Systematic silencing of oncogenic fusion transcripts with ultra-precise CRISPR-Cas13b

Hu, W.; Chen, H.; Casan, J. M.; Shembrey, C.; He, S.; Brown, L. M.; Hughes, T. P.; White, D. L.; De Weck, A.; Voskoboinik, I.; Trapani, J. A.; Ekert, P. G.; Sadras, T.; Fareh, M.

doi:10.1101/2025.02.10.637348

bioRxiv · 10.1101/2025.02.10.637348

Systematic silencing of oncogenic fusion transcripts with ultra-precise CRISPR-Cas13b

Hu, W.·Chen, H.·Casan, J. M.·Shembrey, C.·He, S.·Brown, L. M.·Hughes, T. P.·White, D. L.·De Weck, A.·Voskoboinik, I.·Trapani, J. A.·Ekert, P. G.·Sadras, T.·Fareh, M.

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Abstract

Oncogenic gene fusions are key drivers of cancer, yet most remain untargetable by current therapies. Here, we establish CRISPR-PspCas13b as a personalizable platform for systematic silencing of various fusion transcripts. We reveal that recognition and cleavage of the breakpoint sequence by PspCas13b disrupts the fusion transcript, resulting in unexpected RNA nicking and ligation near the cleavage site, which generates out-of-frame, translation-incompetent transcripts. This approach efficiently degrades canonical and drug-resistant BCR::ABL1 mutants (e.g., T315I), a primary cause of resistance to tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and relapse in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Silencing T315I BCR::ABL1 mRNA in drug-resistant CML cells triggers extensive transcriptomic, proteomic, and phosphoproteomic remodelling, causing erythroid differentiation and apoptosis. Beyond BCR-ABL1 mutants, personalized design of PspCas13b effectively silences other undruggable fusions, including RUNX1::RUNX1T1 and EWSR1::FLI1, key drivers in acute myeloid leukemia and in Ewing sarcoma, respectively. Collectively, this study establishes a framework for systematic, precise, and personalizable targeting of otherwise undruggable or drug-resistant oncogenic transcripts.

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Hu, W., Chen, H., Casan, J. M., Shembrey, C., He, S., Brown, L. M., Hughes, T. P., White, D. L., De Weck, A., Voskoboinik, I., Trapani, J. A., Ekert, P. G., Sadras, T., Fareh, M.. 2025-02-11. Systematic silencing of oncogenic fusion transcripts with ultra-precise CRISPR-Cas13b. https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.02.10.637348

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