动物实验,基因编辑 z-bo 2020-09-03 383

　　Scientists edit the pig genome to inactivate the retrovirus family. These results have important implications for human transplantation medicine. The lack of human organs and tissues is one of the most important unmet medical needs. The use of human animal organs is one of the promising prospects. Pig organs are particularly suitable for this type of transplantation. However, the porcine genome contains porcine endogenous retrovirus (PERV). When cells containing viruses are co-cultured with other cells, these viruses will spread to other cells. Gene editing technology has been proven to be used to remove viral genes from the pig genome in preparation for organ transplantation from pigs to humans, but so far, these efforts have only been successful in strains (not live animals).

　　Here, George Church, DongNiu and his colleagues have demonstrated this feat with live animals. The research team first confirmed that PERV in pig cells can be transmitted to pigs when co-cultured with human cells. Contacting PERV-infected human cells with uninfected human cells can also cause the spread of the virus. If pig organs need to be transplanted into humans in one day, this is necessary to inactivate pig PERV. There are reliefs. Next, the researchers located and identified PERV present in the genome of porcine fibroblasts, and found a total of 25 PERVs. They used the gene editing tool CRISPR to inactivate all 25 genomic loci. Although there are highly modified cells in the cell population, these cloned cells cannot grow with PERV editing efficiency higher than 90%.

　　But by adding more combinations of factors related to DNA repair, the research team was able to inactivate PERV up to 100% of living cell growth. When embryos were transferred to sows, the resulting piglets showed no signs of PERV, indicating that some piglets were alive within 4 months of birth.