CMN Weekly (24 June 2022) - Your Weekly CRISPR Medicine News
Some of the best links we picked up around the internet
By: Gorm Palmgren - Jun. 24, 2022
Top picks
CRISPR-Cas12a knockout of microRNA-21 (miR-21) reduces glioma growth in mice in vitro and in vivo. Researchers in the Netherlands disrupted the coding sequences of miR-21, which is a significant driver of glioma growth. The intervention resulted in the upregulation of many downstream miR-21 target mRNAs involved in proliferation. Phenotypically, CRISPR-edited glioma cells showed reduced migration, invasion and proliferation.
Precision BioSciences also announced a $50 million offering of common stock that will all be sold by the company. Precision BioSciences intends to use the net proceeds of the offering to help fund ongoing and planned research and development and for working capital and general corporate purposes.
Other researchers in China describe a new photo-controlled CRISPR-based method for the clinical detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA. The procedure is based on optochemical control of CRISPR RNA (crRNA) activation, recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) and CRISPR-Cas12a detection, and the system can be integrated into a completely closed test tube.
Yet another Chinese method for SARS-CoV-2 detection relies on CRISPR-Cas13a cascade technology. Cas13a-crRNA was utilised to recognise the viral target RNA directly, and the recognition events sequentially initiate the transcription amplification to produce light-up RNA aptamers for output fluorescence signal.
A review by researchers in Portugal gives a general introduction to CRISPR. It explains the functioning and the advantages that this technique may have compared to previously developed methods, such as RNA interference (RNAi), Zinc Finger Nucleases (ZFNs) and transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs).