Nucleic acid detection with CRISPR-Cas13a/C2c2

TLDR

CRISPR diagnostics require sensitive, specific methods to detect low‑level pathogen nucleic acids. The approach couples CRISPR‑Cas13a allele‑specific sensing with recombinase polymerase amplification to detect RNA/DNA sequences and enables human genotyping from cell‑free DNA. The method detected attomolar Zika virus and pathogenic bacteria. Gootenberg et al., Science, this issue p.

Abstract

Sensitive and specific CRISPR diagnostics Methods are needed that can easily detect nucleic acids that signal the presence of pathogens, even at very low levels. Gootenberg et al. combined the allele-specific sensing ability of CRISPR-Cas13a with recombinase polymerase amplification methods to detect specific RNA and DNA sequences. The method successfully detected attomolar levels of Zika virus, as well as the presence of pathogenic bacteria. It could also be used to perform human genotyping from cell-free DNA. Science , this issue p. 438