CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing tool for Staphylococcus aureus Cas9 complex (SaCas9) @ MIT’s Broad Institute

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CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing tool for Staphylococcus aureus Cas9 complex (SaCas9) @ MIT’s Broad Institute

August 30, 2015 by 2012pharmaceutical

CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing tool for Staphylococcus aureus Cas9 complex (SaCas9) @ MIT’s Broad Institute

Reporter: Aviva Lev-Ari, PhD, RN

Zhang lab unlocks crystal structure of new CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing tool

Paul Goldsmith, August 27th, 2015

2.2.23

2.2.23 CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing tool for Staphylococcus aureus Cas9 complex (SaCas9) @ MIT’s Broad Institute, Volume 2 (Volume Two: Latest in Genomics Methodologies for Therapeutics: Gene Editing, NGS and BioInformatics, Simulations and the Genome Ontology), Part 2: CRISPR for Gene Editing and DNA Repair

SaCas9 (pictured above) is expected to pave the way for smaller
genome-editing tools. Image courtesy of Le Cong, Broad Institute

In a paper published today in Cell researchers from the Broad Institute and University of Tokyo revealed the crystal structure of theStaphylococcus aureus Cas9 complex (SaCas9)—a highly efficient enzyme that overcomes one of the primary challenges to in vivo mammalian genome editing.

First identified as a potential genome-editing tool by Broad Institute core member Feng Zhangand his colleagues (and published by Zhang lab in April 2015), SaCas9 is expected to expand scientists’ ability to edit genomes in vivo. This new structural study will help researchers refine and further engineer this promising tool to accelerate genomic research and bring the technology closer to use in the treatment of human genetic disease.

“SaCas9 is the latest addition to our Cas9 toolbox, and the crystal shows us its blueprint,” said co-senior author Feng Zhang, who in addition to his Broad role, is also an investigator at the McGovern Institute for Brain Research, and an assistant professor at MIT. “This study shows further paths forward for optimizing this technology for the benefit of global health.”

http://www.broadinstitute.org/blog/zhang-lab-unlocks-crystal-structure-new-crisprcas9-genome-editing-tool