Randomizing the human genome by engineering recombination between repeat elements.

Science (New York, N.Y.)
Authors
Abstract

We lack tools to edit DNA sequences at scales necessary to study 99% of the human genome that is noncoding. To address this gap, we applied CRISPR prime editing to insert recombination handles into repetitive sequences, up to 1697 per cell line, which enables generating large-scale deletions, inversions, translocations, and circular DNA. Recombinase induction produced more than 100 stochastic megabase-sized rearrangements in each cell. We tracked these rearrangements over time to measure selection pressures, finding a preference for shorter variants that avoided essential genes. We characterized 29 clones with multiple rearrangements, finding an impact of deletions on expression of genes in the variant but not on nearby genes. This genome-scrambling strategy enables large deletions, sequence relocations, and the insertion of regulatory elements to explore genome dispensability and organization.

Year of Publication
2025
Journal
Science (New York, N.Y.)
Volume
387
Issue
6733
Pages
eado3979
Date Published
01/2025
ISSN
1095-9203
DOI
10.1126/science.ado3979
PubMed ID
39883775
Links