Exonuclease-linked real-time endonuclease activity assay

Abstract

The present invention includes rapid in vitro methods for assessing the activity of endonucleases, and substrates therefor. Compositions, diagnostic methods, and kits are also disclosed.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 272,091, filed October 26, 2021.

[0002] The present invention relates to the field of nucleic acid modifying enzymes, and more particularly to the field of developing and testing active endonucleases.

[0003] STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY FUNDED RESEARCH none.

[0004] Sequence Listing Placeholder. [Background technology]

[0005] Endonucleases are enzymes that are widely used in laboratory work and the molecular diagnostics industry. The process of designing and isolating new and improved endonucleases requires a fast and simple method to evaluate endonuclease activity. The most widely used endonuclease assays are cumbersome and have low throughput. Furthermore, the commonly used methods are not quantitative. There is no established means to measure the difference in activity between different sources, variants, or lots of endonucleases. Similarly, there is no easy or rapid means to evaluate different targets so that the specificity of an endonuclease can be accurately determined. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] Many of the current state-of-the-art endonuclease assays are unsuitable for use in crude cell lysates or partially purified protein preparations because host nucleases rapidly degrade target DNA. There is an unmet need for rapid endonuclease assays that work in crude lysates and semi-crude elution fractions from early steps of the purification process. Such assays would aid efforts to improve enzyme purification and production, and accelerate the overall enzyme engineering process. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention provides methods, compositions, and kits for assessing endonuclease activity. The present invention utilizes double-stranded end-protected nucleic acid substrates labeled with a reporter fluorophore and a quencher fluorophore. Only after the endonuclease cleaves the substrate, the exonuclease hydrolyzes the substrate, allowing fluorescence to occur.

[0008] In one embodiment, the present invention provides a nucleic acid substrate for detecting the activity of an endonuclease, comprising: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; at least one structure in at least one nucleic acid strand that inhibits exonuclease cleavage of the substrate; and a recognition sequence for an endonuclease. The structure that inhibits exonuclease cleavage of the substrate is selected from a structure at each 3' end that inhibits 3'-5' exonuclease cleavage, a structure at each 5' end that inhibits 5'-3' exonuclease cleavage, or both. The exonuclease is selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II. In some embodiments, the acceptor fluorophore is a quencher fluorophore. The donor fluorophore and the acceptor fluorophore can be located on the same strand of the substrate or on different strands of the substrate, 1-12 nucleotides apart. In some embodiments, the substrate is formed by a single strand. In some embodiments, one of the donor and acceptor fluorophores is positioned at or near the 5' end of the substrate.In some embodiments, the donor fluorophore is selected from the group consisting of 5-carboxyfluorescein (5-FAM), 6-carboxyfluorescein (6-FAM), 2',4',1,4-tetrachlorofluorescein (TET), 2',4',5',7',1,4-hexachlorofluorescein (HEX), 2',7'-dimethoxy-4',5'-dichloro-6-carboxyfluorescein (JOE), coumarin dyes, Alexa Fluor dyes, IRDye 800CW, Cascade Blue, Pacific Blue, Pacific Orange, Texas Red, and BODIPY® dyes. In some embodiments, the acceptor fluorophore is tetramethyl-6-carboxyrhodamine (TAMRA), tetrapropano-6-carboxyrhodamine (ROX), DABSYL, DABCYL (4-[[4-(dimethylamino)-phenyl]-azo]-benzoic acid), Cy5 and Cy5.5, anthraquinone dyes, nitrothiazole dyes, nitroimidazole dyes, LC-Red610, LC-Red640, LC-Red705, JA286, DDQ-I, DDQ-II, QSY-7, QSY-21, IRDye QC1, Iowa Black FQ, Iowa Black RQ, HEX (hexachloro-fluorescein), TET (tetrachloro-fluorescein), JOE (5'-dichloro-dimethoxy-fluorescein), BODIPY® dyes, Eclipse quencher (4-[[2-chloro-4-nitro-phenyl]-azo]-aniline, BHQ-1 ([(4-(2-nitro-4-methyl-phenyl)-azo)-yl-((2-methoxy-5-methyl-phenyl)-azo)]-aniline), BHQ-2 ([(4-(1-nitro In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of exonuclease III, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, and BAL31 exonuclease.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease, such as a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease. In some embodiments, the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM). In some embodiments, the PAM consists of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR class II endonuclease. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR Cas12a endonuclease. In some embodiments, the PAM consists of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', and 5'-NNNACA-3'. In some embodiments, the PAM consists of a sequence selected from 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3', and 5'-TTTV-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease comprises an endonuclease and a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), such as a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a crRNA and a tracrRNA. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a targeting region capable of hybridizing to a region in a substrate. In some embodiments, the NATNA is capable of interacting with the endonuclease. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of zinc finger nuclease (ZFN), ZFN conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN), EndoTT single-stranded endonuclease, Argonaute endonuclease, Arcus endonuclease, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, endoribonucleases selected from Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease is selected from hairpins, strand overhangs, and nucleic acid modifications, such as one or more (five or more) phosphorothioate bonds. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a deoxyribonuclease and the substrate contains DNA. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a ribonuclease and the substrate contains RNA. In some embodiments, the ribonuclease is selected from a ribozyme, a hammerhead ribozyme, a DNAzyme, a PNAzyme, or an engineered endoribonuclease.

[0009] In one embodiment, the present invention is a composition for detecting the activity of an endonuclease, comprising the above-mentioned nucleic acid substrate, an exonuclease, and optionally an endonuclease. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nickase. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease III, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, and BAL31 exonuclease. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is capable of initiating hydrolysis from a nick. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is selected from T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease III, and exonuclease Bal31. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3' 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease or a CRISPR Cas12a endonuclease, and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease comprises an endonuclease and a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), such as a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide.In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises crRNA and tracrRNA. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a targeting region capable of hybridizing to a region of a substrate. In some embodiments, the NATNA is capable of interacting with an endonuclease. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs), ZFNs conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), EndoTT single-stranded endonuclease, Argonaute endonuclease, Arcus endonuclease, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, endoribonucleases selected from Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by an exonuclease is selected from a hairpin, a strand overhang, and a nucleic acid modification, such as one or more (four or more) phosphorothioate linkages.

[0010] In one embodiment, the invention is a method of detecting endonuclease activity comprising: contacting an endonuclease and an exonuclease with a reaction mixture comprising a nucleic acid substrate, the nucleic acid substrate comprising: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; at least one structure in at least one strand that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease; and a recognition sequence for the endonuclease; and measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture, a change in fluorescence indicating activity of the endonuclease. In some embodiments, the at least one structure that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease is selected from a structure at each 3' end that inhibits cleavage by a 3'-5' exonuclease, a structure at each 5' end that inhibits cleavage by a 5'-3' exonuclease, or both. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II. In some embodiments, the reaction mixture is contacted with the endonuclease and the exonuclease simultaneously. In some embodiments, the reaction mixture is contacted with the endonuclease first and then with the exonuclease. In some embodiments, no purification step is performed between contacting the reaction mixture with the endonuclease and contacting the reaction mixture with the exonuclease. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease.In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3' 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease or a CRISPR Cas12a endonuclease, and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease comprises an endonuclease and a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), such as a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a crRNA and a tracrRNA. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a targeting region capable of hybridizing to a region of the substrate. In some embodiments, the NATNA is capable of interacting with an endonuclease. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides. In some embodiments, the contacting comprises contacting a series of reaction mixtures comprising the same NATNA with a series of different endonucleases. In some embodiments, the contacting comprises contacting a series of reaction mixtures comprising the same endonuclease with a series of different NATNAs. In some embodiments, the contacting comprises contacting a series of reaction mixtures comprising the same components under different reaction conditions.In some embodiments, the contacting comprises contacting a series of reaction mixtures containing the same components with different isolates of the endonuclease. In some embodiments, the contacting comprises contacting a series of reaction mixtures containing the same endonuclease with a series of different nucleic acid substrates containing different sequences. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs), ZFNs conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), EndoTT single-stranded endonucleases, Argonaute endonucleases, Arcus endonucleases, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, endoribonucleases selected from Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits exonuclease cleavage of the substrate is selected from hairpins, strand overhangs, and nucleic acid modifications, such as one or more (five or more) phosphorothioate bonds. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid substrate or the endonuclease is in an unpurified form.

[0011] In one embodiment, the invention is a kit for detecting endonuclease activity, comprising: a nucleic acid substrate, the nucleic acid substrate comprising: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore forming a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; at least one structure in at least one strand that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by an exonuclease; and a recognition sequence for the endonuclease; and an exonuclease. In some embodiments, the at least one structure that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by an exonuclease is selected from a structure at each 3' end that inhibits cleavage by a 3'-5' exonuclease, a structure at each 5' end that inhibits cleavage by a 5'-3' exonuclease, or both. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II. In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'.In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease or CRISPR Cas12a endonuclease, and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'. In some embodiments, the kit further comprises a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA) capable of forming a complex with the endonuclease to be tested. In some embodiments, the NATNA is a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a crRNA and a tracrRNA. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a targeting region capable of hybridizing to a region of the substrate. In some embodiments, NATNA can interact with endonucleases. In some embodiments, NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs), ZFNs conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), EndoTT single-stranded endonucleases, Argonaute endonucleases, Arcus endonucleases, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, endoribonucleases selected from Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits exonuclease cleavage of the substrate is selected from hairpins, strand overhangs, and nucleic acid modifications, such as one or more (five or more) phosphorothioate bonds.

[0012] In one embodiment, the present invention relates to a device for detecting the activity of an endonuclease using a substrate as defined in claim 1, comprising: a reaction chamber for performing an enzymatic reaction and a fluorescence detector.

[0013] In one embodiment, the present invention is a method for detecting the presence of a target nucleic acid in a sample, comprising: contacting the sample with a reaction mixture comprising an endonuclease, an exonuclease, and a nucleic acid probe capable of hybridizing to the target nucleic acid, the probe comprising: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore forming a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; at least one structure that inhibits cleavage of the probe by the exonuclease; and a recognition sequence for the endonuclease; and measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture, wherein a change in fluorescence indicates the presence of the target nucleic acid in the sample. In some embodiments, the at least one structure that inhibits cleavage of the probe by the exonuclease is selected from a structure at each 3' end that inhibits cleavage by a 3'-5' exonuclease, a structure at each 5' end that inhibits cleavage by a 5'-3' exonuclease, or both. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II. In some embodiments, the target nucleic acid is selected from sequences characteristic of bacteria, sequences characteristic of viruses, sequences characteristic of parasites, and sequences characteristic of a patient's disease or condition. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the probe comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease or a CRISPR Cas12a endonuclease, and the probe comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease comprises an endonuclease and a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), such as a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a crRNA and a tracrRNA. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a targeting region capable of hybridizing to a region of the probe. In some embodiments, the NATNA is capable of interacting with the endonuclease. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of zinc finger nuclease (ZFN), ZFN conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN), EndoTT single-stranded endonuclease, Argonaute endonuclease, Arcus endonuclease, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits exonuclease cleavage of the probe is selected from hairpins, strand overhangs, and nucleic acid modifications, such as one or more (five or more) phosphorothioate bonds. In some embodiments, the sample comprises a crude preparation of nucleic acid.

[0014] In one embodiment, the present invention is a method for detecting the presence of two or more target nucleic acids in a sample, comprising: contacting the sample with a reaction mixture comprising an endonuclease, an exonuclease, and two or more nucleic acid probes, each capable of hybridizing to two or more target nucleic acids, each probe comprising: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore forming a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; at least one structure that inhibits cleavage of the probe by an exonuclease; and a recognition sequence for the endonuclease; and measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture, wherein a change in fluorescence indicates the presence of the target nucleic acid in the sample. In some embodiments, the two or more nucleic acid probes comprise at least one different fluorophore. In some embodiments, all of the two or more nucleic acid probes comprise the same fluorophore. In some embodiments, the at least one structure that inhibits cleavage of the probe by an exonuclease is selected from a structure at each 3' end that inhibits cleavage by a 3'-5' exonuclease, a structure at each 5' end that inhibits cleavage by a 5'-3' exonuclease, or both. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II. In some embodiments, the two or more target nucleic acids are selected from sequences characteristic of bacteria, sequences characteristic of viruses, sequences characteristic of parasites, and sequences characteristic of a patient's disease or condition. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease or a CRISPR Cas12a endonuclease, and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease comprises an endonuclease and a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), such as a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a crRNA and a tracrRNA. In some embodiments, at least one NATNA is used for each of two or more probes, and each NATNA comprises a targeting region that can hybridize to a region of at least one probe.In some embodiments, the NATNA can interact with an endonuclease.In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of zinc finger nuclease (ZFN), ZFN conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN), EndoTT single-stranded endonuclease, Argonaute endonuclease, Arcus endonuclease, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits exonuclease cleavage of the probe is selected from hairpins, strand overhangs, and nucleic acid modifications, such as one or more (five or more) phosphorothioate bonds. In some embodiments, the sample comprises a crude preparation of nucleic acid.

[0015] In one embodiment, the present invention is a method for detecting the presence of a target nucleic acid in a sample, comprising: binding to a target nucleic acid in the sample: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; at least one structure that inhibits exonucleolytic cleavage; and a recognition sequence for an endonuclease to form a modified nucleic acid; and contacting the sample with an endonuclease and an exonuclease; measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture, wherein a change in fluorescence indicates the presence of the target nucleic acid in the sample. In some embodiments, the at least one structure that inhibits exonucleolytic cleavage is selected from a structure at each 3' end that inhibits 3'-5' exonucleolytic cleavage, a structure at each 5' end that inhibits 5'-3' exonucleolytic cleavage, or both. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II. In some embodiments, the binding is via ligation of an adaptor that includes a donor fluorophore, an acceptor fluorophore, and a structure that inhibits cleavage by the exonuclease. In some embodiments, the target nucleic acid is amplified by PCR prior to the binding. In some embodiments, the binding is via one or more rounds of extension with an amplification primer that contains a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; a structure that inhibits cleavage by an exonuclease.In some embodiments, the target nucleic acid is selected from a sequence characteristic of bacteria, a sequence characteristic of viruses, a sequence characteristic of parasites, and a patient sequence characteristic of a disease or condition of the patient. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease, and the target nucleic acid or the modified target nucleic acid comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease or a CRISPR Cas12a endonuclease, and the target nucleic acid or the modified target nucleic acid comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease comprises an endonuclease and a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), such as a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a crRNA and a tracrRNA. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a targeting region capable of hybridizing to the target nucleic acid or the modified target nucleic acid. In some embodiments, the NATNA is capable of interacting with an endonuclease, hi some embodiments, the NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of zinc finger nuclease (ZFN), ZFN conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN), EndoTT single-stranded endonuclease, Argonaute endonuclease, Arcus endonuclease, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits exonucleolytic cleavage is selected from hairpins, strand overhangs, and nucleic acid modifications, such as one or more (five or more) phosphorothioate bonds. In some embodiments, the sample comprises a crude preparation of nucleic acid.

[0016] In one embodiment, the present invention is a kit for performing a diagnostic procedure according to the method of claim 116, comprising: an endonuclease and a nucleic acid probe capable of hybridizing to a target nucleic acid, the probe comprising: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore forming a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair, at least one structure inhibiting cleavage of the probe by an exonuclease; and a recognition sequence for the endonuclease, and measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture, a change in fluorescence indicating the presence of the target nucleic acid in the sample, the target nucleic acid being selected from a sequence characteristic of a bacterium, a sequence characteristic of a virus, a sequence characteristic of a parasite, and a patient sequence characteristic of a disease or condition of the patient. In some embodiments, the at least one structure inhibiting cleavage of the probe by an exonuclease is selected from a structure at each 3' end inhibiting cleavage by a 3'-5' exonuclease, a structure at each 5' end inhibiting cleavage by a 5'-3' exonuclease, or both. In some embodiments, the kit further comprises an exonuclease selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease.In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the probe comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease or a CRISPR Cas12a endonuclease, and the probe comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR endonuclease complexed with a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), and the NATNA is a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a crRNA and a tracrRNA. In some embodiments, the NATNA is capable of interacting with the endonuclease. In some embodiments, NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of zinc finger nuclease (ZFN), ZFN conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN), EndoTT single-stranded endonuclease, Argonaute endonuclease, Arcus endonuclease, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, endoribonucleases selected from Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases.In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits exonucleolytic cleavage is selected from a hairpin, a strand overhang, and a nucleic acid modification, such as one or more (four or more) phosphorothioate linkages.

[0017] In one embodiment, the present invention is a kit for detecting the presence of a target nucleic acid in a sample, the method comprising one or more oligonucleotides capable of binding to the target nucleic acid to form a modified nucleic acid, the oligonucleotides comprising: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore forming a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; at least one structure that inhibits exonucleolytic cleavage; the modified nucleic acid comprises a recognition sequence for an endonuclease, and an endonuclease, and the target nucleic acid is selected from a sequence characteristic of a bacterium, a sequence characteristic of a virus, a sequence characteristic of a parasite, and a patient sequence characteristic of a disease or condition of the patient. In some embodiments, the at least one structure that inhibits exonucleolytic cleavage is selected from a structure at each 3' end that inhibits 3'-5' exonucleolytic cleavage, a structure at each 5' end that inhibits 5'-3' exonucleolytic cleavage, or both. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II. In some embodiments, the binding is via ligation of an oligonucleotide to the target nucleic acid, and the kit optionally includes a ligase. In some embodiments, the binding is via one or more rounds of extension with an oligonucleotide acting as an amplification primer, and the kit optionally includes reagents for performing the amplification. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the target nucleic acid or modified target nucleic acid comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease or a CRISPR Cas12a endonuclease, and the target nucleic acid or the modified target nucleic acid comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease comprises an endonuclease and a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), such as a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a crRNA and a tracrRNA. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a targeting region capable of hybridizing to the target nucleic acid or the modified target nucleic acid. In some embodiments, the NATNA is capable of interacting with an endonuclease, hi some embodiments, the NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs), ZFNs conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), EndoTT single-stranded endonuclease, Argonaute endonuclease, Arcus endonuclease, endoribonucleases selected from RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits exonucleolytic cleavage is selected from hairpins, strand overhangs, and nucleic acid modifications, such as one or more (four or more) phosphorothioate bonds.

[0018] In one embodiment, the present invention is a method for optimizing an endonuclease digestion reaction, comprising: preparing a series of reaction mixtures with an exonuclease and a nucleic acid substrate, the nucleic acid substrate comprising: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; at least one structure in at least one strand that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease; and a recognition sequence for the endonuclease; contacting each of the series of reaction mixtures with a different amount of the endonuclease; measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixtures, the change in fluorescence indicating the activity of the endonuclease; and selecting the amount of endonuclease that results in the highest fluorescence of the reaction mixture or the highest rate of increase in the fluorescence of the reaction mixture as the optimal endonuclease concentration. In some embodiments, the structures that inhibit cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease are selected from structures at each 3' end that inhibit cleavage by a 3'-5' exonuclease, structures at each 5' end that inhibit cleavage by a 5'-3' exonuclease, or both. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II. In some embodiments, the reaction mixture is contacted with the endonuclease and the exonuclease simultaneously. In some embodiments, the reaction mixture is contacted with the endonuclease first and then with the exonuclease. In some embodiments, no purification step is performed between contacting the reaction mixture with the endonuclease and contacting the reaction mixture with the exonuclease.

[0019] In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid guided endonuclease, such as a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease, and the substrate is a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3', or a CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease or a CRISPR The substrate comprises a Cas12a endonuclease and comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'.

[0020] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease comprises an endonuclease and a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), such as a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a crRNA and a tracrRNA. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a targeting region capable of hybridizing to a region of a substrate. In some embodiments, the NATNA is capable of interacting with an endonuclease. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides.

[0021] In some embodiments, the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of zinc finger nuclease (ZFN), ZFN conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN), EndoTT single-stranded endonuclease, Argonaute endonuclease, Arcus endonuclease, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits exonuclease cleavage of the substrate is selected from hairpins, strand overhangs, and nucleic acid modifications. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid modification comprises one or more phosphorothioate bonds. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid modification comprises five or more phosphorothioate bonds.

[0022] In one embodiment, the present invention is a method for optimizing a CRISPR endonuclease digestion reaction, comprising: preparing a series of reaction mixtures using a CRISPR endonuclease, an exonuclease, and a nucleic acid substrate, the nucleic acid substrate comprising: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; at least one structure in at least one strand that inhibits the cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease; and a recognition sequence for the endonuclease; contacting each of a series of nucleic acid targeting nucleic acids (NATNAs); measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture, the change in fluorescence indicating the activity of the endonuclease; and selecting the NATNA that produces the highest fluorescence of the reaction mixture or the highest rate of increase in the fluorescence of the reaction mixture as the optimal NATNA. In some embodiments, the at least one structure that inhibits the cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease is selected from a structure at each 3' end that inhibits cleavage by a 3'-5' exonuclease, a structure at each 5' end that inhibits cleavage by a 5'-3' exonuclease, or both. In some embodiments, the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II. In some embodiments, the reaction mixture is contacted with the endonuclease and the exonuclease simultaneously. In some embodiments, the reaction mixture is contacted with the endonuclease first, and then with the exonuclease.

[0023] In some embodiments, no purification step is performed between contacting the reaction mixture with the endonuclease and contacting the reaction mixture with the exonuclease.

[0024] In some embodiments, the CRISPR endonuclease is a Class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In some embodiments, the CRISPR endonuclease is a Cas9 endonuclease or a Cas12a endonuclease, and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3', and 5'-TTTV-3'. In some embodiments, the NATNA is a CRISPR guide RNA selected from single guide and dual guide. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a crRNA and a tracrRNA. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises a targeting region capable of hybridizing to a region of the substrate. In some embodiments, the NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides.

[0025] In some embodiments, the structure that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by an exonuclease is selected from a hairpin, a strand overhang, and a nucleic acid modification. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid modification comprises one or more phosphorothioate bonds. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid modification comprises five or more phosphorothioate bonds. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0026] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a substrate and method according to the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 shows experimental validation of the utility of exonuclease-linked fluorescent detection (Example 2). [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 shows cleavage (Example 3) of the substrate (FIG. 1) by Cas12a endonuclease. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 shows experimental determination of the linear range of the assay for Cas12a RNP concentration (Example 4). [Diagram 5] FIG. 1 shows experimental confirmation that exonucleases hydrolyze DNA but Cas12a does not hydrolyze DNA (Example 5). [Figure 6] FIG. 1 shows experimental determination of the linear range of the assay with respect to DNA substrate concentration (Example 6). [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a detailed diagram of a FAM-labeled substrate for a CRISPR endonuclease. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 shows application of the exonuclease assay to the cleavage of a FAM-labeled substrate (FIG. 7) by Cas12a endonuclease (Example 9). [Figure 9] FIG. 1 shows application of the exonuclease assay to cleavage of TAMRA-labeled substrates by Cas12a endonuclease (Example 10). [Figure 10] FIG. 1 is a diagram of FAM-labeled substrates with different arrangements of the FAM fluorophore. [Figure 11] FIG. 11: Application of the exonuclease assay to the cleavage of various FAM-labeled substrates (FIG. 10) by Cas12a endonuclease (Example 11). [Figure 12] This is a diagram summarizing the data shown in FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 1 shows the fluorescence change rate of the reaction mixture (Example 11). [Figure 14]FIG. 1 shows titration of exonuclease in an assay applied to cleavage of non-targeted FAM substrate by Cas12a endonuclease (Example 12). [Figure 15] FIG. 1 shows application of the exonuclease assay to cleavage of FAM-labeled substrates by Cas9 endonuclease (Example 13). [Figure 16] FIG. 1 shows application of an exonuclease assay to the cleavage of a FAM-labeled substrate by a restriction endonuclease (Example 14). DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0027] definition The following definitions are provided to aid in the understanding of this disclosure.

[0028] The term "endonuclease" refers to an enzyme that catalyzes the hydrolysis of a phosphodiester bond between two nucleoside residues (neither of which is a terminal nucleoside residue) within a polynucleotide (DNA or RNA).

[0029] The term "exonuclease" refers to an enzyme that catalyzes the hydrolysis of the phosphodiester bond between the terminal and penultimate nucleoside residues in a polynucleotide (DNA or RNA). Exonucleases can be processive, i.e., capable of stepwise removal of multiple nucleoside residues from the end of a nucleic acid chain.

[0030] The term "CRISPR repeat" or "CRISPR repeat sequence" refers to a minimal CRISPR repeat sequence.

[0031] The term "endoribonuclease" refers to an enzyme that catalyzes the hydrolysis of phosphodiester bonds in RNA. In some embodiments, endoribonucleases can be site-directed polypeptides. Endoribonucleases can be members of the CRISPR system (e.g., type I, type II, type III). Endoribonucleases can refer to the RAMP (Repeat Associated Mysterious Protein) superfamily of proteins (e.g., Cas6, Cas6, Cas5 family). Endoribonucleases can also include RNase A, RNase H, RNase I, RNase III family members (e.g., Drosha, Dicer, RNase N), RNase L, RNase P, RNase PhyM, RNase T1, RNase T2, RNase U2, RNase V1, RNase V.

[0032] The term "inhibit" refers to the ability of a chemical structure to partially or completely inhibit a chemical reaction. Those skilled in the art will understand that whether inhibition is partial or complete depends on the sensitivity of the detection method. The term "inhibit cleavage" with respect to a nuclease refers to the ability to detectably reduce the amount of cleavage products. The term "prevent cleavage" with respect to a nuclease refers to the ability to reduce the amount of cleavage products below detectable levels.

[0033] The term "NATNA" refers to a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid. NATNA can be part of a programmable endonuclease system such as a CRISPR system. NATNA can be composed of two nucleic acid targeting polynucleotides ("dual guide") including CRISPR RNA (crRNA) and trans-activating CRISPR RNA (tracrRNA). NATNA can be composed of an engineered single nucleic acid targeting polynucleotide ("single guide") including crRNA and tracrRNA connected by a fusion region (linker). NATNA can also be composed of a naturally occurring single guide (e.g., Cas12a guide RNA). The crRNA can include a targeting region and an activation region. The tracrRNA can include a region capable of hybridizing to the activation region of the crRNA. The term "targeting region" refers to a region capable of hybridizing to a sequence in a target nucleic acid. The term "activation region" refers to a region that interacts with a polypeptide such as a CRISPR nuclease.

[0034] Nucleic acids labeled with a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore (or a reporter fluorophore and a quencher) are a popular type of probe or enzyme substrate. Nucleic acids labeled with fluorophores are a popular type of probe or enzyme substrate. Particularly popular are probes and substrates labeled with two fluorophores that form a FRET pair. Popular types of dual-labeled probes include Taqman and molecular beacon probes.

[0035] In the Taqman assay (US Pat. No. 5,210,015), a dual-labeled oligonucleotide probe hybridizes to the nascent amplification product during PCR. Fluorescence is detected when the 5'-3' exonuclease activity of DNA polymerase hydrolyzes the probe between the two fluorophores.

[0036] Molecular beacons are hairpin-shaped dual-labeled probes that unravel when the probe binds to its target. This unraveling separates the FRET pair and allows detection of the fluorescence of the donor fluorophore. Tyagi S et al. (1996) Molecular beacons: probes that fluoresce upon hybridization. Nat Biotechnol. 14(3):303.

[0037] Nucleic acid substrates labeled with two fluorophores capable of conditional fluorescence that form a FRET pair can be used to detect in vitro enzyme activity. Enzyme activity can indicate, for example, the presence of an infectious agent in a sample. The use of a probe labeled with a fluorophore and a quencher fluorophore to detect microbial contamination is described in U.S. Pat. No. 10,663,459. According to this method, the presence of microorganisms in a sample leads to cleavage of the probe by one or more nucleases (e.g., endonucleases or exonucleases). All possible cleavage results in the physical separation of the fluorophore and the quencher, and the release of detectable fluorescence that indicates the presence of microorganisms in the sample.

[0038] A similar principle is used in US Patent No. 10,653,800, where an RNA substrate incorporates 2'-O-methyl modified pyrimidines and is uniquely sensitive to mycoplasmal RNase. The substrate is labeled with a fluorophore and a quencher. The presence of mycoplasma in the sample results in digestion of the probe by mycoplasmal RNase and the emission of detectable fluorescence, which indicates the presence of mycoplasma in the sample.

[0039] Double-stranded nucleic acid substrates labeled with fluorophores and quenchers have also been used to detect the specific editing activity of CRISPR endonucleases. For example, Smith et al. (2020) Probing CRISPR-Cas12a Nuclease Activity Using Double-Stranded DNA-Templated Fluorescent Substrates, Biochemistry 59:1474, describes the cleavage of such substrates by the trans-cleavage ("trans-shredding") activity of CRISPR Cas12a nuclease. The trans-shredding activity is triggered by binding of the Cas12a-crRNA complex to a double-stranded DNA target. The trans-shredding nuclease activity is directed to any double-stranded DNA in the vicinity of the Cas12a-crRNA-target complex. Shredding of the fluorophore- and quencher-labeled substrate results in the emission of detectable fluorescence indicative of the formation of Cas12a-crRNA-target complexes in the sample.

[0040] The activity of CRISPR-Cas nucleases is typically measured by incubating ribonucleoprotein complexes (RNPs) with model substrates followed by separation of cleaved fragments from intact substrates by agarose gel electrophoresis. This approach is low throughput and is generally limited to end-point analysis, thus providing little or no information regarding reaction kinetics.

[0041] A fluorescence-based assay has also been described for Cas12a, but this assay only measures the nonspecific trans activity of the Cas12a enzyme (see Smith CW, Biochemistry.2020, supra). When Cas12a RNP binds to and cleaves a target sequence (cis activity), Cas12a is activated to nonspecifically degrade short fragments of DNA (trans activity or "trans-shredding" activity). Measuring trans activity as an indicator of cis activity has several limitations. First, the exact correlation between cis activity and trans activity is unclear. Second, surrogate assays provide limited kinetic information on cis activity, since the two reactions are performed by the same enzyme and cannot be separated. Finally, many endonucleases do not exhibit trans activity, making this assay lacking general applicability.

[0042] A fluorescent assay for measuring Cas9 activity was developed in 2018 (see Seamon et al., (2018), Versatile High-Throughput Fluorescence Assay for Monitoring Cas9 Activity, Anal. Chem., 2018, 90, 11, pp. 6913-6921). However, this assay only provides end-point analysis and not real-time data, as it relies on denaturation of the DNA substrate after endonuclease cleavage.

[0043] The present invention overcomes these shortcomings by providing a convenient real-time assay for endonuclease activity. The present invention includes a simple, high-throughput, fluorescence-based assay as a validation and quality control tool.

[0044] The present invention further includes diagnostic assays for the specific activity of the endonuclease which are indicative of the presence of the diagnostic target in a sample.

[0045] In some embodiments, the present invention is a substrate molecule for detecting and evaluating the activity of an endonuclease. As shown in FIG. 1, panel A, in some embodiments, the substrate is a nucleic acid having at least one double-stranded region. In some embodiments, the substrate is single-stranded. In some embodiments, the substrate is a double-stranded nucleic acid comprising two nucleic acid strands that form a duplex through hybridization. In other embodiments, the substrate is a single nucleic acid strand that forms a secondary structure comprising a double-stranded region, such as a hairpin, through hybridization. Those skilled in the art will recognize that hybridization and formation of a double-stranded region does not require 100% complementarity over the entire length of the nucleic acid strand. Under suitable conditions defined by the ionic strength of the buffer and temperature, stable hybrids (double-stranded regions) may result where the complementarity between the two nucleic acid strands is less than 100%, for example, 90%, 80%, 75% or less.

[0046] As further seen in FIG. 1, the nucleic acid substrate includes a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore (or a reporter fluorophore and a quencher fluorophore) that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair.

[0047] The fluorophores and quenchers can be placed at various locations on the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate. Furthermore, multiple fluorophores can be used. As shown in Figure 10, the fluorophores and quenchers can be placed on the target strand, the non-target strand, and both the target strand and the non-target strand.

[0048] Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), also known as Foerster (or Forster) resonance energy transfer, is the transfer of excitation energy from one molecule to another without fluorescence and reabsorption. A donor chromophore enters an electronically excited state after absorbing light of a specific wavelength. The donor transfers the energy to the acceptor, which is elevated to an electronically excited state. The acceptor's electronically excited state then decays, resulting in the emission of detectable light. Because the acceptor reduces, or quenches, the fluorescence of the donor, the acceptor is sometimes called the quencher. The donor is sometimes called the reporter. In conventional FRET technology, both the donor and acceptor are fluorophores. The donor fluorophore absorbs light at a specific absorption wavelength, and the acceptor emits light at a specific emission wavelength that is longer than the absorption wavelength. FRET occurs when the donor and acceptor are in close proximity (e.g., 1-10 nm). In some embodiments, the donor and acceptor fluorophores are positioned 0-12 nucleotides apart. The donor and acceptor fluorophores are positioned on the same strand of the substrate or on different (opposite) strands of the substrate. Either the donor, the acceptor, or both the donor and the acceptor can be positioned near the ends of the nucleic acid strand, for example, the 5' or 3' ends. The donor and acceptor fluorophores can be on the same strand or on opposite strands. Those skilled in the art will recognize various options for positioning the donor and acceptor fluorophores (or the reporter fluorophore and the quencher) within the double-stranded substrate to achieve the desired proximity of the fluorophores (e.g., 1-10 nm).

[0049] Existing literature provides ample guidance for the selection of appropriate reporter-quencher pairs capable of FRET. See, for example, U.S. Patent Nos. 5,538,848; 8,350,038; and 8,137,616. In general, as recommended in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US20060088855, the donor fluorophore absorbs in the range of 350-800 nm, preferably 350-600 nm or 500-750 nm, and the distance between the donor and acceptor is 10-100 angstroms. See, for example, Pesce et al., eds., Fluorescence Spectroscopy (Marcel Dekker, New York, 1971); White et al., Fluorescence Analysis: A Practical Approach (Marcel Dekker, New York, 1970); Berlman, Handbook of Fluorescence Spectra of Aromatic Molecules, 2nd ed. (Academic Press, New York, 1971); Griffiths, Color and Constitution of Organic Molecules (Academic Press, New York, 1976); Bishop, ed., Indicators (Pergamon Press, Oxford, 1972); Haugland, Handbook of Fluorescent Probes and Research Chemicals (Molecular Probes, Eugene, 1992); Pringsheim, Fluorescence and Phosphorescence (Interscience Publishers, New York, 1949);

[0050] Many donors, acceptors, and donor / acceptor pairs that exhibit the FRET phenomenon are commercially available. Popular donors include fluorescein dyes such as 5-carboxyfluorescein (5-FAM), 6-carboxyfluorescein (6-FAM), 2',4',1,4,-tetrachlorofluorescein (TET), 2',4',5',7',1,4-hexachlorofluorescein (HEX), and 2',7'-dimethoxy-4',5'-dichloro-6-carboxyfluorescein (JOE). Other donors include coumarin dyes, the Alexa Fluor family of dyes, IRDye 800CW, Cascade Blue, Pacific Blue, Pacific Orange, and Texas Red. Popular acceptors include rhodamine dyes such as tetramethyl-6-carboxyrhodamine (TAMRA) and tetrapropano-6-carboxyrhodamine (ROX), cyanine dyes including DABSYL, DABCYL, Cy5 and Cy5.5, anthraquinones, nitrothiazoles, and nitroimidazole compounds. Additional acceptors include LC-Red610, LC-Red640, LC-Red705, JA286, DDQ-I, DDQ-II, QSY-7, QSY-21, IRDye QC1, Iowa Black FQ and Iowa Black RQ, and sulfonated cyanine dyes disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,027,709. Popular donor and acceptor combinations include fluorescein / rhodamine, especially carboxyfluorescein / tetramethyl-rhodamine (FAM / TAMRA). TAMRA as a quencher can also be paired with donors such as HEX (hexachloro-fluorescein), TET (tetrachloro-fluorescein), JOE (5'-dichloro-dimethoxy-fluorescein) and cyanine dyes. Another donor / acceptor pair is disclosed in US Pat. No. 9,796,746, which consists of an oxidized carbaNADH-based first fluorophore and a second fluorophore that is excitable with light having a wavelength between 445 and 540 nm and an emission maximum above 560 nm.

[0051] Another group of fluorescent compounds are the naphthylamines, which have an amino group at the alpha or beta position. Such naphthylamino compounds include 1-dimethyl-aminonaphthyl-5-sulfonate, 1-anilino-8-naphthalenesulfonate, and 2-p-toluidinyl-6-naphthalenesulfonate. Other dyes include acridines such as 3-phenyl-7-isocyanatocoumarin, 9-isothiocyanatoacridine, and acridine orange; N-(p-(2-benzoxazolyl)phenyl)maleimide; benzoxadiazoles, stilbenes, and pyrenes.

[0052] Another category of fluorophores are the BODIPY® dyes described in U.S. Patent No. 5,994,063. "BODIPY®" is a class of modified, spectrally discriminatory fluorophores whose parent heterocyclic molecules are dipyrrometheneboron difluoride compounds. Most BODIPY® fluorophores have an absorption maximum of about 450-700 and an emission maximum of about 450-700. Examples include BODIPY® 503 / 512-SE (4,4-difluoro-5,7-dimethyl-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-propionic acid), BODIPY® 523 / 547 (4,4-difluoro-5-phenyl-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-propionic acid), BODIPY® 530 / 550 (4,4-difluoro-5,7-diphenyl-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-propionic acid), BODIPY® 558 / 568 (4,4-difluoro-5-(2-thienyl)-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-propionic acid), BODIPY® 570 / 572 (4,4-difluoro-5-(2-thienyl)-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-propionic acid), BODIPY® 575 / 576 (4,4-difluoro-5-(2-thienyl)-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-propionic acid), BODIPY® 578 / 579 (4,4-difluoro-5-(2-thienyl)-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-propionic acid), BODIPY® 579 / 578 ... BODIPY® 576 / 589 (4,4-difluoro-5-(2-pyrrolyl)-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-propionic acid), and BODIPY® 581 / 591 (4,4-difluoro-5-(4-phenyl-1,3-butadienyl)-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-propionic acid).

[0053] One type of quencher is the "dark quencher." These non-fluorescent acceptors allow for low background fluorescence, thus improving assay sensitivity. When a dark quencher is used, the donor fluorophore does not emit light until the quencher is removed from the vicinity of the donor. For example, if the donor and quencher are conjugated to an oligonucleotide, donor fluorescence can occur only when the quencher is removed by hydrolysis of the oligonucleotide by a nuclease. One example of a dark quencher is DABCYL (4-[[4-(dimethylamino)-phenyl]-azo]-benzoic acid), which quenches donor dyes in the 380-530 nm range. Another dark quencher is the Eclipse quencher (4-[[2-chloro-4-nitro-phenyl]-azo]-aniline (available from Epoch Biosciences, Inc.), which has an absorption maximum at 530 nm and quenches efficiently across the spectrum from 520 to 670 nm. Yet another category of dark quenchers are the black hole quenchers, such as BHQ-1 ([(4-(2-nitro-4-methyl-phenyl)-azo)-yl-((2-methoxy-5-methyl-phenyl)-azo)]-aniline) and BHQ-2 ([(4-(1-nitro-phenyl)-azo)-yl-((2,5-dimethoxy-phenyl)-azo)]-aniline) (all available from Biosearch Technologies, Inc.).

[0054] Another type of quencher includes pyridinyl-isoquinoline-dione derivatives disclosed in US Patent No. 8,350,038. These compounds feature low background signal and high quenching efficiency. Yet another category of quenchers is the non-fluorescent cyanine quencher compounds linked to the base of nucleotide via linker compounds disclosed in US Patent No. 6,348,596. Yet another category of quenchers is the weakly luminescent cyanines substituted by one or more heteroaromatic quenching moieties disclosed in US Patent No. 8,093,411. These quenchers show little or no observable emission and efficiently quench a wide range of luminescent compounds.

[0055] Methods for synthesizing oligonucleotides and covalently attaching fluorophores to nucleic acids are known in the art. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,996,345; 4,351,760; 4,757,141; 4,739,044; 4,997,928; 5,538,848; 5,188,934; 5,231,191; and 7,759,469; as well as Eckstein (ed.), Oligonucleotides and Analogues: A Practical Approach (IRL Press, Oxford, 1991); Zuckerman et al., Nucleic Acids Research, 15:5305-5321 (1987) (3' thiol groups on oligonucleotides); Sharma et al., Nucleic Acids Research, 19:3019 (1991) (3' sulfhydryls); Giusti et al., PCR Methods and See, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2004, 231-232 (1993); Agrawal et al., Tetrahedron Letters, 31:1543-1546 (1990) (linkage via phosphoramidate linkage); Sproat et al., Nucleic Acids Research, 15:4837 (1987) (5' mercapto group); Nelson et al., Nucleic Acids Research, 17:7187-7194 (1989) (3' amino group). Functional groups and linking moieties can be used to synthesize labeled nucleic acid probes. As commonly used, presynthesized fluorophore-labeled nucleotides are incorporated into oligonucleotides using standard phosphoramidite-based chemistry. By incorporating such nucleotides at desired positions in the oligonucleotide, donor and acceptor fluorophores can be incorporated into any internal or terminal position in the oligonucleotide. In presynthesized fluorophore-labeled nucleotides, the label may be attached, for example, to a functional group attached to the amino group of the base of the nucleotide, hi other embodiments, the label is attached to a portion of the nucleotide via a linking moiety.For example, in some embodiments, the nucleotide base is modified to allow for conjugation to a label. For example, U.S. Patent No. 7,759,469 discloses substituted nitroindole nucleotides that can be conjugated to a fluorophore.

[0056] In some embodiments, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate is about 10 to about 90 base pairs in length. For example, for the endonuclease Cas12a, the substrate may be 35 to 90 base pairs in length, including a PAM (5 nt), a spacer (20 nt), and end protection (5 nt at each end) for a total of 35 base pairs. In general, endonucleases have recognition sequences of various sizes and structures. Thus, for each endonuclease tested, the optimal length of the substrate can be determined using the above calculations. The optimal length and sequence can be determined in silico or found empirically. Such an optimal length allows for the most efficient digestion by the endonuclease without steric hindrance, without having excess length. Excess length is associated with excess production costs, and requires additional units of exonuclease and additional time to perform the methods described herein. The optimal length of the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate for each endonuclease tested can be determined by one or more of such considerations.

[0057] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid substrate of the present invention comprises a chemical modification. In some embodiments, the modification increases the stability of the nucleic acid duplex. In some embodiments, the modification provides resistance to nuclease digestion or inhibition of nucleases. In some embodiments, the modification provides resistance to exonuclease digestion or inhibition of exonucleases.

[0058] In some embodiments, the modification is a backbone modification. One type of backbone modification is a modified internucleoside linkage. For example, modifications include phosphorothioate linkages and heteroatom internucleoside linkages.

[0059] Another type of backbone modification is the modification of the sugar moiety. In some embodiments, the modification involves the incorporation of a 6-membered morpholino ring in place of the ribose or deoxyribose ring. Another backbone modification involves the incorporation of a cyclohexenyl ring in place of the ribose or deoxyribose (ceNA). Yet another backbone modification involves the incorporation of locked nucleic acid (LNA), in which a 2'-hydroxyl group is attached to the 4' carbon atom of ribose to form a bicyclic structure with a 2'-C,4'-C-oxymethylene bond. LNA is characterized by duplex stability and resistance to 3'-5' exonuclease digestion.

[0060] In some embodiments, the modification is a nitrogenous base modification. For example, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate may comprise one or more of 5-methylcytosine (5-me-C), 5-hydroxymethylcytosine, xanthine, hypoxanthine, 2-aminoadenine, 6-methyl and other alkyl derivatives of adenine and guanine, 2-propyl and other alkyl derivatives of adenine and guanine, 2-thiouracil, 2-thiothymine and 2-thiocytosine, 5-halouracil and cytosine, 5-propynyl (-C=C-CH3) uracil and other alkynyl derivatives of cytosine and pyrimidine bases, 6-azouracil, cytosine and and thymine, 5-uracil (pseudouracil), 4-thiouracil, 8-halo, 8-amino, 8-thiol, 8-thioalkyl, 8-hydroxyl and other 8-substituted adenines and guanines, 5-halo, particularly 5-bromo, 5-trifluoromethyl and other 5-substituted uracils and cytosines, 7-methylguanine and 7-methyladenine, 2-F-adenine, 2-aminoadenine, 8-azaguanine and 8-azaadenine, 7-deazaguanine and 7-deazaadenine, and 3-deazaguanine and 3-deazaadenine may be incorporated. Modified nucleobases include tricyclic pyrimidines such as phenoxazine cytidine (1H-pyrimido(5,4-b)(1,4)benzoxazin-2(3H)-one), phenothiazine cytidine (1H-pyrimido(5,4-b)(1,4)benzothiazin-2(3H)-one), G-clamps such as substituted phenoxazine cytidines (e.g. 9-(2-aminoethoxy)-H-pyrimido(5,4-(b)(1,4)benzoxazin-2(3H)-one), carbazole cytidine (2H-pyrimido(4,5-b)indole-2-one), ion), pyridoindole cytidine (H pyrido(3',2':4,5) pyrrolo(2,3-d) pyrimidin-2-one), 7-deaza-adenine, 7-deazaguanosine, 2-aminopyridine and 2-pyridone. Nucleobases may be useful for increasing the binding affinity of polynucleotide compounds. These may include 5-substituted pyrimidines, 6-azapyrimidines, and N-2, N-6 and 0-6 substituted purines, such as 2-aminopropyladenine, 5-propynyluracil and 5-propynylcytosine.5-methylcytosine substitutions can increase nucleic acid duplex stability by 0.6-1.2 °C and may be a preferred base substitution (e.g., when combined with a 2'-O-methoxyethyl sugar modification).

[0061] As will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, a nucleic acid modification should not be included in the recognition site for the endonuclease being tested if the modification may interfere with endonuclease activity, unless it has been established that the endonuclease is not inhibited by the modification.Similarly, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, a nucleic acid modification known to inhibit exonuclease digestion should not be included in the portion of the substrate located between the endonuclease recognition site and the fluorophore, so as not to prevent or inhibit the performance of the methods described herein.

[0062] The methods and compositions described herein utilize exonucleases. Exonucleases are known in the art and many are commercially available. See, for example, Lovett ST (2011). The DNA Exonucleases of Escherichia coli. EcoSal Plus, 4(2) and Shevelev, I., Hubscher, U. (2002) The 3'-5'exonucleases. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 3, 364-376. Many exonucleases are available from New England Biolabs (Ipswich, Mass.). For example, Exonuclease I, Exonuclease T, and Exonuclease VII are 3'-5' exonucleases that are active against single-stranded DNA. RecJf is a 5'-3' exonuclease that is active against single-stranded DNA. Exonuclease III is a 3'-5' exonuclease active on single-stranded and double-stranded DNA. T7 exonuclease, exonuclease V, exonuclease VIII, lambda exonuclease, and T5 exonuclease are 5'-3' exonucleases active on single-stranded and double-stranded DNA. Exonuclease V (RecBCD) and BAL-31 are simultaneously 5'-3' and 3'-5' exonucleases active on single-stranded and double-stranded DNA. Depending on the type of nucleic acid terminus generated by the action of the endonuclease to be tested, one skilled in the art can select an appropriate exonuclease. The appropriate exonuclease utilizes one or more termini generated by the endonuclease to hydrolyze the nucleic acid substrate described herein. Hydrolysis by the exonuclease separates the FRET pair of fluorophores (eg, donor and acceptor or reporter and quencher) such that fluorescence or a change in fluorescence can be detected.

[0063] As shown in Figure 1, the substrate contains a structure at at least one of the ends that inhibits or prevents digestion by an exonuclease. The selection of the exonuclease included in the methods, compositions and kits described herein informs the selection of the exonuclease inhibitor structure that results in end protection in the nucleic acid substrate. For example, if the preferred substrate for the exonuclease is the 3' end, the nucleic acid substrate has an exonuclease inhibitor structure at each of the 3' ends. If the preferred substrate for the exonuclease is the 5' end, the nucleic acid substrate has an exonuclease inhibitor structure at each of the 5' ends. If the exonuclease has activity on both the 3' end and the 5' end, the nucleic acid substrate has an exonuclease inhibitor structure at each of the 3' end and the 5' end.

[0064] The choice of exonuclease should also be matched to the type of cleavage and available ends generated by the endonuclease being tested: the exonuclease (or mixture of exonucleases) should be inhibited by the inhibitory structures present at the ends of nucleic acid substrates described herein, and should have activity against the types of ends (protruding, blunt or recessed, hydroxyl or phosphoryl) generated by the endonuclease being tested.

[0065] In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nickase, i.e., an endonuclease that cuts only one strand of a double strand and generates a nick. In this embodiment, the exonuclease can be, for example, exonuclease III, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, and BAL31 exonuclease.

[0066] In some embodiments, the endonuclease cleaves both strands of the duplex to generate a double-stranded break. In some embodiments, the double-stranded break has a blunt end. In some embodiments, the double-stranded break has a staggered end. In some embodiments, the zigzag end can have a protruding 3' end. In some embodiments, the zigzag end can have a protruding 5' end. A person skilled in the art would be able to select an exonuclease (or a mixture of two or more exonucleases) capable of initiating hydrolysis in the desired direction from a particular type of end generated by the endonuclease being tested. For example, New England Biolabs, Inc. (Ipswich, Mass.) publishes a list of available exonucleases grouped by biochemical properties (e.g., type of end required and directionality of hydrolysis).

[0067] As further seen in FIG. 1, panel B, the substrate comprises a recognition sequence (or recognition site) for an endonuclease. Depending on the endonuclease being tested, the recognition site may comprise a cleavage site and may have one or more additional elements. In some embodiments, the endonuclease being tested is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease. In some embodiments, the endonuclease being tested is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease or a CRISPR class II endonuclease. In some embodiments, the endonuclease being tested is a CRISPR Cas9 or a CRISPR Cas12a (Cpf1) endonuclease.

[0068] In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a deoxyribonuclease and the substrate is single-stranded or double-stranded DNA. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a ribonuclease and the substrate is single-stranded or double-stranded RNA. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a ribonuclease, such as a ribozyme, a hammerhead ribozyme, a DNAzyme, a PNAzyme, or an engineered endoribonuclease, such as the type described in Choudhury, R. et al., (2012) Engineering RNA endonucleases with customized sequence specificities. Nature Comm., 3:1147.

[0069] In some embodiments, the endonuclease to be tested is the endonuclease encoded by or related to CRISPR locus.CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) genome locus is found in many prokaryotic genomes and provides resistance to the invasion of foreign nucleic acid.The structure, nomenclature and classification of CRISPR locus are reviewed in Makarova et al., Evolution and classification of the CRISPR-Cas systems.Nature Reviews Microbiology.2011 June;9(6):467-477.

[0070] Briefly, a typical CRISPR locus contains several short repeats with spacers regularly inserted. CRISPR loci also contain coding sequences for CRISPR-associated (Cas) genes. The spacer-repeat sequence unit encodes the crisprRNA (crRNA). In vivo, mature crRNA is processed from a polycistronic transcript called pre-crRNA or pre-crRNA array. Repeats in the pre-crRNA array are recognized by Cas-encoded proteins that bind to the repeats and cleave them to release the mature crRNA. The CRISPR system performs the cleavage of the target nucleic acid, and the Cas proteins and crRNA form the CRISPR ribonucleoprotein (crRNP). The crRNA molecule guides the crRNP to the target nucleic acid (e.g., a foreign nucleic acid entering a bacterial cell), and the Cas nuclease protein cleaves the target nucleic acid.

[0071] Class 1, type I CRISPR systems contain a means for processing the pre-crRNA array that includes a multiprotein complex called Cascade (CRISPR-associated complex for antiviral defense), composed of subunits CasA, B, C, D and E. The Cascade-crRNA complex recognizes the target nucleic acid through hybridization of the target nucleic acid with the crRNA. The bound nucleoprotein complex recruits the Cas3 helicase / nuclease to facilitate cleavage of the target nucleic acid.

[0072] Class 2, type II CRISPR systems contain a trans-activating CRISPR RNA (tracrRNA). The tracrRNA hybridizes to the crRNA repeats in the pre-crRNA array and recruits endogenous RNaseIII to cleave the pre-crRNA array. The tracrRNA / crRNA complex can associate with a nuclease, e.g., Cas9. The crRNA-tracrRNA-Cas9 complex recognizes the target nucleic acid through hybridization of the target nucleic acid with the crRNA. When the crRNA hybridizes to the target nucleic acid, the Cas9 nuclease is activated and cleaves the target nucleic acid.

[0073] Class 1, type III CRISPR systems comprise the RAMP superfamily of endoribonucleases (e.g., Cas6) that cleave the pre-crRNA array using one or more CRISPR polymerase-like proteins.

[0074] Class 2, type V CRISPR systems contain a distinct set of Cas-like genes, including Csf1, Csf2, Csf3 and Csf4, which are distant homologs of Cas genes in type I-III CRISPR systems.

[0075] As shown in FIG. 1, panel B, the substrate comprises a recognition sequence (or recognition site) for an endonuclease. In some embodiments, the recognition sequence and the cleavage site are the same. In some embodiments, the recognition site is a palindromic sequence characteristic of a type II restriction endonuclease, and cleavage occurs within the palindromic sequence. In some embodiments, the recognition sequence is different from the cleavage site. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRSIPR Cas9 endonuclease, the recognition sequence is a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM), and the cleavage site is adjacent to the PAM. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRSIPR Cas12a endonuclease, the recognition sequence is a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM), and the cleavage site is 16-18 bases away from the PAM on the non-target strand and 23-25 ​​bases away from the PAM on the target strand. See Strohkendl, I. et al. (2018) Kinetic Basis for DNA Target Specificity of CRISPR-Cas12a, Mol. Cell, 71(5):816-824.e3.

[0076] In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nickase, i.e., an endonuclease that cuts only one strand of a duplex and generates a nick. In some embodiments, the endonuclease cuts both strands of a duplex and generates a double-stranded break. The double-stranded break can have a blunt end or a zigzag end. The zigzag end can have a protruding 3' end or a protruding 5' end. The 5' end can have a 5'-phosphoryl or 5'-hydroxyl group, and the 3' end can have a 3'-phosphoryl or 3'-hydroxyl group.

[0077] CRISPR nucleases do not cleave fixed sequences, but are guided by nucleic acid guides as described above. In addition to guide RNA, CRISPR nucleases recognize additional sequences called protospacer adjacent motifs (PAMs). In some embodiments, the substrate of the present invention comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM). In embodiments where the endonuclease being tested is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease, the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In embodiments where the endonuclease being tested is a CRISPR class II endonuclease, the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', and 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'.

[0078] CRISPR nucleases do not cleave fixed recognition sequences, but are guided by a nucleic acid guide called a "guide RNA" (herein referred to as a "nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA)"). The guide RNA (NATNA) contains a "spacer" sequence that is complementary to the endonuclease cleavage site. In embodiments where the endonuclease being tested is a CRISPR endonuclease, the substrate contains a target sequence that can hybridize to a portion of the NATNA (the "spacer").

[0079] In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease. A reaction mixture containing such an endonuclease further requires a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA). In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR endonuclease, and the NATNA is a guide RNA. The endonuclease is capable of forming a ribonucleoprotein complex (RNP) with one or more guide RNAs. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a class 2, type II CRISPR endonuclease, and the NATNA comprises a tracrRNA and a crRNA. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a class 2, type V CRISPR endonuclease, and the NATNA comprises a crRNA.

[0080] In some embodiments, the NATNA is selected from the embodiments described in U.S. Patent No. 9,260,752. Briefly, the NATNA may comprise, in the order of 5' to 3', a spacer extension, a spacer, a minimal CRISPR repeat, a single guide connector, a minimal tracrRNA, a 3'tracrRNA sequence, and a tracrRNA extension. In some cases, the nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid may comprise, in any order, a tracrRNA extension, a 3'tracrRNA sequence, a minimal tracrRNA, a single guide connector, a minimal CRISPR repeat, a spacer, and a spacer extension.

[0081] In some embodiments, the guide nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid may comprise a single guide NATNA. The NATNA comprises a spacer sequence that can be engineered to hybridize to the target nucleic acid sequence. The NATNA further comprises a CRISPR repeat that comprises a sequence that can hybridize to the tracrRNA sequence. In some cases, the NATNA may have a spacer extension and a tracrRNA extension. These elements may include elements that can contribute to the stability of the NATNA. The CRISPR repeat and the tracrRNA sequence can interact to form a base-paired double-stranded structure. This structure may facilitate the binding of an endonuclease to the NATNA.

[0082] In some embodiments, the single-guide NATNA comprises a spacer sequence located 5' of the first duplex that comprises a region of hybridization between the minimal CRISPR repeats and the minimal tracrRNA sequence. There may be a bulge in the middle of the first duplex. The bulge facilitates recruitment of an endonuclease to the NATNA. The bulge may be followed by a first stem that comprises a linker connecting the minimal CRISPR repeats and the minimal tracrRNA sequence. The last paired nucleotide at the 3' end of the first duplex may be connected to a second linker that connects the first duplex to the mid-tracrRNA. The mid-tracrRNA may comprise one or more additional hairpins.

[0083] In some embodiments, NATNA can comprise a double guide nucleic acid structure.Double guide NATNA comprises a spacer extension, a spacer, a minimal CRISPR repeat, a minimal tracrRNA sequence, a 3'tracrRNA sequence, and a tracrRNA extension.Double guide NATNA does not comprise a single guide connector.Instead, the minimal CRISPR repeat sequence comprises a 3'CRISPR repeat sequence, and the minimal tracrRNA sequence comprises a 5'tracrRNA sequence, and the double guide NATNA can hybridize via the minimal CRISPR repeat and the minimal tracrRNA sequence.

[0084] In some embodiments, the NATNA is an engineered guide RNA (CRISPR hybrid RDNA or chRDNA) that contains one or more DNA residues. In some embodiments, the NATNA is selected from the embodiments described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,650,617. Briefly, some chRDNAs used in class 2 CRISPR systems may be composed of two strands that form a secondary structure that includes an upper duplex region, a lower duplex region, a bulge, a targeting region, a nexus, and an activation region that is composed of one or more hairpins. The nucleotide sequence immediately downstream of the targeting region may contain various proportions of DNA and RNA. Other chRDNAs may be single guide D(R)NAs used in type II CRISPR systems that include a targeting region and an activation region that is composed of a lower duplex region, an upper duplex region, a fusion region, a bulge, a nexus, and one or more hairpins. The nucleotide sequence immediately downstream of the targeting region may contain various proportions of DNA and RNA. For example, the targeting region can comprise DNA or a mixture of DNA and RNA, and the activation region can comprise RNA or a mixture of DNA and RNA.

[0085] In some embodiments, the guide RNA comprises a nucleic acid modification, e.g., a modification that confers resistance to ribonucleases, a feature that is particularly advantageous in the crude lysate assay described below.

[0086] In some embodiments, the endonuclease to be tested is a restriction endonuclease. In some embodiments, the endonuclease to be tested is a type II, type II, or type IV restriction endonuclease. The substrate of the present invention contains the appropriate recognition sequence for each endonuclease. In the case of a type IV restriction endonuclease, the substrate of the present invention also contains one or more methylated residues required for cleavage by the endonuclease.

[0087] In embodiments in which the endonuclease being tested is a zinc finger nuclease (ZFN), or a ZFN conjugated to the non-specific cleavage domain of the restriction endonuclease Fok I, the target sequence is about 22-52 bases in length and comprises a pair of ZFN recognition sequences, each 9-18 nucleotides in length and separated by a spacer, which is 4-18 nucleotides in length (see, e.g., Kim YG et al. (1996). Hybrid resticrion enzymes: zinc finger fusions to Fok I cleavage domain, Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 93(3):1156-1160).

[0088] In embodiments in which the endonuclease being tested is a Transcription Activator-Like Effector Nuclease (TALEN), or a TALEN-Fok I fusion, the target sequence is approximately 48-85 nucleotides in length and comprises a pair of TALEN recognition sequences, each 18-30 bases in length and separated by a spacer, which is 12-25 bases in length (see, e.g., Christian M. et al. (2010) Targeting DNA double-strand breaks with TAL effector nucleases, Genetics. 186(2):757-61).

[0089] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested is an Argonaute (Ago) endonuclease. Ago endonucleases have no recognition sequence but are guided by small interfering DNA guides (siDNA) to cleave complementary DNA. Hegge et al. (2019) DNA-guided DNA cleavage at moderate temperatures by Clostridium butyricum Argonaute, NAR47(11):5809.

[0090] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested is Arcus endonuclease. Arcus is an I-CreI endonuclease with a target sequence of 22 bases (see, e.g., Durrenberger et al. (1991) Double-strand break induced recombination in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii chloroplasts, NAR24(17):3323).

[0091] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested is an endoribonuclease and the substrate comprises RNA. In some embodiments, the substrate is single-stranded RNA. In some embodiments, the substrate is double-stranded RNA. In some embodiments, the substrate is an RNA-DNA hybrid. The exonuclease used in such assays is an exodeoxyribonuclease or an exoribonuclease, as appropriate for the substrate selected. Examples of endoribonucleases that cleave one or more of such substrates include RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P. Another example of an endoribonuclease is a CRISPR endoribonuclease selected from Cas13 and Cas7-11.

[0092] Examples of exoribonucleases include those that cleave in the 3'-5' direction, such as RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, and those that cleave in the 5'-3' direction, such as exoribonuclease I and exoribonuclease II.

[0093] In some embodiments, the present invention is a method for detecting the activity of an endonuclease using the substrate described herein. As shown in Figure 1, panel B, the method includes contacting the endonuclease to be tested with a reaction mixture containing: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore (or a reporter fluorophore and a quencher fluorophore) that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair, and a double-stranded nucleic acid substrate that contains a recognition sequence for the endonuclease to be tested. The reaction mixture is incubated under conditions suitable for endonuclease cleavage of the recognition sequence.

[0094] The method further comprises contacting the reaction mixture with an exonuclease. The exonuclease, substrate, and endonuclease may be added simultaneously or sequentially in any order.

[0095] As shown in FIG. 1, panels B-C, the structure of the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate is such that an exonuclease does not hydrolyze the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate until endonuclease cleavage occurs. A suitable end of the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate includes a structure that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by an exonuclease. Depending on the end generated by the endonuclease, as described herein, the exonuclease is a 3'-5' exonuclease and the 3' end of the substrate is protected by an exonuclease inhibitor structure. In other embodiments, the exonuclease is a 5'-3' exonuclease and the 5' end of the substrate is protected by an exonuclease inhibitor structure. In some embodiments, a mixture of a 3'-5' exonuclease and a 5'-3' exonuclease is used. In such embodiments, both the 3' and 5' ends of the substrate are protected by an exonuclease inhibitor structure.

[0096] As shown in Figure 1, panel C, the reaction mixture is further incubated under conditions suitable for exonuclease cleavage of the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate. In some embodiments, the conditions for endonuclease cleavage and subsequent exonuclease cleavage are the same. In such embodiments, no modification of buffer or incubation conditions is required. In some embodiments, no purification step is performed between contacting the reaction mixture with the endonuclease and contacting the reaction mixture with the exonuclease.

[0097] One advantage of this method is that the fluorophore and quencher can be placed in close proximity, minimizing background signal and avoiding steric effects that are likely to occur when a fluorophore-quencher pair is incorporated near the cleavage site, for example with the fluorophore on one side and the quencher on the other.

[0098] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested by the method is nucleic acid-guided endonuclease.In such embodiments, NATNA is also utilized in the method.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is CRISPR endonuclease, and NATNA is guide RNA.

