Engineering designer beta cells with a CRISPR-Cas9 conjugation platform.
| Authors | |
| Abstract | Genetically fusing protein domains to Cas9 has yielded several transformative technologies; however, the genetic modifications are limited to natural polypeptide chains at the Cas9 termini, which excludes a diverse array of molecules useful for gene editing. Here, we report chemical modifications that allow site-specific and multiple-site conjugation of a wide assortment of molecules on both the termini and internal sites of Cas9, creating a platform for endowing Cas9 with diverse functions. Using this platform, Cas9 can be modified to more precisely incorporate exogenously supplied single-stranded oligonucleotide donor (ssODN) at the DNA break site. We demonstrate that the multiple-site conjugation of ssODN to Cas9 significantly increases the efficiency of precision genome editing, and such a platform is compatible with ssODNs of diverse lengths. By leveraging the conjugation platform, we successfully engineer INS-1E, a β-cell line, to repurpose the insulin secretion machinery, which enables the glucose-dependent secretion of protective immunomodulatory factor interleukin-10. |
| Year of Publication | 2020
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| Journal | Nature communications
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| Volume | 11
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| Issue | 1
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| Pages | 4043
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| Date Published | 08/2020
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| ISSN | 2041-1723
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| DOI | 10.1038/s41467-020-17725-0
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| PubMed ID | 32792475
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