Key result
CRISPR/Cas systems demonstrate preclinical potential as programmable antiviral therapies against various viral infections.
Why the study?
Viruses pose a major threat to humans and rapidly mutate, creating an urgent need for new sequence-targeted antiviral tools.
CRISPR/Cas systems represent a promising, adaptable tool for developing sequence-targeted antiviral therapies against a wide range of human and animal viruses.
Premature for clinical use; leaves open whether CRISPR antivirals will advance beyond preclinical models.
As CRISPR/Cas systems have been refined over time, there has been an effort to apply them to real world problems, such as developing sequence-targeted antiviral therapies. Viruses pose a major threat to humans and new tools are urgently needed to combat these rapidly mutating pathogens. Importantly, a variety of CRISPR systems have the potential to directly cleave DNA and RNA viral genomes, in a targeted and easily-adaptable manner, thus preventing or treating infections. This perspective article highlights recent studies using different Cas effectors against various RNA viruses causing acute infections in humans; a latent virus (HIV-1); a chronic virus (hepatitis B); and viruses infecting livestock and animal species of industrial importance. The outlook and remaining challenges are discussed, particularly in the context of tacking newly emerging viruses, such as SARS-CoV-2.
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Baddeley et al. (2021) conducted a review in Viral infections (e.g., SARS-CoV-2, HIV-1, HBV). CRISPR/Cas systems (Cas9, Cas12, Cas13) was evaluated. CRISPR/Cas systems, including Cas9, Cas12, and Cas13, demonstrate significant preclinical potential as programmable antiviral therapies against various acute, latent, and chronic viral infections.
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