[0099] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested by the method is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate used in the method comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In embodiments in which the endonuclease tested by the method is a CRISPR class II endonuclease, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate used in the method comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', and 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'.

[0100] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested by the method is one of zinc finger nuclease (ZFN), ZFN conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN), EndoTT single-stranded endonuclease, Argonaute endonuclease, Arcus endonuclease, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonuclease.In these embodiments, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate used in the method comprises a suitable recognition site.

[0101] In some embodiments, the method comprises screening, testing or comparing several endonucleases.In these embodiments, the method comprises contacting a series of reaction mixtures comprising the same components with a series of different endonucleases.In some embodiments, the series of endonucleases is a series of nucleic acid-guided endonucleases, and the reaction mixtures in the series of reaction mixtures comprising the same components also comprise the same NATNA.In some embodiments, the series of endonucleases is a series of CRISPR endonucleases, and the reaction mixtures in the series of reaction mixtures comprising the same components also comprise the same guide RNA.

[0102] In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease, and the method comprises screening, testing or comparing several NATNAs.In these embodiments, the method comprises contacting a series of reaction mixtures comprising the same components, including the same endonuclease, with a series of different NATNAs.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR endonuclease, and the NATNA is a guide RNA.In these embodiments, the method comprises contacting a series of reaction mixtures comprising the same components, including the same CRISPR endonuclease, with a series of different guide RNAs.

[0103] In some embodiments, the method comprises screening, testing or comparing several formulations of the same endonuclease. In these embodiments, the method comprises contacting a series of reaction mixtures containing the same components with a series of different formulations of the same endonuclease. The different formulations can be different isolates of the same endonuclease. The different formulations can be elution aliquots from a chromatography procedure aimed at isolating the endonuclease. The invention comprises a method of monitoring the elution of the endonuclease by performing the endonuclease activity assay described herein on the elution fractions emerging from the chromatography procedure and retaining the elution fractions with the highest endonuclease activity.

[0104] In some embodiments, the method comprises screening, testing or comparing several nucleic acid sequences to identify the preferred or optimal target sequence for endonuclease.In these embodiments, the method comprises contacting a series of reaction mixtures comprising the same components, including the same endonuclease, with a series of double-stranded nucleic acid substrates having different sequences.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a CRISPR endonuclease, and the reaction mixtures in the series of reaction mixtures comprising the same components also comprise the same guide RNA.

[0105] In some embodiments, the method includes screening, testing, or comparing several reaction conditions to identify preferred or optimal reaction conditions for the endonuclease. In some embodiments, the method includes contacting a series of reaction mixtures containing different buffer compositions with the same endonuclease. In some embodiments, the series of reaction mixtures are also subjected to different temperature profiles during the endonuclease digestion step.

[0106] In some embodiments, the method involves screening, testing, or comparing several reaction conditions to identify a preferred or optimal endonuclease concentration in a nucleic acid cleavage reaction, hi some embodiments, the method involves contacting a series of reaction mixtures that are identical except for different concentrations of the same endonuclease being tested.

[0107] In some embodiments, the method includes screening, testing, or comparing several CRISPR polynucleotide guides (guide RNAs or gRNAs) to identify preferred or optimal gRNAs for CRISPR endonucleases. In these embodiments, the method includes contacting a series of reaction mixtures that are identical except for the guide RNAs. In some embodiments, the CRISPR polynucleotide guides include one or more DNA residues (CRISPR hybrid RDNA or chRDNA). In these embodiments, the method includes contacting a series of reaction mixtures that are identical except for the chRDNAs.

[0108] As shown in FIG. 1, panel D, the method then includes measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture, where a change in fluorescence indicates endonuclease activity. The change in fluorescence includes not only a change in color (wavelength) of the fluorescent signal, but also the appearance of fluorescence where no fluorescence was previously detectable. In some embodiments, the measurement is qualitative, indicating the presence or absence of endonuclease activity. In other embodiments, the measurement is quantitative, indicating the relative amount of endonuclease activity. In some embodiments, the change in fluorescence further includes a change in the intensity of fluorescence, and differences in fluorescence between samples tested.

[0109] In some embodiments, the methods described herein are performed using isolated nucleic acid substrates and isolated polypeptides (e.g., endonucleases and exonucleases). In other embodiments, the assays are performed using crude mixtures without substantial purification steps. In some embodiments, isolated or purified nucleic acid substrates are added to crude isolates or elution fractions of endonucleases, e.g., to rapidly assess the production or purification process of an endonuclease. In some embodiments, isolated or purified polypeptides (e.g., endonucleases and exonucleases) are added to crude isolates of nucleic acids, e.g., minimally processed patient samples, to rapidly detect the presence of infectious agents in a patient.

[0110] In some embodiments, the present invention is a double-stranded nucleic acid substrate and a method for producing the substrate.The substrate has exonuclease end protection, such as phosphorothioate bond.One, two, three, four, or about five phosphodiester bonds can be replaced with phosphorothioate bond.For example, when exonuclease III is used, phosphodiester bonds can be replaced with phosphorothioate bond at the 3' end of both strands.Optionally, the terminal phosphate moiety (if present) at the 3' end of each strand can be replaced with phosphorothioate.

[0111] The substrate also has a fluorophore (reporter) and a quencher. The reporter and quencher can be located near one end of one strand of the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate. One of the fluorophore and quencher can be attached to the end of one strand. For example, when using exonuclease III, one member of the fluorophore-quencher pair can be attached to the 5' end of the target strand, and the member can be attached to a nucleotide 1, 2, 3, 4, or about 5 nucleotides away from the end. For example, one strand can have a thymine-linked fluorescein at the 3rd nucleotide from the 5' end and an Iowa Black® quencher at the 5' end.

[0112] In some embodiments, the endonuclease being tested recognizes a sequence on both strands (e.g., a palindrome recognized by a type II restriction endonuclease). In some embodiments, the endonuclease being tested recognizes a sequence on one strand (e.g., a target sequence for a CRISPR Cas endonuclease). In such embodiments, the target nucleic acid has a target strand and a non-target strand. An example of a substrate for CRISPR Cas12a is shown in FIG. 7. The target strand of the substrate comprises a targetable sequence for the endonuclease being tested. For example, a cleavable site for Cas12a (Cpf1) is described in Zetsche, B. et al. (2015) Cpf1 is a single-RNA guided endonuclease of a Class II CRISPR-Cas system, Cell, 163:759. As shown in FIG. 7, the substrate further includes a spacer sequence recognized by the CRISPR guide nucleic acid, a fluorophore, a quencher, and exonuclease end protection such as phosphorothioate nucleotides at or near the end of each strand.

[0113] In some embodiments, the fluorophore is placed on the target strand. In some embodiments, the fluorophore is placed on the non-target strand. In some embodiments, the fluorophore is placed on both the target and non-target strands. Figure 10 shows the substrate of Figure 7 with an alternative fluorophore arrangement. In Figure 10, the light and dark blocks on the top strand represent the recognition (target) sequence for the CRISPR endonuclease (light blocks are PAMs, dark blocks are spacers). Fluorophores are represented as stars and quenchers as dark half-moons. The dark octagons represent exonuclease-inhibiting modifications such as phosphorothioate nucleotides.

[0114] In some embodiments, the placement of the fluorophores affects the performance of the assay (see Example 11 and Figures 11, 12 and 13).

[0115] A double-stranded nucleic acid substrate can be prepared by combining the two strands (a target strand and a complementary non-target strand) in a reaction mixture containing a suitable buffer (e.g., TE). For optimal annealing, the mixture may be heated to above 90° C. and allowed to cool to room temperature.

[0116] In some embodiments, the effectiveness of exonuclease protection is tested for each exonuclease intended for use in the endonuclease assay disclosed herein. For each double-stranded nucleic acid substrate described herein, a control double-stranded nucleic acid substrate lacking exonuclease protection is made. Both substrates are exposed to the exonuclease in a suitable buffer (e.g., NEBuffer1, pH 7.0 for exonuclease III and fluorescein) under suitable reaction conditions for both exonuclease activity and fluorescence, and fluorescence is measured, for example, by a fluorescence reader. If exonuclease protection is suitable for the exonuclease, a fluorescent signal is generated for the unprotected substrate, but not for the protected substrate.

[0117] In some embodiments, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate described herein is used to detect endonuclease activity. The substrate has exonuclease protection, fluorophore and quencher (e.g., one, two, three, four or about five phosphorothioate bonds at the 3' end of both strands, and thymine-linked fluorescein at the 3rd nucleotide from the 5' end of the target strand, and Iowa Black® quencher at the 5' end). The substrate is contacted with exonuclease and endonuclease in a suitable buffer (e.g., NEBuffer1, pH 7.0 for exonuclease III, AsCas12a and fluorescein) under suitable reaction conditions for exonuclease activity, endonuclease activity and fluorescence. Guidance for the selection of a suitable buffer can be obtained from endonuclease vendors (e.g., New England Biolabs for restriction endonucleases) or from published studies, such as Gasiunas, G. et al., (2020) A catalogue of biochemically diverse CRISPR-Cas9 orthologs, Nature Comm. 11, 5512 doi:10.1038 / s41467-020-19344-1.

[0118] When the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease, a nucleoprotein complex (e.g., a ribonucleoprotein complex, RNP) is assembled and the endonuclease is added to the reaction mixture in the form of a nucleoprotein complex. The nucleoprotein complex comprises an endonuclease and a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), such as a crRNA, e.g., a CRISPR guide RNA (crRNA) for Cas12a (Cpf1), and a suitable sequence of this crRNA can be found, for example, in Yamano T. et al., (2016) Crystal structure of Cpf1 in complex with guide RNA and target DNA, Cell 165:949. To assemble the nucleoprotein complex, NATNTA is incubated with the endonuclease under suitable conditions, such as at 37°C for 10 minutes. NATNTA can be pretreated by heating (e.g., to 95°C for 2 minutes) to allow proper secondary structure formation and allowed to slowly cool to room temperature.

[0119] The fluorescence of the reaction mixture is measured. For exonuclease-protected substrates, a fluorescent signal is produced only in the presence of both the exonuclease and the endonuclease.

[0120] In some embodiments, the linear range of the assay with respect to endonuclease concentration and nucleic acid substrate concentration is tested to determine the optimal range of substrate concentration and sensitivity with respect to endonuclease concentration.

[0121] In some embodiments, the present invention is a composition for detecting the activity of an endonuclease. The composition includes a nucleic acid substrate as described herein, which further includes a 3'-5' exonuclease (or a 5'-3-exonuclease, or both) that is inhibited by a structure at the 3' end (or the 5' end, or both) of the substrate. The composition includes a double-stranded nucleic acid substrate, which includes: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore (or a reporter fluorophore and a quencher fluorophore) that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; a structure at each end that inhibits the cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease; and a recognition sequence for the endonuclease to be tested.

[0122] The composition may also include an exonuclease. Depending on the termini generated by the endonuclease, the composition includes a 3'-5' exonuclease or a 5'-3' exonuclease, or a mixture of both. In some embodiments, the signal is enhanced by having multiple fluorophores per substrate. In some embodiments, the exact properties of the endonuclease being tested are unknown. In such embodiments, both ends of both strands are labeled to accommodate all possible orientations and chemistries of nucleic acid cleavage. In some such embodiments, the ends are labeled with different fluorophores that emit at different wavelengths. The emission wavelength indicates the identity of the cleaved strand and the chemistry of cleavage. In the case of a 3'-5' exonuclease, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate has a structure at each 3' end that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease. In the case of a 5'-3' exonuclease, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate has a structure at each 5' end that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease. In some embodiments, a mixture of 3'-5' and 5'-3' exonucleases is used, in which both the 3' and 5' ends of the substrate are protected by exonuclease inhibitor structures.

[0123] In some embodiments, the substrate is designed to accommodate several endonucleases, including endonucleases whose biochemical properties are not fully understood at the time of testing. Such substrates will have a fluorophore and quencher pair located at or near both ends of both strands. Such dual-labeled substrates can be utilized in reaction mixtures containing exonucleases capable of bidirectional hydrolysis (e.g., exonuclease V or exonuclease VII).

[0124] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested by the composition is nucleic acid-guided endonuclease.In such embodiments, NATNA is also present in the composition.In some embodiments, the endonuclease is CRISPR endonuclease and NATNA is guide RNA.

[0125] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested by the composition is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease, and the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate in the composition comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In embodiments in which the endonuclease tested by the composition is a CRISPR class II endonuclease, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate in the composition comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', and 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'.

[0126] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested by the composition is one of zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs), ZFNs conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), EndoTT single-stranded endonucleases, Argonaute endonucleases, Arcus endonucleases, endoribonucleases selected from RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In these embodiments, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate in the composition comprises a suitable recognition site.

[0127] In some embodiments, the composition comprises an exonuclease III, a double-stranded nucleic acid substrate comprising (i) both 3' ends comprising one or more phosphorothioate protected dsDNA; (ii) a reporter fluorophore, and (iii) a compatible fluorescent quencher positioned to quench donor fluorescence when the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate is intact, and an endonuclease of interest.

