Efficient Gene Targeting in Golden Syrian Hamsters by the CRISPR/Cas9 System

The golden Syrian hamster is the model of choice or the only rodent model for studying many human diseases. However, the lack of gene targeting tools in hamsters severely limits their use in biomedical research. Here, we report the first successful application of the CRISPR/Cas9 system to efficiently conduct gene targeting in hamsters. We designed five synthetic single-guide RNAs (sgRNAs)—three for targeting the coding sequences for different functional domains of the hamster STAT2 protein, one for KCNQ1, and one for PPP1R12C—and demonstrated that the CRISPR/Cas9 system is highly efficient in introducing site-specific mutations in hamster somatic cells. We then developed unique pronuclear (PN) and cytoplasmic injection protocols in hamsters and produced STAT2 knockout (KO) hamsters by injecting the sgRNA/Cas9, either in the form of plasmid or mRNA, targeting exon 4 of hamster STAT2. Among the produced hamsters, 14.3% and 88.9% harbored germline-transmitted STAT2 mutations from plasmid and mRNA injection, respectively. Notably, 10.4% of the animals produced from mRNA injection were biallelically targeted. This is the first success in conducting site-specific gene targeting in hamsters and can serve as the foundation for developing other genetically engineered hamster models for human disease.     

Spermatogenic Cell-Specific Gene Mutation in Mice via CRISPR-Cas9

Tissue-specific knockout technology enables the analysis of the gene function in specific tissues in adult mammals.However,conventional strategy for producing tissue-specific knockout mice is a time- and labor-consuming process,restricting rapid study of the gene function in vivo.CRISPR-Cas9 system from bacteria is a simple and efficient gene-editing technique,which has enabled rapid generation of gene knockout lines in mouse by direct injection of CRISPR-Cas9 into zygotes.Here,we demonstrate CRISPR-Cas9-mediated spermatogenic cell-specific disruption of Scp3 gene in testes in one step.We first generated transgenic mice by pronuclear injection of a plasmid containing Hspa2 promoter driving Cas9 expression and showed Cas9 specific expression in spermatogenic cells.We then produced transgenic mice carrying Hspa2 promoter driven Cas9 and constitutive expressed sgRNA targeting Scp3 gene.Male founders were infertile due to developmental arrest of spermatogenic cells while female founders could produce progeny normally.Consistently,male progeny from female founders were infertile and females could transmit the transgenes to the next generation.Our study establishes a CRISPR-Cas9-based one-step strategy to analyze the gene function in adult tissues by a temporal-spatial pattern.     

High-efficiency and multilocus targeted integration in CHO cells using CRISPR-mediated donor nicking and DNA repair inhibitors

Efforts to leverage clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR-associated protein 9 (CRISPR/Cas9) for targeted genomic modifications in mammalian cells are limited by low efficiencies and heterogeneous outcomes. To aid method optimization, we developed an all-in-one reporter system, including a novel superfolder orange fluorescent protein (sfOrange), to simultaneously quantify gene disruption, site-specific integration (SSI), and random integration (RI). SSI strategies that utilize different donor plasmid formats and Cas9 nuclease variants were evaluated for targeting accuracy and efficiency in Chinese hamster ovary cells. Double-cut and double-nick donor formats significantly improved targeting accuracy by 2.3–8.3-fold and 19–22-fold, respectively, compared to standard circular donors. Notably, Cas9-mediated donor linearization was associated with increased RI events, whereas donor nicking minimized RI without sacrificing SSI efficiency and avoided low-fidelity outcomes. A screen of 10 molecules that modulate the major mammalian DNA repair pathways identified two inhibitors that further enhance targeting accuracy and efficiency to achieve SSI in 25% of transfected cells without selection. The optimized methods integrated transgene expression cassettes with 96% efficiency at a single locus and with 53%–55% efficiency at two loci simultaneously in selected clones. The CRISPR-based tools and methods developed here could inform the use of CRISPR/Cas9 in mammalian cell lines, accelerate mammalian cell line engineering, and support advanced recombinant protein production applications.     

