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  3. Small molecules promote CRISPR-Cpf1-mediated genome editing in human pluripotent stem cells

Small molecules promote CRISPR-Cpf1-mediated genome editing in human pluripotent stem cells

  • Nat Commun. 2018 Apr 3;9(1):1303. doi: 10.1038/s41467-018-03760-5.
Xiaojie Ma 1,  Xi Chen 1,  Yan Jin 1,  Wenyan Ge 1,  Weiyun Wang 1,  Linghao Kong 1,  Junfang Ji 1,  Xing Guo 1,  Jun Huang 1,  Xin-Hua Feng 1,  Junfen Fu 2,  Saiyong Zhu 3 4
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China.
  • 2 The Children's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310003, Hangzhou, China.
  • 3 Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China. [email protected].
  • 4 Stem Cell Institute, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China. [email protected].
PMID: 29610531 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-03760-5
Abstract

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have potential applications in biological studies and regenerative medicine. However, precise genome editing in hPSCs remains time-consuming and labor-intensive. Here we demonstrate that the recently identified CRISPR-Cpf1 can be used to efficiently generate knockout and knockin hPSC lines. The unique properties of CRISPR-Cpf1, including shorter crRNA length and low off-target activity, are very attractive for many applications. In particular, we develop an unbiased drug-selection-based platform feasible for high-throughput screening in hPSCs and this screening system enables us to identify small molecules VE-822 and AZD-7762 that can promote CRISPR-Cpf1-mediated precise genome editing. Significantly, the combination of CRISPR-Cpf1 and small molecules provides a simple and efficient strategy for precise genome engineering.

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