[0128] In some embodiments, the present invention provides a method suitable for use as a convenient tool for evaluation, screening, testing, or comparison of several endonucleases. The tool further allows for the evaluation of a set of endonuclease cleavage conditions by allowing for the determination of which conditions allow the highest level or ratio of endonuclease activity. The tool further allows for the evaluation of endonuclease isolation and purification methods. Specifically, the tool can be applied to compare protein isolation fractions to identify fractions containing isolated proteins. In such embodiments, modifications are made to ensure that all components, e.g., endonucleases, exonucleases, NATNAs (if used), are capable of activity and are at least partially protected from enzymatic degradation in crude preparations. The tool can be rapidly applied to nascent fractions, e.g., to monitor protein purification processes. Still further, the tool can be used to screen multiple endonuclease substrates with different sequences to rapidly identify the target sequence of the endonuclease.

[0129] The methods and compositions disclosed herein can be used in diagnostic assays. In some embodiments, the invention is a method for detecting the presence of a specific nucleic acid in a sample, where the nucleic acid contains a recognition sequence for an endonuclease. In some embodiments, the sample is a patient sample. The nucleic acid can be characteristic of a microorganism, including a virus or a bacterium. The nucleic acid can also contain a polymorphism or sequence whose presence is associated with a disease or condition to be detected in a patient.

[0130] The method involves manipulating nucleic acid from a sample. In some embodiments, the sample is obtained from a subject or patient. In some embodiments, the sample may include a solid tissue or a fragment of a solid tumor obtained from a subject or patient, for example, by biopsy. The sample may also include a bodily fluid that may contain nucleic acid (e.g., urine, sputum, serum, blood, or blood fraction, i.e., plasma, lymph, saliva, sputum, sweat, tears, cerebrospinal fluid, amniotic fluid, synovial fluid, pericardial fluid, peritoneal fluid, pleural fluid, cyst fluid, bile, gastric fluid, intestinal fluid, or fecal sample). In other embodiments, the sample is a culture sample, such as a tissue culture, that contains cells and fluids from which nucleic acid can be isolated. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid of interest present or suspected to be present in the sample is derived from an infectious agent, such as a virus, bacteria, protozoa, or fungus.

[0131] In some embodiments, the method includes a pre-amplification step in which the nucleic acids in the sample are amplified via polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to generate a specific amplicon from each target nucleic acid. In some embodiments, the fluorophore, quencher, and end protection are incorporated into the amplicon by adapter ligation. The formation of blunt ends, A-tailing, and adapter ligation can be performed, for example, by methods developed in conjunction with the formation of sequence libraries for massively parallel sequencing. In some embodiments, the fluorophore, quencher, and end protection are incorporated directly into the amplification primer. The excess primers or adapters containing the fluorophore, quencher, and end protection can be removed via a purification step before performing the endonuclease assay. The amplicon containing the fluorophore, quencher, and end protection is the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate that is directly used in the methods disclosed herein.

[0132] In some embodiments, the endonuclease substrate is a probe that includes a fluorophore, a quencher, and end protection, and is hybridized to a target nucleic acid or an amplicon of the target nucleic acid in a sample. In some embodiments, the probe, the target nucleic acid, or the amplicon is single-stranded. In some embodiments, the probe, the target nucleic acid, or the amplicon is double-stranded, but is made single-stranded before being hybridized to the probe. The duplex formed by the target nucleic acid hybridized to the probe that includes a fluorophore, a quencher, and end protection becomes the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate that is directly used in the method disclosed herein.

[0133] The nucleic acid substrate formed by any of the above alternative methods contains a nucleic acid sequence of diagnostic importance to be interrogated. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid substrate is contacted with an endonuclease that targets a sequence of interest, such as a sequence characteristic of a microorganism, or a sequence that contains a polymorphism or sequence whose presence is associated with a disease or condition to be detected in a patient. The endonuclease performs cleavage only if the sequence of interest containing the endonuclease cleavage site is present in the nucleic acid substrate.

[0134] Particularly advantageous in the diagnostic assay disclosed herein is CRISPR endonuclease. Guide RNA (e.g., crRNA) for CRISPR endonuclease may be designed to hybridize to any diagnostic sequence of interest. The sample is contacted with a probe that includes a fluorophore, a quencher, and end protection and can hybridize to a target nucleic acid of diagnostic interest. The sample is further contacted with a guide RNA that can hybridize to the target nucleic acid. Only if the sequence that can hybridize to the probe and the designed guide RNA is present in the sample, the CRISPR endonuclease will perform cleavage and fluorescence will be detectable.

[0135] In some embodiments, the diagnostic method is multiplexed. That is, multiple target sequences are detected in the same reaction mixture. In such an embodiment, multiple nucleic acid probes are added to the sample. In some embodiments, when the endonuclease is a CRISPR endonuclease, multiple guide RNAs are also added to the sample, and the same CRISPR endonuclease performs cleavage, resulting in the generation of detectable signals. In some embodiments, each of the different probes is labeled with a different fluorophore. In some embodiments, all or part of the different probes are labeled with the same label, for example, a set of probes that hybridize to bacterial sequences are labeled with one label and a set of probes that hybridize to viral sequences are labeled with another label, or a set of probes that hybridize to gram-positive bacterial sequences are labeled with one label and a set of probes that hybridize to gram-negative bacterial sequences are labeled with another label.

[0136] The endonuclease and exonuclease may be added to the sample sequentially or simultaneously. The endonuclease and exonuclease may be added to the sample prior to the addition of the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate. The exonuclease performs strand cleavage (hydrolysis) only if the endonuclease has previously performed cleavage to create an end accessible to the exonuclease. Hydrolysis of the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate by the exonuclease separates the fluorophore and quencher, resulting in a detectable fluorescent signal. The presence of the fluorescent signal indicates the presence of the sequence of interest in the sample. In some embodiments, the assay includes a step of reporting the presence of the sequence of interest in the sample (e.g., a sequence characteristic of a microorganism, or a polymorphism or sequence whose presence is associated with a disease or condition to be detected in a patient).

[0137] In some embodiments, the present invention is a kit for detecting the activity of an endonuclease. The kit comprises an aliquot of a nucleic acid substrate as described herein. The composition comprises a double-stranded nucleic acid substrate, which comprises: a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore (or a reporter fluorophore and a quencher fluorophore) that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; a structure at each end that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by an exonuclease; and a recognition sequence for the endonuclease to be tested.

[0138] The kit may further comprise an aliquot of exonuclease. Depending on the end generated by the endonuclease, the kit comprises a 3'-5' exonuclease or a 5'-3' exonuclease. In the case of a 3'-5' exonuclease, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate has a structure at each 3' end that inhibits the cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease. In the case of a 5'-3' exonuclease, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate has a structure at each 5' end that inhibits the cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease. The kit may comprise both a 3'-5' exonuclease and a 5'-3' exonuclease. The kit may comprise a double-stranded nucleic acid substrate having a structure at both the 3' end and the 5' end that inhibits the cleavage of the substrate by the exonuclease.

[0139] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested by the kit is nucleic acid-guided endonuclease.In such embodiments, the kit can also include an aliquot of NATNA.In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested is CRISPR endonuclease, and the NATNA present in the kit is guide RNA.

[0140] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested by the kit is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate included in the kit comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'. In embodiments in which the endonuclease tested by the kit is a CRISPR class II endonuclease, the double-stranded nucleic acid substrate included in the kit comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNCNNA-3', and 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3' and 5'-TTTV-3'.

[0141] In some embodiments, the endonuclease tested by the kit is one of zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs), ZFNs conjugated to Fok I, transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), EndoTT single-stranded endonuclease, Argonaute endonuclease, Arcus endonuclease, RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase A, RNase H, RNase Z and RNase P, Cas3 and Cas7-11, and restriction endonucleases. In these embodiments, the nucleic acid substrate included in the kit comprises a suitable recognition site.

[0142] In some embodiments, the kit further comprises instructions for performing a method for testing the activity of an endonuclease by a method described herein.

[0143] In some embodiments, the present invention is a kit for performing diagnostic procedures. The kit includes an aliquot of a probe, which can hybridize to a target nucleic acid of diagnostic interest and form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair, a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore (or a reporter fluorophore and a quencher fluorophore); a structure at each end that inhibits the cleavage of the substrate by an exonuclease; and a recognition sequence for the endonuclease to be tested. The kit may further include an aliquot of an exonuclease and an endonuclease. The exonuclease can be inhibited by the inhibitory structure present on the probe. The endonuclease can bind to and cleave the duplex formed by the probe and the target sequence. In some embodiments, the endonuclease is a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease. In such an embodiment, the kit may also include an aliquot of NATNA that can hybridize to a target nucleic acid. In some embodiments, the endonuclease being tested is a CRISPR endonuclease and the NATNA present in the kit is a guide RNA.

[0144] In some embodiments, the kit further comprises instructions for performing the diagnostic assays described herein.

[0145] The methods disclosed herein can be carried out using a dedicated device. In some embodiments, the present invention is a device for detecting the activity of an endonuclease, comprising one or more reaction chambers for carrying out an enzymatic reaction and a fluorescence detector. The device may further comprise a means for delivering and distributing the components of the reaction mixture described herein. The device can be applied to high-throughput screening, for example, in multi-well plates (microwell plates).

[0146] The equipment can include multi-well plate fluorescence readers or tube fluorometers such as those available from Tecan, ThermoFisher Scientific (BioTek instruments), and Molecular Devices. EXAMPLES

[0147] Example 1. Preparation of double-stranded endonuclease substrates In this example, a 60 base pair double stranded nucleic acid construct was produced with a series of phosphorothioate bonds protected at the 3' end of both strands, and one strand was labeled with a fluorophore and a quencher. The last four phosphodiester bonds at the 3' end of both strands were replaced with phosphorothioate bonds. The terminal phosphate moiety at the 3' end of each strand was also replaced with phosphorothioate. In addition, a thymine-linked fluorescein moiety was incorporated at the third nucleotide from the 5' end of the target strand, and an Iowa Black® quencher was attached to the 5' end of the same strand. The dsDNA target included a well-characterized model AsCas12a targetable sequence that contains the Acidaminococcus sp. Cas12a enzyme (AsCas12a) cleavage site. Cleavage occurs 19-28 bp from the first thymine of the TTTC protospacer adjacent motif (PAM), with the PAM located 16 positions from the 5' end of the substrate and the final nucleotide of the spacer sequence located 39 positions from the 5' end of the substrate. A second dsDNA target was prepared that was identical to the first dsDNA target except that it lacked any type of end protection. Oligonucleotides containing the modifications were ordered from Integrated DNA Technologies (Coralville, Iowa).

[0148] The double-stranded substrate was assembled from the single strands of SEQ ID NO: 1 and SEQ ID NO: 2. To ensure proper annealing of the dsDNA, the target strand and the complementary non-target strand oligonucleotides were combined at a final concentration of 50 uM each in 1× TE buffer (10 mM Tris-HCl (pH 8.0), 0.1 mM EDTA) and the mixture was heated to 95° C. for 2 minutes, then slowly cooled to room temperature to produce the double-stranded DNA target.

[0149] [ka]

[0150] A control double-stranded substrate lacking phosphorothioate protection was assembled from single strands of SEQ ID NO:3 and SEQ ID NO:4.

[0151] [ka] EXAMPLES

[0152] Example 2: Utility of exonuclease-linked fluorescent detection In this example, 100 nM of the substrate described in Example 1 was incubated with 0.5 U / uL of Exonuclease III (both from New England Biolabs, Ipswich, Mass.) in 1X NEBuffer™1, pH 7.0 at 37° C. Fluorescence was monitored over time at an excitation wavelength of 485 nm and an emission wavelength of 520 nm. A fluorescent signal was generated for the unprotected substrate, but not for the protected substrate. Signals were read using a Spectramax i3x plate (Molecular Devices, San Jose, Cal.). The results are shown in FIG. 2. An increase in fluorescence is observed only for the unprotected substrate in the presence of Exonuclease III. EXAMPLES

[0153] Example 3: Cleavage of substrates by Cas12a endonuclease This example demonstrates that cleavage of a phosphorothioate-protected dsDNA substrate by AsCas12a renders the phosphorothioate-protected substrate susceptible to digestion by exonuclease III, generating a fluorescent signal that can be monitored in real time.