CRISPR/Cas9‐induced disruption of gene expression in mouse embryonic brain and single neural stem cells in vivo

We have applied the CRISPR/Cas9 system in vivo to disrupt gene expression in neural stem cells in the developing mammalian brain. Two days after in utero electroporation of a single plasmid encoding Cas9 and an appropriate guide RNA (gRNA) into the embryonic neocortex of Tis21::GFP knock‐in mice, expression of GFP, which occurs specifically in neural stem cells committed to neurogenesis, was found to be nearly completely (≈90%) abolished in the progeny of the targeted cells. Importantly, upon in utero electroporation directly of recombinant Cas9/gRNA complex, near‐maximal efficiency of disruption of GFP expression was achieved already after 24 h. Furthermore, by using microinjection of the Cas9 protein/gRNA complex into neural stem cells in organotypic slice culture, we obtained disruption of GFP expression within a single cell cycle. Finally, we used either Cas9 plasmid in utero electroporation or Cas9 protein complex microinjection to disrupt the expression of Eomes/Tbr2, a gene fundamental for neocortical neurogenesis. This resulted in a reduction in basal progenitors and an increase in neuronal differentiation. Thus, the present in vivo application of the CRISPR/Cas9 system in neural stem cells provides a rapid, efficient and enduring disruption of expression of specific genes to dissect their role in mammalian brain development.     

Functional characterization of SlitPBP3 in Spodoptera litura by CRISPR/Cas9 mediated genome editing

Functional gene analysis by using genome editing techniques is limited only in few model insects. Here, we reported an efficient and heritable gene mutagenesis analysis in an important lepidopteran pest, Spodoptera litura, using the CRISPR/Cas9 system. By using this system, we successfully obtained the homozygous S. litura strain by targeting the pheromone binding protein 3 gene (SlitPBP3), which allowed us to elucidate the role of this gene in the olfaction of the female sex pheromones. By co-injection of Cas9 mRNA and sgRNA into S. litura eggs, highly efficient chimera mutation in SlitPBP3 loci was detected both in injected eggs (39.1%) and in the resulting individual moths (87.5%). We used the mutant moths as parents to obtain the G1 offspring and the homozygous mutant strain in G2. The function of SlitPBP3 was explored by Electroantennogram (EAG) recordings with a homozygous mutant strain. The result showed that the EAG responses were significantly decreased in mutant males than in control males when treated with the major sex pheromone component (Z9,E11-14:Ac) and a minor component (Z9-14:Ac) at higher dosages. The results demonstrate that s SlitPBP3 gene plays a minor role in the perception of the female sex pheromones. Furthermore, our study provides a useful methodology with the CRISPR/Cas9 system for gene in vivo functional study, particular for lepidopteran species in which the RNAi approach is not efficient.     

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.     

Generation of an Oocyte-Specific Cas9 Transgenic Mouse for Genome Editing

The CRISPR/Cas9 system has been developed as an easy-handle and multiplexable approach for engineering eukaryotic genomes by zygote microinjection of Cas9 and sgRNA, while preparing Cas9 for microinjection is laborious and introducing inconsistency into the experiment. Here, we describe a modified strategy for gene targeting through using oocyte-specific Cas9 transgenic mouse. With this mouse line, we successfully achieve precise gene targeting by injection of sgRNAs only into one-cell-stage embryos. Through comprehensive analysis, we also show allele complexity and off-target mutagenesis induced by this strategy is obviously lower than Cas9 mRNA/sgRNA injection. Thus, injection of sgRNAs into oocyte-specific Cas9 transgenic mouse embryo provides a convenient, efficient and reliable approach for mouse genome editing.     

CRISPR/Cas9 system in Plasmodium falciparum using the centromere plasmid

The CRISPR/Cas9 nuclease system is a powerful method to genetically modify the human malarial parasite, Plasmodium falciparum. Currently, this method is carried out by co-transfection with two plasmids, one containing the Cas9 nuclease gene, and another encoding the sgRNA and the donor template DNA. However, the efficiency of modification is currently low owing to the low frequency of these plasmids in the parasites. To improve the CRISPR/Cas9 nuclease system for P. falciparum, we developed a novel method using the transgenic parasite, PfCAS9, which stably expresses the Cas9 nuclease using the centromere plasmid. To examine the efficiency of genetic modification using the PfCAS9 parasite, we performed site-directed mutagenesis of kelch13 gene, which is considered to be involved in artemisinin resistance. Our results demonstrated that the targeted mutation could be introduced with almost 100% efficiency when the transfected PfCAS9 parasites were treated with two drugs to maintain both the centromere plasmid containing the Cas9 nuclease and the plasmid having the sgRNA. Therefore, the PfCAS9 parasite is a useful parasite line for the genetic modification of P. falciparum.     

