Expansion of CRISPR targeting sites in Bombyx mori

The CRISPR/Cas9 system has been proven as a revolutionary genome engineering tool. In most cases, single guide RNA (sgRNA) targeting sites have been designed as GN19NGG or GGN18NGG, because of restriction of the initiation nucleotide for RNA Pol III promoters. Here, we demonstrate that the U6 promoter from a lepidopteran model insect, Bombyx mori, effectively expressed the sgRNA initiated with any nucleotide bases (adenine, thymine, guanine or cytosine), which further expands the CRISPR targeting space. A detailed expansion index in the genome was analysed when N20NGG was set as the CRISPR targeting site instead of GN19NGG, and revealed a significant increase of suitable targets, with the highest increase occurring on the Z sex chromosome. Transfection of different types of N20NGG sgRNAs targeting the enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) combined with Cas9, significantly reduced EGFP expression in the BmN cells. An endogenous gene, BmBLOS2, was also disrupted by using various types of N20NGG sgRNAs, and the cleavage efficiency of N20NGG sgRNAs with different initial nucleotides and GC contents was evaluated in vitro. Furthermore, transgenic silkworms expressing Cas9 and sgRNAs targeting the BmBLOS2 gene were generated with many types of mutagenesis. The typical transparent skin phenotype in knock-out silkworms was stable and inheritable, suggesting that N20NGG sgRNAs function sufficiently in vivo. Our findings represent a renewal of CRISPR/Cas9 target design and will greatly facilitate insect functional genetics research.     

An efficient CRISPR/Cas9 platform for targeted genome editing in rose (Rosa hybrida)

The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats(CRISPR)/CRISPR-related nuclease 9(Cas9) system enables precise, simple editing of genes in many animals and plants.However, this system has not been applied to rose(Rosa hybrida) due to the genomic complexity and lack of an efficient transformation technology for this plant. Here, we established a platform for screening single-guide RNAs(sgRNAs) with high editing efficiency for CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene editing in rose using suspensio...     

Multiplex Conditional Mutagenesis Using Transgenic Expression of Cas9 and sgRNAs

Determining the mechanism of gene function is greatly enhanced using conditional mutagenesis. However, generating engineered conditional alleles is inefficient and has only been widely used in mice. Importantly, multiplex conditional mutagenesis requires extensive breeding. Here we demonstrate a system for one-generation multiplex conditional mutagenesis in zebrafish (Danio rerio) using transgenic expression of both cas9 and multiple single guide RNAs (sgRNAs). We describe five distinct zebrafish U6 promoters for sgRNA expression and demonstrate efficient multiplex biallelic inactivation of tyrosinase and insulin receptor a and b, resulting in defects in pigmentation and glucose homeostasis. Furthermore, we demonstrate temporal and tissue-specific mutagenesis using transgenic expression of Cas9. Heat-shock-inducible expression of cas9 allows temporal control of tyr mutagenesis. Liver-specific expression of cas9 disrupts insulin receptor a and b, causing fasting hypoglycemia and postprandial hyperglycemia. We also show that delivery of sgRNAs targeting ascl1a into the eye leads to impaired damage-induced photoreceptor regeneration. Our findings suggest that CRISPR/Cas9-based conditional mutagenesis in zebrafish is not only feasible but rapid and straightforward.     

Generation of virus‐resistant potato plants by RNA genome targeting

CRISPR/Cas systems provide bacteria and archaea with molecular immunity against invading phages and foreign plasmids. The class 2 type VI CRISPR/Cas effector Cas13a is an RNA‐targeting CRISPR effector that provides protection against RNA phages. Here we report the repurposing of CRISPR/Cas13a to protect potato plants from a eukaryotic virus, Potato virus Y (PVY). Transgenic potato lines expressing Cas13a/sgRNA (small guide RNA) constructs showed suppressed PVY accumulation and disease symptoms. The levels of viral resistance correlated with the expression levels of the Cas13a/sgRNA construct in the plants. Our data further demonstrate that appropriately designed sgRNAs can specifically interfere with multiple PVY strains, while having no effect on unrelated viruses such as PVA or Potato virus S. Our findings provide a novel and highly efficient strategy for engineering crops with resistances to viral diseases.     

