Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Rodrigo M. Florentino, Kazutoyo Morita, Nils Haep, Takashi Motomura, Ricardo Diaz-Aragon, Lanuza A. P. Faccioli, Alexandra Collin de l'Hortet, Zeliha Cetin, Carla Frau, Lawrence Vernetti, Anna-Klara Amler, Alexander Thomas, Tobias Lam, Lutz Kloke, Kazuki Takeishi, D. Lansing Taylor, Ira J. Fox, Alejandro Soto-Gutierrez
Summary: Advancements in cellular engineering and gene therapy allow for the production of human tissues with programmable genetically enhanced functions to model and treat specific diseases. This study successfully fabricated synthetic human liver tissues with programmable functions using CRISPR-Cas9 to control gene expression. The engineered liver tissues demonstrated enhanced functions compared to primary liver cells.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Chunwei Zheng, Shun-Qing Liang, Bin Liu, Pengpeng Liu, Suet-Yan Kwan, Scot A. Wolfe, Wen Xue
Summary: Prime editor (PE) has great potential for gene therapy, but it is challenging to deliver PE in vivo. In this study, a compact PE without the RNase H domain was developed, which showed comparable editing efficiency with full-length PE. Using a Cas9 split site, robust editing was achieved in both cells and mouse liver. Furthermore, the compact PE efficiently mediated gene insertion in mouse liver without the stop codon read-through effect observed with full-length PE, indicating its potential for advancing prime editing in vivo.
Article
Cell Biology
Yuting Fu, Fangyuan Liu, Shuo Cao, Jia Zhang, Huizhi Wang, Baojiang Wu, Yongli Song, Shuguang Duo, Xihe Li, Siqin Bao
Summary: This study reveals that Bdh2 deficiency has no impact on pluripotency and self-renewal of ESCs, but promotes endoderm differentiation and is essential for maintaining DNA methylation.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Chaya T. L. Yuen, Dawn G. L. Thean, Becky K. C. Chan, Peng Zhou, Cynthia C. S. Kwok, Hoi Yee Chu, Maggie S. H. Cheung, Bei Wang, Yee Man Chan, Silvia Y. L. Mak, Anskar Y. Leung, Gigi C. G. Choi, Zongli Zheng, Alan S. L. Wong
Summary: Researchers have enhanced editing accuracy and reduced off-target edits by re-engineering KKH-SaCas9 with a Y239H mutation and a set of additional mutations, demonstrating the feasibility of multi-domain combinatorial mutagenesis to optimize editing fidelity.
NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Vanessa Chenouard, Isabelle Leray, Laurent Tesson, Severine Remy, Alasdair Allan, Daniel Archer, Adam Caulder, Agnes Fortun, Karine Bernardeau, Yacine Cherifi, Lydia Teboul, Laurent David, Ignacio Anegon
Summary: CRISPR-Cas9 cleavage efficacy and accuracy are influenced by the optimal formation of the ribonucleoprotein (RNP) complex. The study shows that an equimolar ratio of Cas9 and guide RNA (gRNA) is optimal for RNP complex formation. Increasing the Cas9/gRNA ratio does not improve knock-in (KI) efficiency, and excess gRNA leads to a decrease in point mutation KI efficiency and an increase in large deletions.
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Luyao Wang, Yuexian Piao, Fucheng Guo, Jiarui Wei, Yurong Chen, Xiangpeng Dai, Xiaoling Zhang
Summary: Preclinical trials are essential for evaluating the safety and effectiveness of novel therapeutic strategies for human diseases, including cancer. However, many strategies that have proven effective in preclinical cancer models have failed in human clinical trials due to a lack of appropriate animal models. Therefore, it is important and urgent to develop precise animal models for preclinical cancer research. Recently, porcine liver cancer models have gained attention in biomedical research due to their similarities to humans in terms of body size, anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology. This review comprehensively summarizes and discusses the advantages and disadvantages, rationale, current status, and progress of pig models in liver cancer research.
