Repair of CRISPR-guided RNA breaks enables site-specific RNA excision in human cells
- Nemudraia, Anna [ Montana State University: Microbiology & Cell Biology ]
- Nemudry, Artem [ Montana State University: Microbiology & Cell Biology ]
- Wiedenhef, Blake [ Montana State University: Microbiology & Cell Biology ]
Genome editing with CRISPR RNA-guided endonucleases generates DNA breaks that are resolved by cellular DNA repair machinery. However, analogous methods to manipulate RNA remain unavailable. We show that site-specific RNA breaks generated with type-III CRISPR complexes are repaired in human cells and that this repair can be used for programmable deletions in human transcripts to restore gene function. Collectively, this work establishes a technology for precise RNA manipulation with potential therapeutic applications.