Hitchhiking of Cas9 with nucleus-localized proteins impairs its controllability and leads to efficient genome editing of NLS-free Cas9.
Mol Ther
; 32(4): 920-934, 2024 Apr 03.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38341611
ABSTRACT
CRISPR-Cas9 is the most commonly used genome-editing tool in eukaryotic cells. To modulate Cas9 entry into the nucleus to enable control of genome editing, we constructed a light-controlled CRISPR-Cas9 system to control exposure of the Cas9 protein nuclear localization signal (NLS). Although blue-light irradiation was found to effectively control the entry of Cas9 protein into the nucleus with confocal microscopy observation, effective gene editing occurred in controls with next-generation sequencing analysis. To further clarify this phenomenon, a CRISPR-Cas9 editing system without the NLS and a CRISPR-Cas9 editing system containing a nuclear export signal were also constructed. Interestingly, both Cas9 proteins could achieve effective editing of target sites with significantly reduced off-target effects. Thus, we speculated that other factors might mediate Cas9 entry into the nucleus. However, NLS-free Cas9 was found to produce effective target gene editing even following inhibition of cell mitosis to prevent nuclear import caused by nuclear membrane disassembly. Furthermore, multiple nucleus-localized proteins were found to interact with Cas9, which could mediate the "hitchhiking" of NLS-free Cas9 into the nucleus. These findings will inform future attempts to construct controllable gene-editing systems and provide new insights into the evolution of the nucleus and compatible protein functions.
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Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Sistemas CRISPR-Cas
/
Edição de Genes
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article