RNA-guided DNA insertion with CRISPR-associated transposases

Beyond adaptive immunity Prokaryotic CRISPR-Cas systems defend bacterial cells from phage and plasmid infection. Strecker et al. characterized a CRISPR-Cas system that functions beyond adaptive immunity (see the Perspective by Hou and Zhang). Type V-K CRISPR-Cas from cyanobacteria was associated with a Tn7-like transposon and a natural nuclease–deficient effector Cas12k. Cas12k directed the insertion of Tn7-like transposons into target sites via RNA-guided Tn7 transposition. This system was reprogrammed to efficiently and specifically insert DNA both in vitro and into the Escherichia coli genome. Science , this issue p. 48 ; see also p. 25

• HH
  Howard Hughes Medical Institute
• NY
  New York Stem Cell Foundation
• HF
  Human Frontier Science Program
• NI
  National Institutes of Health

  Awards: 1R01-MH110049, 1R01-HG009761, HL141201, 1DP1-HL141201