Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39774105›Full record

ArticleNature communications2025

DNA targeting by compact Cas9d and its resurrected ancestor.

Rodrigo Fregoso Ocampo, Jack P K Bravo, Tyler L Dangerfield, Isabel Nocedal, Samatar A Jirde, Lisa M Alexander, Nicole C Thomas, Anjali Das, Sarah Nielson, Kenneth A Johnson and 4 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Compact 9dBEs Enable Efficient and Precise Genome Editing in Mammalian Cells and In Vivo.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Structural visualization of the molecular evolution of CRISPR-Cas9.Nature structural & molecular biology · 2026
    Article
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Rodrigo Fregoso OcampoInterdisciplinary Life Sciences Graduate Programs, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, 78712, USA.
Jack P K BravoDepartment of Molecular Biosciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, 78712, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0456-0753
Tyler L DangerfieldDepartment of Molecular Biosciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, 78712, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1413-2082
Isabel NocedalMetagenomi, Inc., 5959 Horton St, Floor 7, Emeryville, CA, 94608, USA.
Samatar A JirdeMetagenomi, Inc., 5959 Horton St, Floor 7, Emeryville, CA, 94608, USA.
Lisa M AlexanderMetagenomi, Inc., 5959 Horton St, Floor 7, Emeryville, CA, 94608, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0152-4554
Nicole C ThomasMetagenomi, Inc., 5959 Horton St, Floor 7, Emeryville, CA, 94608, USA.
Anjali DasDepartment of Molecular Biosciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, 78712, USA.
Sarah NielsonInterdisciplinary Life Sciences Graduate Programs, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, 78712, USA.
Kenneth A JohnsonInterdisciplinary Life Sciences Graduate Programs, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, 78712, USA.
Christopher T BrownMetagenomi, Inc., 5959 Horton St, Floor 7, Emeryville, CA, 94608, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7758-6447
Cristina N ButterfieldMetagenomi, Inc., 5959 Horton St, Floor 7, Emeryville, CA, 94608, USA.
Daniela S A GoltsmanMetagenomi, Inc., 5959 Horton St, Floor 7, Emeryville, CA, 94608, USA.
David W TaylorInterdisciplinary Life Sciences Graduate Programs, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, 78712, USA. dtaylor@utexas.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6198-1194

Funding

Kinetic and structural basis for SARS-CoV-2 RNA-dependent RNA polymerase specificity and inhibitionR01AI163336 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN · PI JOHNSON, KENNETH ALLEN · 2021 to 2025
$2.9M
Dynamics of Hepatis C viral RNA-dependent RNA replicationR01AI110577 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN · PI JOHNSON, KENNETH ALLEN · 2015 to 2018
$1.8M
NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI110577NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI163336
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Type II CRISPR endonucleases are widely used programmable genome editing tools. Recently, CRISPR-Cas systems with highly compact nucleases have been discovered, including Cas9d (a type II-D nuclease). Here, we report the cryo-EM structures of a Cas9d nuclease (747 amino acids in length) in multiple functional states, revealing a stepwise process of DNA targeting involving a conformational switch in a REC2 domain insertion. Our structures provide insights into the intricately folded guide RNA which acts as a structural scaffold to anchor small, flexible protein domains for DNA recognition. The sgRNA can be truncated by up to ~25% yet still retain activity in vivo. Using ancestral sequence reconstruction, we generated compact nucleases capable of efficient genome editing in mammalian cells. Collectively, our results provide mechanistic insights into the evolution and DNA targeting of diverse type II CRISPR-Cas systems, providing a blueprint for future re-engineering of minimal RNA-guided DNA endonucleases.

Indexed as

CRISPR-Associated Protein 9Gene EditingRNA, Guide, CRISPR-Cas SystemsCryoelectron MicroscopyDNAHumansK562 CellsProtein DomainsR-Loop StructuresCRISPR-Associated Protein 9DNARNA, Guide, CRISPR-Cas Systems

Identifiers

PMID39774105
PMCPMC11706934

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.