2023-05-24 07:33:57
Researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a new technique for modeling cancer mutations using CRISPR genome editing technology. The method enables a faster and more precise introduction of specific through Krebs conditional mutations in mouse models. It represents an important advance in cancer research.
Cancer: Prime Editing is designed to facilitate exploration
Using CRISPR technology, the researchers have created models for different mutations of the Kras gene, a known cancer-causing gene, in different organs. This approach is far more efficient than traditional methods, which were labor-intensive and took months or years to generate mice with single cancer-causing mutations.
The innovative process uses a newer version of CRISPR genome editing, known as prime editing. The researchers inserted the gene for the prime-editing enzyme into the germline cells of the mice and were thus able to precisely insert new cancer mutations. Activation of the prime-editing gene is triggered by a specific protein and allows very targeted mutations.
CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) is a genome editing technology that allows the targeted addition, deletion, or modification of genetic material in an organism’s DNA.
Basis for more effective drugs
As part of their Study the scientists incorporated various mutations into the Kras gene. They discovered significant differences in the impact of the various mutations on tumor development. This finding promises the development of drugs that fight cancer in these different mutations more effectively.
In addition, the team has produced pancreatic organoids with various mutations in the p53 gene, a tumor suppressor, and is currently working to develop mouse models for these mutations. They are also developing models for additional Kras mutations and others that might contribute to the development of resistance to Kras inhibitors.
“Extraordinarily powerful tool”
“This is an exceptionally powerful tool for studying the effects of any mutation in an intact animal in a fraction of the time required by previous methods,” quoted SciTech Daily Tyler Jacks. He is a professor of biology, a member of MIT’s Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, and one of the lead authors of the new study.
The new approach offers an accelerated path to test potential cancer drugs in mouse models – an important step on the way to human clinical trials. The researchers assume that this technique will be adopted by other laboratories for their studies of cancer mutations.
Quelle: „A prime editor mouse to model a broad spectrum of somatic mutations in vivo“ (Nature Biotechnology, 2023); SciTechDaily
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