Optimized paired‐sgRNA/Cas9 cloning and expression cassette triggers high‐efficiency multiplex genome editing in kiwifruit

Kiwifruit is an important fruit crop; however, technologies for its functional genomic and molecular improvement are limited. The clustered regulatory interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR‐associated protein (Cas) system has been successfully applied to genetic improvement in many crops, but its editing capability is variable depending on the different combinations of the synthetic guide RNA (sgRNA) and Cas9 protein expression devices. Optimizing conditions for its use within a particular species is therefore needed to achieve highly efficient genome editing. In this study, we developed a new cloning strategy for generating paired‐sgRNA/Cas9 vectors containing four sgRNAs targeting the kiwifruit phytoene desaturase gene (AcPDS). Comparing to the previous method of paired‐sgRNA cloning, our strategy only requires the synthesis of two gRNA‐containing primers which largely reduces the cost. We further compared efficiencies of paired‐sgRNA/Cas9 vectors containing different sgRNA expression devices, including both the polycistronic tRNA‐sgRNA cassette (PTG) and the traditional CRISPR expression cassette. We found the mutagenesis frequency of the PTG/Cas9 system was 10‐fold higher than that of the CRISPR/Cas9 system, coinciding with the relative expressions of sgRNAs in two different expression cassettes. In particular, we identified large chromosomal fragment deletions induced by the paired‐sgRNAs of the PTG/Cas9 system. Finally, as expected, we found both systems can successfully induce the albino phenotype of kiwifruit plantlets regenerated from the G418‐resistance callus lines. We conclude that the PTG/Cas9 system is a more powerful system than the traditional CRISPR/Cas9 system for kiwifruit genome editing, which provides valuable clues for optimizing CRISPR/Cas9 editing system in other plants.     

Development of a bacterial-based negative selection system for rapid screening of active single guide RNAs

Objectives

To develop an in vitro method for rapid evaluation of the capability of a designed single guide RNAs (sgRNAs) to guide Cas9 nucleases to cleave target loci in mammalian cells.

Results

We constructed a Cas9/sgRNA plasmid with two SP6 promoters to simultaneously express Cas9 nuclease and the sgRNA and a negative selection plasmid harbouring a target site of the sgRNA. After co-transforming chemically competent E. coli DH5α cells with the two plasmids, the transformants were plated at a low density on two LB plates: one containing only ampicillin and the other containing both ampicillin and chloramphenicol. The colony-count on the ampicillin + chloramphenicol plate was compared with that on the ampicillin-only plate to calculate the survival percentage. The survival % was negatively correlated with the genome editing efficiency of the sgRNA in mammalian cells evaluated by a T7 endonuclease 1 (T7E1) assay (r ranged from ?0.8 to ?0.92). This system eliminates the need for cell culture, transfection, FACS sorting, PCR and T7E1 nuclease treatment, and significantly reduces the cost of screening for active sgRNAs, especially in the case of large-scale screening.

Conclusions

We have developed a bacterial-based negative selection system for rapid screening of active sgRNAs in mammalian cells at a very low cost.

     

应用CRISPR/Cas9系统构建MTHFD1基因敲除的HEK-293细胞系

目的:利用成簇的、规律间隔的短回文重复序列/Cas9核酸酶(CRISPR/Cas9)基因编辑技术构建亚甲基四氢叶酸脱氢酶1(methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase 1, MTHFD1))基因敲除人胚肾(HEK-293)稳定细胞系。方法:利用在线软件筛选出评分最高的3条针对MTHFD1基因的单向导RNA (sg RNA),然后合成sg RNA序列并将其插入到含有GFP标签的质粒中;重组质粒转染HEK-293细胞后通过流式细胞仪分选出已被转入sg RNA的单细胞,通过测序确认单克隆细胞系中MTHFD1的DNA序列突变状态;最后应用实时荧光定量多聚核苷酸链式反应(real-time quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction, RT-q PCR)和蛋白质印迹(Western blot)方法检测单克隆细胞中MTHFD1的m RNA和蛋白表达水平。结果:重组载体中含有正确的sg RNA序列;测序结果显示该细胞系中MTHFD1基因发生了单个碱基插入突变和6个碱基的缺失突变;RT-qPCR结果显示单克隆细胞系中MTHFD1在m RNA水平显著降低;Western blot检测成功构建MTHFD1蛋白缺失的HEK-293细胞。结论:本研究利用CRISPR/Cas9技术成功构建的MTHFD1敲除HEK-293细胞系。     

Cas9HF1 enhanced specificity in Ustilago maydis

The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-Cas9 system is widely used as a tool to precisely manipulate genomic sequence targeted by sgRNA (single guide RNA) and is adapted in different species for genome editing. One of the major concerns of CRISPR-Cas9 is the possibility of off-target effects, which can be remedied by the deployment of high fidelity Cas9 variants. Ustilago maydis is a maize fungal pathogen, which has served as a model organism for biotrophic pathogens for decades. The successful adaption of CRISPR-Cas9 in U. maydis greatly facilitated effector biology studies. Here, we constructed an U. maydis reporter strain that allows in vivo quantification of efficiency and target specificity of three high fidelity Cas9 variants, Cas9HF1, Cas9esp1.1 and Cas9hypa. This approach identified Cas9HF1 as most specific Cas9 variant in U. maydis. Furthermore, whole genome sequencing showed absence of off-target effects in U. maydis by CRISPR-Cas9 editing.     

CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Genome Editing in Soybean Hairy Roots

As a new technology for gene editing, the CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat)/Cas (CRISPR-associated) system has been rapidly and widely used for genome engineering in various organisms. In the present study, we successfully applied type II CRISPR/Cas9 system to generate and estimate genome editing in the desired target genes in soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill.). The single-guide RNA (sgRNA) and Cas9 cassettes were assembled on one vector to improve transformation efficiency, and we designed a sgRNA that targeted a transgene (bar) and six sgRNAs that targeted different sites of two endogenous soybean genes (GmFEI2 and GmSHR). The targeted DNA mutations were detected in soybean hairy roots. The results demonstrated that this customized CRISPR/Cas9 system shared the same efficiency for both endogenous and exogenous genes in soybean hairy roots. We also performed experiments to detect the potential of CRISPR/Cas9 system to simultaneously edit two endogenous soybean genes using only one customized sgRNA. Overall, generating and detecting the CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome modifications in target genes of soybean hairy roots could rapidly assess the efficiency of each target loci. The target sites with higher efficiencies can be used for regular soybean transformation. Furthermore, this method provides a powerful tool for root-specific functional genomics studies in soybean.     

CRISPcut: A novel tool for designing optimal sgRNAs for CRISPR/Cas9 based experiments in human cells

The ability to direct the CRISPR/Cas9 nuclease to a unique target site within a genome would have broad use in targeted genome engineering. However, CRISPR RNA is reported to bind to other genomic locations that differ from the intended target site by a few nucleotides, demonstrating significant off-target activity. We have developed the CRISPcut tool that screens the off-targets using various parameters and predicts the ideal genomic target for –guide RNAs in human cell lines. sgRNAs for four different types of Cas9 nucleases can be designed with an option for the user to work with different PAM sequences. Direct experimental measurement of genome-wide DNA accessibility is incorporated that effectively restricts the prediction of CRISPR targets to open chromatin. An option to predict target sites for paired CRISPR nickases is also provided. The tool has been validated using a dataset of experimentally used sgRNA and their identified off-targets.URL: http://web.iitd.ac.in/crispcut     

Development of CRISPR-CAS9 based RNA drugs against Eimeria tenella infection

Parasitic diseases are major trouble in many parts of the world. We consider that if a chemical can break a DNA barcode sequence, it might be used to develop a species-specific anti-parasitic agent. To examine this hypothesis, we constructed sgRNAs that target both the control (5.8S rDNA) and a DNA barcode (ITS) sequence in Eimeria tenella. In vitro experiment showed that Cas9 mRNA combined with sgRNAs could reduce the sporulation percentage of oocysts and the survival rate of sporulated oocysts and sporozoites. Quantitative real-time PCR showed that the DNAs of parasites exposed to Cas9 mRNA and sgRNAs were significantly affected, regardless of whether they were exposed to a combination of two sgRNAs or just a single sgRNA. The DNA sequencing also indicated that the experimental group exposed to two sgRNAs mixed with Cas9-induced deletion of large parts and a single sgRNA mixed with Cas9-induced mutation at sgRNA targeted fragments. In vivo trial, the effect of sgRNA and Cas9 RNA on the pathogenicity of E. tenella in chicken showed less lesion score and oocysts score (P < 0.05) in experimental groups than control groups. The results and concepts presented in this research can lead to discovering novel nucleic acid therapeutic drugs for Eimeriasis and other parasitic infections, which provide insights into the development of species-specific anti-parasitic agents.     

Validation Study to Determine the Accuracy of Widespread Promoterless EGFP Reporter at Assessing CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Homology Directed Repair

An accurate visual reporter system to assess homology-directed repair (HDR) is a key prerequisite for evaluating the efficiency of Cas9-mediated precise gene editing. Herein, we tested the utility of the widespread promoterless EGFP reporter to assess the efficiency of CRISPR/Cas9-mediated homologous recombination by fluorescence expression. We firstly established a promoterless EGFP reporter donor targeting the porcine GAPDH locus to study CRISPR/Cas9-mediated homologous recombination in porcine cells. Curiously, EGFP was expressed at unexpectedly high levels from the promoterless donor in porcine cells, with or without Cas9/sgRNA. Even higher EGFP expression was detected in human cells and those of other species when the porcine donor was transfected alone. Therefore, EGFP could be expressed at certain level in various cells transfected with the promoterless EGFP reporter alone, making it a low-resolution reporter for measuring Cas9-mediated HDR events. In summary, the widespread promoterless EGFP reporter could not be an ideal measurement for HDR screening and there is an urgent need to develop a more reliable, high-resolution HDR screening system to better explore strategies of increasing the efficiency of Cas9-mediated HDR in mammalian cells.