» Articles » PMID: 37108214

Recent Advances in Genome-Editing Technology with CRISPR/Cas9 Variants and Stimuli-Responsive Targeting Approaches Within Tumor Cells: A Future Perspective of Cancer Management

Abstract

The innovative advances in transforming clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats-associated protein 9 (CRISPR/Cas9) into different variants have taken the art of genome-editing specificity to new heights. Allosteric modulation of Cas9-targeting specificity by sgRNA sequence alterations and protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) modifications have been a good lesson to learn about specificity and activity scores in different Cas9 variants. Some of the high-fidelity Cas9 variants have been ranked as Sniper-Cas9, eSpCas9 (1.1), SpCas9-HF1, HypaCas9, xCas9, and evoCas9. However, the selection of an ideal Cas9 variant for a given target sequence remains a challenging task. A safe and efficient delivery system for the CRISPR/Cas9 complex at tumor target sites faces considerable challenges, and nanotechnology-based stimuli-responsive delivery approaches have significantly contributed to cancer management. Recent innovations in nanoformulation design, such as pH, glutathione (GSH), photo, thermal, and magnetic responsive systems, have modernized the art of CRISPR/Cas9 delivery approaches. These nanoformulations possess enhanced cellular internalization, endosomal membrane disruption/bypass, and controlled release. In this review, we aim to elaborate on different CRISPR/Cas9 variants and advances in stimuli-responsive nanoformulations for the specific delivery of this endonuclease system. Furthermore, the critical constraints of this endonuclease system on clinical translations towards the management of cancer and prospects are described.

Citing Articles

CRISPR-Cas9 Gene Therapy: Non-Viral Delivery and Stimuli-Responsive Nanoformulations.

Lee H, Rho W, Kim Y, Chang H, Jun B Molecules. 2025; 30(3).

PMID: 39942646 PMC: 11820414. DOI: 10.3390/molecules30030542.


Enhancing precision in cancer treatment: the role of gene therapy and immune modulation in oncology.

Youssef E, Fletcher B, Palmer D Front Med (Lausanne). 2025; 11:1527600.

PMID: 39871848 PMC: 11769984. DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1527600.


Advances in CRISPR-Cas technology and its applications: revolutionising precision medicine.

Azeez S, Hamad R, Hamad B, Shekha M, Bergsten P Front Genome Ed. 2024; 6:1509924.

PMID: 39726634 PMC: 11669675. DOI: 10.3389/fgeed.2024.1509924.


Unlocking Fungal Potential: The CRISPR-Cas System as a Strategy for Secondary Metabolite Discovery.

Leal K, Rojas E, Madariaga D, Contreras M, Nunez-Montero K, Barrientos L J Fungi (Basel). 2024; 10(11).

PMID: 39590667 PMC: 11595728. DOI: 10.3390/jof10110748.


Nanomedicine for cancer patient-centered care.

Sorrentino C, Ciummo S, Fieni C, Di Carlo E MedComm (2020). 2024; 5(11):e767.

PMID: 39434967 PMC: 11491554. DOI: 10.1002/mco2.767.


References
1.
Tang Q, Liu J, Jiang Y, Zhang M, Mao L, Wang M . Cell-Selective Messenger RNA Delivery and CRISPR/Cas9 Genome Editing by Modulating the Interface of Phenylboronic Acid-Derived Lipid Nanoparticles and Cellular Surface Sialic Acid. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2019; 11(50):46585-46590. DOI: 10.1021/acsami.9b17749. View

2.
Yin H, Sun L, Pu Y, Yu J, Feng W, Dong C . Ultrasound-Controlled CRISPR/Cas9 System Augments Sonodynamic Therapy of Hepatocellular Carcinoma. ACS Cent Sci. 2021; 7(12):2049-2062. PMC: 8704033. DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.1c01143. View

3.
Pickar-Oliver A, Gersbach C . The next generation of CRISPR-Cas technologies and applications. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2019; 20(8):490-507. PMC: 7079207. DOI: 10.1038/s41580-019-0131-5. View

4.
Oakes B, Nadler D, Flamholz A, Fellmann C, Staahl B, Doudna J . Profiling of engineering hotspots identifies an allosteric CRISPR-Cas9 switch. Nat Biotechnol. 2016; 34(6):646-51. PMC: 4900928. DOI: 10.1038/nbt.3528. View

5.
Pattanayak V, Lin S, Guilinger J, Ma E, Doudna J, Liu D . High-throughput profiling of off-target DNA cleavage reveals RNA-programmed Cas9 nuclease specificity. Nat Biotechnol. 2013; 31(9):839-43. PMC: 3782611. DOI: 10.1038/nbt.2673. View