A possible aid in targeted insertion of large DNA elements by CRISPR/Cas in mouse zygotes

The CRISPR/Cas system has rapidly emerged recently as a new tool for genome engineering, and is expected to allow for controlled manipulation of specific genomic elements in a variety of species. A number of recent studies have reported the use of CRISPR/Cas for gene disruption (knockout) or targeted insertion of foreign DNA elements (knock‐in). Despite the ease of simple gene knockout and small insertions or nucleotide substitutions in mouse zygotes by the CRISPR/Cas system, targeted insertion of large DNA elements remains an apparent challenge. Here the generation of knock‐in mice with successful targeted insertion of large donor DNA elements ranged from 3.0 to 7.1 kb at the ROSA26 locus using the CRISPR/Cas system was achieved. Multiple independent knock‐in founder mice were obtained by injection of hCas9 mRNA/sgRNA/donor vector mixtures into the cytoplasm of C57BL/6N zygotes when the injected zygotes were treated with an inhibitor of actin polymerization, cytochalasin. Successful germ line transmission of three of these knock‐in alleles was also confirmed. The results suggested that treatment of zygotes with actin polymerization inhibitors following microinjection could be a viable method to facilitate targeted insertion of large DNA elements by the CRISPR/Cas system, enabling targeted knock‐in readily attainable in zygotes. genesis 54:65–77, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Demonstration of CRISPR/Cas9/sgRNA-mediated targeted gene modification in Arabidopsis,tobacco, sorghum and rice

The type II CRISPR/Cas system from Streptococcus pyogenes and its simplified derivative, the Cas9/single guide RNA (sgRNA) system, have emerged as potent new tools for targeted gene knockout in bacteria, yeast, fruit fly, zebrafish and human cells. Here, we describe adaptations of these systems leading to successful expression of the Cas9/sgRNA system in two dicot plant species, Arabidopsis and tobacco, and two monocot crop species, rice and sorghum. Agrobacterium tumefaciens was used for delivery of genes encoding Cas9, sgRNA and a non-fuctional, mutant green fluorescence protein (GFP) to Arabidopsis and tobacco. The mutant GFP gene contained target sites in its 5′ coding regions that were successfully cleaved by a CAS9/sgRNA complex that, along with error-prone DNA repair, resulted in creation of functional GFP genes. DNA sequencing confirmed Cas9/sgRNA-mediated mutagenesis at the target site. Rice protoplast cells transformed with Cas9/sgRNA constructs targeting the promoter region of the bacterial blight susceptibility genes, OsSWEET14 and OsSWEET11, were confirmed by DNA sequencing to contain mutated DNA sequences at the target sites. Successful demonstration of the Cas9/sgRNA system in model plant and crop species bodes well for its near-term use as a facile and powerful means of plant genetic engineering for scientific and agricultural applications.     

CRISPR/Cas9 nickase-mediated efficient and seamless knock-in of lethal genes in the medaka fish Oryzias latipes

The CRISPR/Cas system offers new opportunities for targeted gene modifications in a wide range of organisms. In medaka (Oryzias latipes), a vertebrate model organism, a wild-type Cas9-based approach is commonly used to establish desired strains, however, its use in lethal genes is still challenging due to excess gene disruptions triggered by DNA double strand breaks (DSBs). To overcome this problem, we aimed to develop a new knock-in system using Cas9 nickase (Cas9n) that can reduce DNA DSBs. We revealed that Cas9n allowed reduction of the DSB-induced unwanted mutagenesis via non-homologous end-joining at both on- and off- target sites. Further, with a new donor plasmid (p2BaitD) that provides a linear template through Cas9n-mediated nicks, we successfully integrated reporter cassettes via homology-directed repair (HDR) into all three loci tested, including a lethal gene. In the experiment targeting the lethal gene, the combination of p2BaitD and Cas9n achieved higher survival rates than the Cas9-based approach, which enabled the desired knock-in founders. Additionally, through a technical blend of our knock-in system with a recently developed One-step mating protocol, we successfully established a homozygous knock-in strain in one generation period. This study presents evidence of an effective method to generate an HDR-mediated gene knock-in in medaka and other organisms, which is useful for establishing screening platforms for genes or drugs toxicity or other applications.     

