Targeted point mutagenesis through homologous recombination has been widely used in genetic studies and holds considerable promise for repairing disease- causing mutations in patients. However, problems such as mosaic...Targeted point mutagenesis through homologous recombination has been widely used in genetic studies and holds considerable promise for repairing disease- causing mutations in patients. However, problems such as mosaicism and low mutagenesis efficiency continue to pose challenges to clinical applicaUon of such approaches. Recently, a base editor （BE） system built on cytidine （C） deaminase and CRISPR/Cas9 technology was developed as an alternative method for targeted point mutagenesis in plant, yeast, and human cells. Base editors convert C in the deamination window to thymidine （T） efficiently, however, it remains unclear whether targeted base editing in mouse embryos is feasible. In this report, we generated a modified high- fidelity version of base editor 2 （HF2-BE2）, and investigated its base editing efficacy in mouse embryos. We found that HF2-BE2 could convert C to T efficiently, with up to 100% biallelic mutation efficiency in mouse embryos. Unlike BE3, HF2-BE2 could convert C to T on both the target and non-target strand, expanding the editing scope of base editors. Surprisingly, we found HF2-BE2 could also deaminate C that was proximal to the gRNA-binding region. Taken together, our work demonstrates the feasibility of generating point mutations in mouse by base editing, and underscores the need to carefully optimize base editing systems in order to eliminate proximal-site deamination.展开更多
The a3＊ nAChRs, which are considered to be promising drug targets for problems such as pain, addiction, cardiovascular function, cognitive disorders etc., are found throughout the central and peripheral nervous syste...The a3＊ nAChRs, which are considered to be promising drug targets for problems such as pain, addiction, cardiovascular function, cognitive disorders etc., are found throughout the central and peripheral nervous system. The α-conotoxin （α-CTx） LvlA has been identified as the most selective inhibitor of α3β2 nAChRs known to date, and it can distinguish the α3132 nAChR subtype from the α6/α3β2β3 and α3β4 nAChR subtypes. However, the mechanism of its selectivity towards α3132, α6/α3β2β3, and α3β4 nAChRs remains elusive. Here we report the co-crystal structure of LvlA in complex with Aplysia californica acetylcholine binding protein （Ac-AChBP） at a resolution of 3.4 A. Based on the structure of this complex, together with homology modeling based on other nAChR subtypes and binding affinity assays, we conclude that Asp-11 of LvlA plays an important role in the selectivity of LvlA towards α3132 and α31o6132133 nAChRs by making a salt bridge with Lys-155 of the rat α3 subunit. Asn-9 lies within a hydrophobic pocket that is formed by Met-36, Thr-59, and Phe-119 of the rat β2 subunit in the α3β2 nAChR model, revealing the reason for its more potent selectivity towards the a3β2 nAChR subtype. These results provide molecular insights that can be used to design ligands that selectively target α3β2 nAChRs, with significant implications for the design of new therapeutic a-CTxs.展开更多
基金This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China （Grant Nos. 91640119, 31601196, 81330055, 31371508, and 31671540）, the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province （2016A030310206 and 2014A030312011）, the Science and Technology Planning Project of Guangdong Province （2015B020228002 and 2015A020212005）, the Guangzhou Science and Technology Project （201605030012 and 201707010085）, and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities （161gzd13 and 161gpy31）. We would also like to acknowledge the support of CA211653, CPRIT RP160462, the Welch Foundation Q-1673, and the C-BASS Shared Resource at the Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center （DLDCC） of Baylor College of Medicine （P30CA125123）.
文摘Targeted point mutagenesis through homologous recombination has been widely used in genetic studies and holds considerable promise for repairing disease- causing mutations in patients. However, problems such as mosaicism and low mutagenesis efficiency continue to pose challenges to clinical applicaUon of such approaches. Recently, a base editor （BE） system built on cytidine （C） deaminase and CRISPR/Cas9 technology was developed as an alternative method for targeted point mutagenesis in plant, yeast, and human cells. Base editors convert C in the deamination window to thymidine （T） efficiently, however, it remains unclear whether targeted base editing in mouse embryos is feasible. In this report, we generated a modified high- fidelity version of base editor 2 （HF2-BE2）, and investigated its base editing efficacy in mouse embryos. We found that HF2-BE2 could convert C to T efficiently, with up to 100% biallelic mutation efficiency in mouse embryos. Unlike BE3, HF2-BE2 could convert C to T on both the target and non-target strand, expanding the editing scope of base editors. Surprisingly, we found HF2-BE2 could also deaminate C that was proximal to the gRNA-binding region. Taken together, our work demonstrates the feasibility of generating point mutations in mouse by base editing, and underscores the need to carefully optimize base editing systems in order to eliminate proximal-site deamination.
基金ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We thank scientists at SSRF BL17U beam line for assistance in diffraction data collection. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China （Grant Nos. 31470751 and U1405228 to Xinquan Wang） and the Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Structural Biology. This work was also supported, in part, by the Major Intemational Joint Research Project of National Natural Science Foundation of China （81420108028）, and Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Teams in Universities Grant （IRT_I 5R15）.
文摘The a3＊ nAChRs, which are considered to be promising drug targets for problems such as pain, addiction, cardiovascular function, cognitive disorders etc., are found throughout the central and peripheral nervous system. The α-conotoxin （α-CTx） LvlA has been identified as the most selective inhibitor of α3β2 nAChRs known to date, and it can distinguish the α3132 nAChR subtype from the α6/α3β2β3 and α3β4 nAChR subtypes. However, the mechanism of its selectivity towards α3132, α6/α3β2β3, and α3β4 nAChRs remains elusive. Here we report the co-crystal structure of LvlA in complex with Aplysia californica acetylcholine binding protein （Ac-AChBP） at a resolution of 3.4 A. Based on the structure of this complex, together with homology modeling based on other nAChR subtypes and binding affinity assays, we conclude that Asp-11 of LvlA plays an important role in the selectivity of LvlA towards α3132 and α31o6132133 nAChRs by making a salt bridge with Lys-155 of the rat α3 subunit. Asn-9 lies within a hydrophobic pocket that is formed by Met-36, Thr-59, and Phe-119 of the rat β2 subunit in the α3β2 nAChR model, revealing the reason for its more potent selectivity towards the a3β2 nAChR subtype. These results provide molecular insights that can be used to design ligands that selectively target α3β2 nAChRs, with significant implications for the design of new therapeutic a-CTxs.