BIOMEDICINE & PHARMACOTHERAPY
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Yan Fung Wong, Yatendra Kumar, Martin Proks, Jose Alejandro Romero Herrera, Michaela Mrugala Rothova, Rita S. Monteiro, Sara Pozzi, Rachel E. Jennings, Neil A. Hanley, Wendy A. Bickmore, Joshua M. Brickman
Summary: Cell proliferation in embryonic development plays a crucial role in tissue expansion and the equilibration of gene regulatory networks for future differentiation. The expansion of lineage-specific intermediates is important for achieving high-fidelity in vitro differentiation. This research identifies a link between progenitor expansion and tissue-specific changes in the enhancer landscape using human embryonic stem cell-derived endodermal progenitors as a ventral foregut model.
NATURE CELL BIOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Li Duan, Limei Xu, Xiao Xu, Zhuan Qin, Xiaoying Zhou, Yin Xiao, Yujie Liang, Jiang Xia
Summary: Gene vectors deliver genetic materials or gene editing devices into cells for therapeutic protein production or gene correction, but barriers like cell membrane and degradation necessitate carriers for clinical gene therapy. Exosomes, engineered to encapsulate and deliver nucleic acids, and their fusion with liposomes increase loading capacity and maintain targeting capability, showing promise for future gene delivery applications in therapy.
Article
Oncology
Hang He, Shuman Zhang, Hai Yang, Pengyan Xu, Isabella Kutschick, Susanne Pfeffer, Nathalie Britzen-Laurent, Robert Gruetzmann, Deliang Fu, Christian Pilarsky
Summary: This study identified PCSK6 as a critical gene involved in liver metastasis in pancreatic cancer and investigated its biological functions and molecular mechanisms using CRISPR/Cas9 technology. It was found that inactivation of PCSK6 could efficiently suppress liver metastasis, suggesting its potential as a novel therapeutic target for liver metastasis in pancreatic cancer.
Review
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Gayatri Ramakrishna, Preedia E. Babu, Ravinder Singh, Nirupma Trehanpati
Summary: In the past decade, the discovery of genome editing tools and 3D culture techniques has revolutionized the field of biology. CRISPR-Cas9 and organoid culture have provided important tools to uncover organ development and model cancer, with genetically modified organoids successfully recapitulating the neoplastic events of human tumors in animal models.
HEPATOLOGY INTERNATIONAL
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Helen B. Belato, Carmelissa Norbrun, Jinping Luo, Chinmai Pindi, Souvik Sinha, Alexandra M. D'Ordine, Gerwald Jogl, Giulia Palermo, George P. Lisi
Summary: Allosteric signaling within multidomain proteins is a driving force for communication between functional sites. This study used nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and computational approaches to identify an allosteric hotspot in the HNH domain of GeoCas9. Mutation of a specific amino acid disrupted a salt-bridge network and altered the structure, timescale of allosteric motions, and thermostability of the domain. This finding may have implications for the specificity enhancement of Cas9.
JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL PHYSICS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Gabriel T. Koreman, Yineng Xu, Qinan Hu, Zijing Zhang, Sarah E. Allen, Mariana F. Wolfner, Bei Wang, Chun Han
Summary: The study addresses the deficiencies of tissue-specific CRISPR/Cas9 tools in Drosophila and proposes corresponding improvements. By optimizing gRNA design, developing methods to label mutant cells, and generating new genetic reagents, the versatility, reliability, and effectiveness of tissue-specific mutagenesis have been enhanced.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Daniel M. Sapozhnikov, Moshe Szyf
Summary: PROTECTOR is a novel approach that uses a nuclease-dead Cas protein to bind to off-target sites and interfere with Cas activity, reducing off-target mutation rates without compromising on-target activity. It can be used in combination with high-fidelity Cas enzymes to further decrease off-target editing, offering an ability to protect off-target sites with identical sequences to target sites.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Emmarie. C. C. Ryan, Leslie. M. M. Huggins, Joshua. D. D. Podlevsky
Summary: CRISPR arrays and Cas proteins are adaptive immune systems in bacteria and archaea, defending against genetic elements. The reprogrammable guide RNA of single effector CRISPR-Cas systems greatly facilitates gene-editing but complicates PCR tests. These systems are derived from human microflora and pathogens, making detection of gene-editor exposure difficult. To overcome false positives, a DNA displacement assay has been developed to specifically detect gene-editors without cross-reacting with bacterial CRISPRs.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Zsolt Bodai, Alena L. Bishop, Valentino M. Gantz, Alexis C. Komor
Summary: Programmable double-strand DNA breaks (DSBs) can be harnessed for precision genome editing through manipulation of the homology-directed repair (HDR) pathway. This study introduces a general strategy called the double tap method, which improves HDR-mediated precision editing efficiency by taking advantage of the reproducible nature of indel sequences. The method utilizes multiple gRNAs, including a primary gRNA that targets the wild-type genomic sequence and one or more secondary gRNAs that target the most common indel sequence(s).
