Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40744490›Full record

ArticleNucleic acids research2025

An enhanced Eco1 retron editor enables precision genome engineering in human cells without double-strand breaks.

Matthew A Cattle, Lauren C Aguado, Samantha Sze, Sanjana Venkittu, Yueyang Wang, Thales Papagiannakopoulos, Susan Smith, Charles M Rice, William M Schneider, John T Poirier

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Nucleic acids research, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing 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

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Structure and mechanism of antiphage retron Eco2.Nature structural & molecular biology · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Matthew A CattleVilcek Institute of Graduate Biomedical Sciences, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, United States.ORCID 0000-0003-0809-1245
Lauren C AguadoLaboratory of Virology and Infectious Disease, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10065, United States.
Samantha SzeDepartment of Cell Biology, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY 10016, United States.
Sanjana VenkittuLaboratory of Virology and Infectious Disease, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10065, United States.
Yueyang WangVilcek Institute of Graduate Biomedical Sciences, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, United States.
Thales PapagiannakopoulosDepartment of Pathology, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY 10016, United States.
Susan SmithDepartment of Cell Biology, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY 10016, United States.
Charles M RiceLaboratory of Virology and Infectious Disease, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10065, United States.
William M SchneiderLaboratory of Virology and Infectious Disease, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10065, United States.
John T PoirierPerlmutter Cancer Center, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY 10016, United States.

Funding

Vaccine FacilityP30CA016087 · NCI · NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · PI MARK Reid PHILIPS · 1985 to 2026
$83.1M
Mechanisms of Telomere Cohesion - Equipment SupplementR35GM149355 · NIGMS · NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · PI SUSAN SMITH · 2023 to 2026
$1.5M
NCI NIH HHS P30 CA016087NIGMS NIH HHS R35 GM149355NIGMS NIH HHS R35GM149355NYU Laura & Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center P30CA016087Robertson Foundation
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Retrons are a retroelement class found in diverse prokaryotes that can be adapted to augment CRISPR-Cas9 genome engineering technology to efficiently rewrite short stretches of genetic information in bacteria and yeast. However, efficiency in human cells has been limited by unknown factors. We identified non-coding RNA (ncRNA) instability and impaired Cas9 activity due to 5' sgRNA extension as key contributors to low retron editor efficiency in human cells. We re-engineered the Eco1 ncRNA to incorporate an exoribonuclease-resistant RNA pseudoknot from the Zika virus 3' UTR and devised an RNA processing strategy using Csy4 ribonuclease to minimize 5' sgRNA extension. This strategy increased steady-state ncRNA levels and rescued sgRNA activity, leading to increased templated repair. This work reveals a previously unappreciated role for ncRNA stability in retron editor efficiency in human cells and presents an enhanced Eco1 retron editor capable of precise genome editing in human cells from a single integrated lentivirus and, in the context of the nCas9 H840A nickase, without creating double-strand breaks.

Indexed as

Gene EditingRetroelements3' Untranslated RegionsCRISPR-Associated Protein 9CRISPR-Cas SystemsDNA Breaks, Double-StrandedGenome, HumanHEK293 CellsHumansRNA, Guide, CRISPR-Cas SystemsRNA, UntranslatedZika Virus3' Untranslated RegionsCRISPR-Associated Protein 9RetroelementsRNA, Guide, CRISPR-Cas SystemsRNA, Untranslated

Identifiers

PMID40744490
PMCPMC12311787

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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.