IGIB Finds A Protein With Better Precision In Gene-Editing

The new protein was able to correct sickle cell anaemia mutation in patient-derived stem cells

- R. Prasad

Researchers at the Delhibased Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (CSIR-IGIB) have discovered a protein variant from a different species of bacteria that can edit the DNA with very high precision. In the tool now commonly used for editing disease-causing mutations in DNA (CRISPR-Cas9), the Cas9 protein behaves like a molecular scissors that cuts the DNA at a specific location and inserts a foreign piece of DNA to correct the mutation that causes the disease.

In addition to binding to the intended target on the DNA, the commonly used Cas9 protein from Strepotococcus pyogenes bacteria (SpCas9) and its engineered derivative tend to potentially bind to DNA at multiple unintended sites thereby leading to unnecessary alterations in the DNA.

The researchers found their new Cas9 protein, which binds and cuts the DNA, was able to correct sickle cell anaemia mutation in patient-derived stem cells. The protein (FnCas9) used by the researchers to edit the DNA is derived from a bacterium — Francisella novicida.