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Review
Developmental Biology
Cheng Shi, Pengfei Jiao, Zhiyi Chen, Lan Ma, Siyue Yao
Summary: This review discusses the molecular etiology of congenital craniofacial abnormalities, with a focus on the role and mechanism of noncoding RNAs in regulating craniofacial development. Aberrant expression of noncoding RNAs has been implicated in the pathogenesis of craniofacial abnormalities, providing potential therapeutic targets.
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2024)
Article
Developmental Biology
Hideru Togashi, Steven Ray Davis, Makoto Sato
Summary: Tile patterns, regulated by cell adhesion molecules, are regular arrangements of cells that play important functional roles in multicellular organisms. The physical constraints and cell adhesion regulate both cell shape and tissue morphogenesis.
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2024)
Article
Developmental Biology
Armen Khanbabei, Lina Segura, Cynthia Petrossian, Aaron Lemus, Ithan Cano, Courtney Frazier, Armen Halajyan, Donnie Ca, Mariano Loza-Coll
Summary: This article investigates the genetic regulatory mechanisms of Drosophila intestinal stem cells. The study found that most target genes co-regulated by Esg and STAT show a consistent gene expression pattern. However, manipulating these validated targets in vivo rarely replicated the effects of manipulating Esg and STAT, suggesting the presence of complex genetic interactions among the downstream targets of these two master regulator genes.
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2024)
Article
Developmental Biology
Bayley J. Waters, Zoe R. Birman, Matthew R. Wagner, Julia Lemanski, Barak Blum
Summary: Researchers found that conditional deletion of Robo2 in adult mice led to a significant loss of islet architecture without affecting beta cell identity or function, suggesting that Robo2 plays a role in actively maintaining adult islet architecture. Understanding the factors required for islet architecture maintenance is crucial for developing future diabetes therapies.
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2024)
Article
Developmental Biology
Rhiannon Clements, Tyler Smith, Luke Cowart, Jennifer Zhumi, Alan Sherrod, Aidan Cahill, Ginger L. Hunter
Summary: Cell protrusions play a crucial role in regulating cell activities during development. By studying the regulation mechanism in fruit fly sensory bristle patterning, it was found that Myosin XV is essential for the dynamics of signaling filopodia and promotes long-range Notch signaling.
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2024)
Article
Developmental Biology
Margaret Keating, Ryan Hagle, Daniel Osorio-Mendez, Anjelica Rodriguez-Parks, Sarah I. Almutawa, Junsu Kang
Summary: Knock-in reporter (KI) animals are essential for studying gene expression in biomedical research. This study developed a new strategy using minicircle technology and a minimal promoter to enhance knock-in events and establish stable KI transgenic reporter lines. The study also highlighted the importance of selecting the proper KI line due to potential inappropriate influence of genome editing on reporter gene expression.
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2024)
Article
Developmental Biology
Christian Altbuerger, Meta Rath, Daniel Armbruster, Wolfgang Driever
Summary: This study reveals that Neurog1 and Olig2 transcription factors have differential requirements for the development of dopaminergic neurons, and they integrate local patterning signals and Notch neurogenic selection signaling to specify the progenitor population and initiate neurogenesis and differentiation.
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2024)