Researchers have developed a new kind of CRISPR screen technology to target RNA. The team leveraged their technology for a critical analysis: The COVID-19 public health emergency is due to a coronavirus, which contains an RNA — not DNA — genome.
Now, in an important new resource for the scientific community published today in Nature Biotechnology, researchers in the lab of Neville Sanjana, PhD, at the New York Genome Center and New York University have developed a new kind of CRISPR screen technology to target RNA.
The researchers capitalized on a recently characterized CRISPR enzyme called Cas13 that targets RNA instead of DNA. Using Cas13, they engineered an optimized platform for massively-parallel genetic screens at the RNA level in human cells. This screening technology can be used to understand many aspects of RNA regulation and to identify the function of non-coding RNAs, which are RNA molecules that are produced but do not code for proteins.
By targeting thousands of different sites in human RNA transcripts, the researchers developed a machine learning-based predictive model to expedite identification of the most effective Cas13 guide RNAs. The new technology is available to researchers through an interactive website and open-source toolbox to predict guide RNA efficiencies for custom RNA targets and provides pre-designed guide RNAs for all human protein-coding genes.
«We anticipate that RNA-targeting Cas13 enzymes will have a large impact on molecular biology and medical applications, yet little is known about guide RNA design for high targeting efficacy,» said Dr. Sanjana, senior author of the study. «We set about to change that through an in-depth and systematic study to develop key principles and predictive modeling for most effective guide design.»
Dr. Sanjana is a Core Faculty Member at the New York Genome Center, an Assistant Professor of Biology at New York University, and an Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and Physiology at NYU School of Medicine.
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Materials provided by New York Genome Center. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.