chromosome preparation and karyotype analysis of crispr/cas9-mediated cenp-e knockout hela cells

使用 CRISPR/Cas9 系统进行着丝粒相关 Protein-E 基因编辑

Engineered genome editing mediates the targeted modifications of genes in a variety of cells and organisms. In eukaryotes, site-specific mutagenesis can be introduced by the applications of sequence-specific nucleases that stimulate homologous recombination of target DNA1. In recent years, several genome editing technologies, including zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs)2,3, transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs)4,5, and homing meganucleases6,7, have been engineered to cleave genomes at specific sites, but these approaches require complex protein engineering and redundant experimental procedures. Studies have shown that the type II prokaryotic clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas system is an efficient gene editing technology, which specifically mediates RNA-guided, site-specific DNA cleavage in a wide variety of cells and species8,9,10,11. The CRISPR/Cas9 gene knockout technology has revolutionized the fields of basic biology, biotechnology, and medicine12.
Bacteria and most archaea have evolved an RNA-based adaptive immune system that uses CRISPR and Cas proteins to identify and destroy viruses and plasmids13. Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 (SpCas9) endonuclease contains the RuvC-like Holliday junction resolvase (RuvC) and His-Asn-His (HNH) domain, which can efficiently mediate sequence-specific, double-stranded breaks (DSBs) by providing a synthetic single-guide RNA (sgRNA) containing CRISPR RNAs (crRNA) and trans-activating crRNA (tracrRNA)14,15,16. DSBs can be repaired through the indel-forming non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) or homology-directed repair (HDR) pathway, which introduces multiple mutations, including insertions, deletions, or scar-less single nucleotide substitutions, in mammalian cells1,8. Both the error-prone NHEJ and the high-fidelity HDR pathway can be used to mediate gene knockout through insertions or deletions, which can cause frameshift mutations and premature stop codons10.
Kinesin-7 CENP-E is required for kinetochore-microtubule attachment and chromosome alignment during cell division17,18,19. Antibody microinjection20,21, siRNA depletion22,23, chemical inhibition24,25,26, and genetic deletion27,28,29 of CENP-E leads to chromosome misalignment, the activation of spindle assembly checkpoint and mitotic defects, which results in aneuploidy and chromosomal instability19,30. In mice, CENP-E deletion results in abnormal development and embryonic lethality at the very early stages of development27,29,31. Genetic deletion of CENP-E usually leads to chromosome misalignment and cell death26,27,29, which is an obstacle in studying the functions and mechanisms of the CENP-E proteins.
A recent study has established a conditional CENP-E knockout cell line using an Auxin-inducible CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing method32, which enables rapid degradation of CENP-E proteins in a relatively short time33. However, to date, stable CENP-E knockout cell lines have not been established, which is an unresolved technical challenge in CENP-E biology. Considering genetic robustness34, genetic compensation responses35,36,37, and complex intracellular environments, as the direct consequences of complete deletion of CENP-E may be complex and unpredictable, it is important to establish CENP-E knockout cell lines for the investigation of mechanisms of chromosome alignment, spindle assembly checkpoint, and downstream signaling pathways.
The discovery and applications of CENP-E inhibitors are important for cancer treatment. To date, seven types of CENP-E inhibitors have been found and synthesized, including GSK923295 and its derivatives24,25, PF-277138,39, imidazo[1,2-a]pyridine scaffold derivatives40,41, compound-A42,43, syntelin44,45, UA6278446, and benzo[d]pyrrolo[2,1-b]thiazole derivatives47. Among these inhibitors, GSK923295 is an allosteric and efficient CENP-E inhibitor that binds to the motor domain of CENP-E and inhibits CENP-E microtubule-stimulated ATPase activity with a Ki of 3.2 &#177; 0.2 nM24,25. However, compared with the inhibitory effects of GSK923295 on cultured cancer cells, the therapeutic effects of GSK923295 in clinical cancer patients are not ideal48,49, which also raised concerns about the specificity of GSK923295 for CENP-E. Moreover, the specificity and side effects of other CENP-E inhibitors on the CENP-E proteins are key issues in cancer research.
In this study, we have completely knocked out the CENP-E gene in HeLa cells using the CRISPR/Cas9 system. Three optimized phenotype-based screening strategies have been established, including cell colony screening, chromosome alignment phenotypes, and the fluorescent intensities of CENP-E proteins, to improve the screening efficiency and success rate of CENP-E gene editing. Furthermore, CENP-E knockout cell lines can be used to test the specificity of candidate compounds for CENP-E.

作者聚焦：建立 CENP-E 敲除 HeLa 细胞 – 一种研究驱动蛋白 7 CENP-E 生物学及其抑制剂的新方法

使用 CRISPR/Cas9 系统生成着丝粒相关蛋白- E CENP-E-/- 敲除细胞系

Genetic deletion of Kinesin-7 and CENP usually results in cell cycle arrest and cell death. The construction of stable CENP knockout cell lines is an important unresolved issue in CENP biology. In this study, we generated CENP knockout HeLa cells using a CRISPR/Cas9 system, and established three optimized screening strategies.Recently, several genome editing technologies, including zinc-finger nucleases, transcription activator-like effector nucleases, and how we make our nucleases, has been engineered to cleave genomes at a specific size. The CRISPR/Cas9 gene knockout technology has revolutionized basic biology, biotechnology, and medicine. CENP is essential for attaching kinetochores to microtubules and aligning chromosomes.Disrupting CENP, whether through antibody microinjection, sgRNA deletion, chemical inhibition, or genetic deletion, result in chromosome misalignment, mitotic defects, and often cell death, complicating the study of CENP protein mechanisms. In this study, three optimized phenotype-based screening strategies were established, including cell colony screening, chromosome alignment of phenotypes, and the fluorescent intensities of CENP proteins, which improved the screening efficiency and the experimental success rate. Importantly, CENP deletion results in chromosome misalignment, the abnormal location of BubR1 proteins, and mitotic defects.The interaction modes and the molecular mechanisms of CENP and its inhibitors are important research fields in cell biology and cancer research. In this study, the CENP knockout HeLa cell line has been established as a valuable tool for the validation of the specificity and the toxicity of CENP inhibitors.

CRISPR/Cas9介导的 CENP-E 敲除HeLa细胞的染色体制备和核型分析

首先，取野生型和 CENP-E 突变体 HeLa 细胞培养物，在孵育 5 小时之前加入 300 纳摩尔秋水仙碱。接下来，将细胞与0.25%胰蛋白酶-EDTA在37摄氏度下孵育3分钟，并将细胞收集到1.5毫升离心管中。接下来，在室温下以1000G离心细胞5分钟，弃去上清液并加入1.2毫升0.075摩尔氯化钾溶液。将细胞在 37 摄氏度下孵育 20 分钟。在孵育结束时，离心细胞，弃去上清液，并加入0.2毫升固定溶液作为前缀。轻轻混合一分钟，然后如前所述收集细胞沉淀，并在室温下加入 1.5 毫升固定溶液 10 分钟。离心细胞并弃去上清液后，加入 0.6 毫升固定溶液以产生细胞悬浮液。小心地将35至40厘米处的三到五滴细胞悬浮液滴落到载冰上。立即用酒精灯擦干载玻片，并用 10%Giemsa 的维持溶液染色 7 分钟。用流水冲洗载玻片两分钟，然后使用配备有Plan Fluor 40倍放大倍率0.75数值孔径物镜的光学显微镜检查样品。核型分析显示，与野生型细胞相比，CENP-E突变HeLa细胞的染色体数量减少。

Research

JoVE Journal

Biology

Chromosome Preparation and Karyotype Analysis of CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated CENP-E Knockout HeLa Cells

Generation of Centromere-Associated Protein-E CENP-E-/- Knockout Cell Lines using the CRISPR/Cas9 System

The CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats)/Cas9 system has emerged as a powerful tool for precise and efficient gene editing ...

科研

生物学

Transfection, Isolation, and Screening of the CENP-E Knockout HeLa Cells

CENP-E 敲除 HeLa 细胞的转染、分离和筛选

Immunofluorescence Staining and High-Resolution Confocal Microscopy of CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated CENP-E Knockout HeLa Cells

CRISPR/Cas9介导的 CENP-E 敲除HeLa细胞的免疫荧光染色和高分辨率共聚焦显微镜