Gene network analysis of oxaliplatin-resistant colorectal cancer to target a crucial gene using chitosan/hyaluronic acid/protamine polyplexes containing CRISPR-Cas9

Colorectal cancer (CRC) treatment is dramatically hampered by resistance to oxaliplatin alone or in the combination of irinotecan or 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin. This study aims to design and assess Chitosan/Hyaluronic Acid/Protamine sulfate (CS/HA/PS) polyplexes loaded with CRISPR plasmid for targeting a key gene in cancer drug resistance. Here, recent findings were considered to validate oxaliplatin-resistant CRC-related genes and systems biology approaches employed to detect the critical gene. The polyplexes were characterized according to particle size, zeta potential, and stability. Moreover, carrier toxicity and transfection efficiency were assessed on oxaliplatin-resistant HT-29 cells. The post-transfection evaluations were performed to confirm gene disruption-mediated CRISPR. Eventually, excision cross complementation group 1(ERCC1), a crucial member of the nucleotide excision repair pathway, was selected to be targeted using CRISPR/Cas9 to reverse oxaliplatin resistance in HT-29 cells. CS/HA/PS polyplexes containing CRISPR/Cas9 plasmid exhibited negligible toxicity and comparable transfection efficiency with Lipofectamine™. Following the efficient gene delivery, sequences in CRISPR/Cas9 target sites were altered, ERCC1 was downregulated, and drug sensitivity was successfully restored in oxaliplatin-resistant cells. Findings indicate that CS/HA/PS/CRISPR polyplexes provide a potential strategy for delivering cargo and targeting oxaliplatin resistance-related gene to manipulate drug resistance as a rising concern in cancer therapeutic approaches.     

How a Replication Origin and Matrix Attachment Region Accelerate Gene Amplification under Replication Stress in Mammalian Cells

The gene amplification plays a critical role in the malignant transformation of mammalian cells. The most widespread method for amplifying a target gene in cell culture is the use of methotrexate (Mtx) treatment to amplify dihydrofolate reductase (Dhfr). Whereas, we found that a plasmid bearing both a mammalian origin of replication (initiation region; IR) and a matrix attachment region (MAR) was spontaneously amplified in mammalian cells. In this study, we attempted to uncover the underlying mechanism by which the IR/MAR sequence might accelerate Mtx induced Dhfr amplification. The plasmid containing the IR/MAR was extrachromosomally amplified, and then integrated at multiple chromosomal locations within individual cells, increasing the likelihood that the plasmid might be inserted into a chromosomal environment that permits high expression and further amplification. Efficient amplification of this plasmid alleviated the genotoxicity of Mtx. Clone-based cytogenetic and sequence analysis revealed that the plasmid was amplified in a chromosomal context by breakage-fusion-bridge cycles operating either at the plasmid repeat or at the flanking fragile site activated by Mtx. This mechanism explains how a circular molecule bearing IR/MAR sequences of chromosomal origin might be amplified under replication stress, and also provides insight into gene amplification in human cancer.     

Integration of diverse DNA substrates by a casposase can be targeted to R-loops in vitro by its fusion to Cas9

CRISPR systems build adaptive immunity against mobile genetic elements by DNA capture and integration catalysed by Cas1–Cas2 protein complexes. Recent studies suggested that CRISPR repeats and adaptation module originated from a novel type of DNA transposons called casposons. Casposons encode a Cas1 homologue called casposase that alone integrates into target molecules single and double-stranded DNA containing terminal inverted repeats (TIRs) from casposons. A recent study showed Methanosarcina mazei casposase is able to integrate random DNA oligonucleotides, followed up in this work using Acidoprofundum boonei casposase, from which we also observe promiscuous substrate integration. Here we first show that the substrate flexibility of Acidoprofundum boonei casposase extends to random integration of DNA without TIRs, including integration of a functional gene. We then used this to investigate targeting of the casposase-catalysed DNA integration reactions to specific DNA sites that would allow insertion of defined DNA payloads. Casposase–Cas9 fusions were engineered that were catalytically proficient in vitro and generated RNA-guided DNA integration products from short synthetic DNA or a gene, with or without TIRs. However, DNA integration could still occur unguided due to the competing background activity of the casposase moiety. Expression of Casposase-dCas9 in Escherichia coli cells effectively targeted chromosomal and plasmid lacZ revealed by reduced β-galactosidase activity but DNA integration was not detected. The promiscuous substrate integration properties of casposases make them potential DNA insertion tools. The Casposase–dCas9 fusion protein may serves as a prototype for development in genetic editing for DNA insertion that is independent of homology-directed DNA repair.