Tissue-specific activation of gene expression by the Synergistic Activation Mediator (SAM) CRISPRa system in mice

Nat Commun. 2021 May 13;12(1):2770. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-22932-4.

Abstract

CRISPR-based transcriptional activation is a powerful tool for functional gene interrogation; however, delivery difficulties have limited its applications in vivo. Here, we created a mouse model expressing all components of the CRISPR-Cas9 guide RNA-directed Synergistic Activation Mediator (SAM) from a single transcript that is capable of activating target genes in a tissue-specific manner. We optimized Lipid Nanoparticles and Adeno-Associated Virus guide RNA delivery approaches to achieve expression modulation of one or more genes in vivo. We utilized the SAM mouse model to generate a hypercholesteremia disease state that we could bidirectionally modulate with various guide RNAs. Additionally, we applied SAM to optimize gene expression in a humanized Transthyretin mouse model to recapitulate human expression levels. These results demonstrate that the SAM gene activation platform can facilitate in vivo research and drug discovery.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • CRISPR-Cas Systems / genetics*
  • Cell Line
  • Gene Expression / genetics
  • Gene Expression Regulation / genetics
  • Genetic Engineering / methods
  • HEK293 Cells
  • Humans
  • Hypercholesterolemia / genetics*
  • Hypercholesterolemia / pathology
  • Liposomes / pharmacology*
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice, Transgenic
  • Nanoparticles
  • Prealbumin / genetics
  • Prealbumin / metabolism*
  • RNA, Guide, CRISPR-Cas Systems / genetics
  • RNA, Guide, CRISPR-Cas Systems / metabolism
  • Transcriptional Activation / genetics*

Substances

  • Lipid Nanoparticles
  • Liposomes
  • Prealbumin
  • RNA, Guide, CRISPR-Cas Systems