Genetic Engineering Publications - GEG Tech top picks

The off-target activity of CRISPR system is largely unknown. Here the scientists modify digested-genome sequencing (Digenome-seq) to assess the specificity of a programmable deaminase composed of a Cas9 nickase (nCas9) and the deaminase APOBEC1 in the human genome. Digenome-seq is sensitive enough to capture off-target sites with a substitution frequency of 0.1%. Notably, off-target sites of the base editors are often different from those of Cas9 alone, calling for independent assessment of their genome-wide specificities.