. In the context of NA, NT, NG, and NC PAM sites, the editing efficiency of SpRY was approximately 60% at NR (R = A and G) but less than 22% at NY (Y = T and C). We successfully used SpRY to generate knock-ins at specific gene loci using donor DNA flanked by 60 bp homology arms. In addition, we achieved point mutations with efficiencies as high as 97.7%. This work provides tools that will significantly expand the gene loci that can be targeted for knock-out, knock-in, and precise point mutation in D. discoideum.


aBIOTECH ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Li ◽  
Yan Li ◽  
Ligeng Ma

AbstractCommon wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is one of the three major food crops in the world; thus, wheat breeding programs are important for world food security. Characterizing the genes that control important agronomic traits and finding new ways to alter them are necessary to improve wheat breeding. Functional genomics and breeding in polyploid wheat has been greatly accelerated by the advent of several powerful tools, especially CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing technology, which allows multiplex genome engineering. Here, we describe the development of CRISPR/Cas9, which has revolutionized the field of genome editing. In addition, we emphasize technological breakthroughs (e.g., base editing and prime editing) based on CRISPR/Cas9. We also summarize recent applications and advances in the functional annotation and breeding of wheat, and we introduce the production of CRISPR-edited DNA-free wheat. Combined with other achievements, CRISPR and CRISPR-based genome editing will speed progress in wheat biology and promote sustainable agriculture.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 149
Author(s):  
Sarah-Maria Wege ◽  
Katharina Gejer ◽  
Fabienne Becker ◽  
Michael Bölker ◽  
Johannes Freitag ◽  
...  

The phytopathogenic smut fungus Ustilago maydis is a versatile model organism to study plant pathology, fungal genetics, and molecular cell biology. Here, we report several strategies to manipulate the genome of U. maydis by the CRISPR/Cas9 technology. These include targeted gene deletion via homologous recombination of short double-stranded oligonucleotides, introduction of point mutations, heterologous complementation at the genomic locus, and endogenous N-terminal tagging with the fluorescent protein mCherry. All applications are independent of a permanent selectable marker and only require transient expression of the endonuclease Cas9hf and sgRNA. The techniques presented here are likely to accelerate research in the U. maydis community but can also act as a template for genome editing in other important fungi.


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