[0154] A 60 bp double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) phosphorothioate protected target as described in Example 1 was used. Cas12a ribonucleoprotein (RNP) consisting of Cas12a and guide RNA (crRNA) was formed by incubating purified recombinant Cas12a protein with synthetic crRNA at 37°C for 10 minutes. Prior to RNP formation, crRNA was heated to 95°C for 2 minutes and slowly cooled to room temperature to allow proper secondary structure formation. The crRNA component of the RNP provided specificity for model AsCas12a targetable sequences present in the top strand of the double-stranded substrate. 100 nM of the protected dsDNA target was incubated with 2.5 U / uL of Exonuclease III alone or with 2.5 U / uL of Exonuclease III and 112.5 nM of AsCas12a RNP. Incubation was performed in 1X NEBuffer™ 1 at pH 7.0. Control reactions contained unprotected dsDNA target and Exonuclease III but no RNP. Reactions were incubated at 37°C and fluorescence readings (excitation: 485 nm, emission: 520 nm) were taken every 30 seconds for 600 minutes using a Spectramax i3x plate (Molecular Devices, San Jose, Cal.). Results are shown in Figure 3. A rapid increase in fluorescence was observed only in the presence of Cas12a RNP and not in the no RNP control, indicating that the end-protected dsDNA target was degraded after Cas12a cleavage. Unprotected dsDNA target was degraded by Exonuclease III alone. During continuous reading of fluorescence, a power outage occurred approximately 200 minutes after the start of the experiment. Reading resumed promptly, but the power outage caused a spike in the fluorescence signal in all samples that stabilized approximately 10 minutes after reading resumed. EXAMPLES

[0155] Example 4. Linear range of the assay for Cas12a RNP concentration. In this example, the reaction between double-stranded substrate, Cas12a RNP and exonuclease was carried out generally as in Example 3, but using 1X Cutsmart®, pH 7.9 buffer (New England Biolabs, Ipswich, Mass.). RNP concentrations ranged from 0.11 nM to 112.5 nM. Negative controls included no crRNA or no Cas12a RNP. Positive controls included unprotected substrate with only Exonuclease III (see Example 1). Results are shown in Figure 4. There is a direct correlation between RNP concentration and reaction rate. Reactions at lower RNP concentrations reach a plateau at lower fluorescence intensity. Even with 0.11 nM samples, a measurable increase in fluorescence can be detected compared to that observed for reactions lacking Cas12a. The results show a linear dose response for Cas12a concentrations from 0.11 nM to 7 nM. The sensitivity of the assay over a wide range of Cas12a concentrations demonstrates the utility of this quality control (QC) assay. EXAMPLES

[0156] Example 5. Confirmation that exonucleases hydrolyze DNA, but Cas12a does not hydrolyze DNA Cas12a is unique among endonucleases in that it possesses non-specific exonuclease activity ("trans-shredding"). In this example, we demonstrate that exonuclease III, and not the transactivity of Cas12a itself, is responsible for degradation of dsDNA targets following the initial cleavage by Cas12a-RNP.

[0157] In this example, the reaction between double-stranded substrate, Cas12a RNP and exonuclease was carried out generally as in Example 3, but using NEBuffer™ 1, pH 7.0. The concentration of dsDNA was varied. In addition, control reactions did not contain exonuclease. This control was included to determine whether Cas12a degrades the substrate alone (without exonuclease) by a secondary non-specific nuclease activity known as transactivity. The results are shown in Figure 5. Some increase in fluorescence was observed in the absence of exonuclease III, suggesting a possible limited contribution to the overall signal from Cas12a transactivity. However, the maximum rate of fluorescence was about 3.3-fold higher in the presence of exonuclease III, suggesting that exonuclease III was present at a sufficient concentration to ensure that the reaction rate was not limited by Cas12a transactivity. The maximum rate observed was for unprotected dsDNA substrates containing exonuclease III alone, indicating that exonuclease III activity is not rate limiting. EXAMPLES

[0158] Example 6. Linear range of the assay for DNA substrate concentration. In this example, the reaction between double-stranded substrate, Cas12a RNP and exonuclease was carried out similarly to Example 5. All other reagents were kept constant, and the concentration of DNA substrate was varied between 2.06 nM and 500 nM. The results are shown in Figure 6. It was observed that the assay was sensitive enough to detect target dsDNA sequences up to at least 4.1 nM, and showed a linear dose response over a wide range of target dsDNA concentrations. EXAMPLES

[0159] Example 7 (Prophetic): Cleavage of a substrate by Cas9 endonuclease. In this example, the experiment described in Example 3 is carried out using Cas9 endonuclease instead of Cas12a endonuclease. The double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) phosphorothioate-protected target is similar to SEQ ID NO:1 / SEQ ID NO:2, except that it contains a PAM sequence recognized by Cas9. In addition, the dsDNA target contains a fluorophore and quencher pair at the 5' end of the non-target and target strands. Incubation is performed in 1X Cutsmart® buffer. Purified recombinant Cas9 protein is incubated with synthetic crRNA for 10 minutes at 37°C to form a Cas9 ribonucleoprotein (RNP) consisting of SpyCas9 (Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9) and a guide RNA (crRNA). The crRNA component of the RNP provides specificity for SpyCas9 and double-stranded substrates. The protected dsDNA target is incubated with either Exonuclease III and Cas9 RNP. One or more control reactions are included, e.g., those that omit RNP, those that omit exonuclease, or those that omit exonuclease protection. Reactions are incubated at 37° C. and fluorescence readings corresponding to the emission wavelength of the reporter fluorophore are taken every 30 seconds for 600 minutes using a Spectramax i3x plate (Molecular Devices, San Jose, Cal.). EXAMPLES

[0160] Example 8 (Prophetic): Cleavage of a Substrate by a Restriction Endonuclease In this example, the experiment described in Example 3 is carried out using a restriction endonuclease such as a type II restriction endonuclease instead of Cas12a endonuclease. The double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) phosphorothioate protected target is similar to SEQ ID NO:1 / SEQ ID NO:2, except that it contains a recognition sequence for the restriction endonuclease being tested. The protected dsDNA target is incubated with exonuclease III and a restriction endonuclease in a suitable buffer that allows both restriction endonuclease and exonuclease III activity. One or more control reactions are included, such as those that omit the restriction endonuclease, those that omit the exonuclease, or those that omit exonuclease protection. The reactions are incubated at 37° C., and fluorescence readings corresponding to the emission wavelength of the reporter fluorophore are taken every 30 seconds for 600 minutes using a Spectramax i3x plate (Molecular Devices, San Jose, Cal.). EXAMPLES

[0161] Example 9. Cleavage of FAM substrate by CRISPR Cas12a In this example, the substrate shown in FIG. 7 was designed ("FAM Substrate"). The 60 bp target contained the Cas12a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) and the well-characterized AAVS1 spacer sequence. This substrate has a deoxythymidine (dT)-conjugated fluorescein (FAM) paired with an Iowa Black dark quencher at the 5' end upstream of the PAM. Both 3' ends are protected with phosphorothioate linkages (Pt). A control substrate had no Pt protection at the 3' end ("Unprotected FAM Substrate").

[0162] The substrate (Figure 7) was cleaved in reaction mixtures containing FAM substrate, Exo III, and AsCas12a ribonucleoprotein complex (RNP) in NEBuffer1 at 0.42-18 nM RNP, 2.5 kU / mL ExoIII, and 100 nM dsDNA target. The reaction was allowed to proceed at 37 °C and the fluorescence data shown in Figure 8 was collected. The rate of fluorescence increase over a period of 50-150 minutes was plotted as a function of Cas12a concentration. EXAMPLES

[0163] Example 10. Cleavage of TAMRA substrates by CRISPR Cas12a In this example, a substrate ("TAMRA substrate") was designed that was identical to the FAM substrate shown in Figure 7 except that a TAMRA-NHS ester was used instead of deoxythymidine (dT)-conjugated fluorescein (FAM). Like the FAM substrate (Figure 7), both 3' termini were protected with phosphorothioate linkages (Pt). A control substrate did not have Pt protection at the 3' termini ("unprotected TAMRA substrate").

[0164] The substrate was cleaved in a reaction mixture containing the TAMRA substrate, Exo III, and AsCas12a ribonucleoprotein complex (RNP). The reaction mixture contained 18 nM RNP (or control 1x NCA buffer), 2.5 kU / mL Exo III, and 100 nM dsDNA substrate in NEBuffer 1. The reaction was run at 37°C and the fluorescence data shown in Figure 9 was collected. EXAMPLES

[0165] Example 11. Alternative fluorophore placement In this example, a series of CRISPR Cas12a substrates (similar to those shown in Figure 7) were designed with alternative fluorophore arrangements. Figure 10 shows a "non-targeted FAM" substrate (same as shown in Figure 7, with FAM upstream of the PAM on the same strand), a "targeted FAM" substrate (FAM on the opposite strand from the PAM), and a "dual FAM" substrate (FAM on both the same and opposite strands as the PAM).

[0166] The three substrates were cleaved in a reaction mixture containing one of the three FAM substrates, Exo III, and AsCas12a ribonucleoprotein complex (RNP). The reaction mixture contained 18 nM RNP (or control 1x NCA buffer), 2.5 kU / mL Exo III, 100 nM dsDNA substrate in NEBuffer1. The reaction was allowed to proceed at 37°C and fluorescence data was collected (shown in Figure 11). The data is also presented as a comparison of all protected substrates (Figure 12) and the percentage of fluorescence change in the various reaction mixtures (Figure 13). EXAMPLES

[0167] Example 12. Optimization of exonuclease concentration. In this example, the exonuclease was titrated and the exonuclease concentration was optimized. Cleavage reactions were set up in NEBuffer1 buffer and included the "target strand" FAM substrate (Figure 10), RNP 20.25 nM AsCas12a RNP (cas12a:crRNA 2:1), various amounts of ExoIII (156.25-2500 U / mL), and FAM-labeled substrate. Control reactions included unprotected substrate, or no RNP, or no ExoIII. Reactions were run at 37°C. Results are shown in Figure 14. EXAMPLES

[0168] Example 13. Cleavage with Cas9 endonuclease In this example, the applicability of the assay to Cas9 was demonstrated. This example consists of the validation of predictive example 7. As proposed in example 7, double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) was designed according to Figure 1 and Figure 7. The substrate was phosphorothioate protected and contained the PAM sequence recognized by Cas9, a spacer sequence on the same strand as the PAM (non-target strand), a fluorophore and a quencher. In this experiment, the Cas9 guide targeted the opposite strand to the Cas12a guide.

[0169] A single guide RNA (sgRNA) for Cas9 endonuclease was designed in combination with crRNA and tracrRNA. As proposed in Example 7, incubation was performed in 1X Cutsmart® buffer. Purified recombinant Cas9 was incubated with sgRNA at 37°C for 10 minutes to form Cas9 ribonucleoprotein (RNP) consisting of SpyCas9 (Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9) and guide RNA (single guide RNA (sgRNA)). The reaction included 50 nM SpyCas9, 1 kU / mL ExoIII (New England Biolabs, Ipswich, Mass.), and 110 nM dsDNA substrate in a reaction volume of 200 uL. A control reaction was included in which RNP was omitted (ExoIII only reaction) as proposed in Example 7. Reactions were incubated at 37° C. and fluorescence readings corresponding to the emission wavelength of the reporter fluorophore were taken every 30 minutes for 1000 minutes using a Spectramax i3x plate (Molecular Devices, San Jose, Cal.) All reactions were performed in triplicate and the average results for each data point are shown in FIG. EXAMPLES

[0170] Example 14. Cleavage with restriction endonucleases In this example, the applicability of the assay to type II restriction endonucleases was demonstrated. This example consists of a validation of predictive Example 8.

[0171] As proposed in Example 8, double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) phosphorothioate-protected substrates were designed according to FIG. 1. These substrates contained recognition sequences for one of the restriction endonucleases BsaI, BcoDI, and SalI. As proposed in Example 7, each substrate was incubated with Exonuclease III and a restriction endonuclease in 1× Cutsmart® buffer. Each reaction mixture contained one of BsaI HF v2, BcoDI, and SalI (New England Biolabs) at 300 U, and ExoIII at 1.25 kU. The reactions were incubated at 37° C., and fluorescence readings corresponding to the emission wavelength of the reporter fluorophore were taken every minute for 300 minutes using a Spectramax i3x plate (Molecular Devices, San Jose, Cal.). The results are shown in FIG. 16.

[0172] Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to specific examples, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be limited by the examples described herein, but rather by the claims set forth below.

Claims

1. A composition when used to detect the activity of an endonuclease, the composition comprising: (a) a donor fluorophore and an acceptor fluorophore that form a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair; (b) at least one structure in at least one nucleic acid strand that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by an exonuclease; and (c) a recognition sequence and cleavage site for an endonuclease, wherein the endonuclease is selected from the group consisting of a nucleic acid-guided endonuclease, a zinc finger nuclease (ZFN), a ZFN conjugated to Fok I, a transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN), an Argonaute endonuclease, an Arcus endonuclease, an engineered endoribonuclease; CAS3 and Cas7-11, and a type II restriction endonuclease. a nucleic acid substrate for detecting the activity of an endonuclease comprising the donor and acceptor fluorophores are not separated by an endonuclease cleavage site, The composition further comprises an exonuclease.

2. 2. The composition of claim 1, wherein the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease I, exonuclease III, exonuclease V, exonuclease VII, exonuclease VIII, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, exonuclease T, BAL-31 exonuclease, RecJf exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II.

3. 3. The substrate of claim 1 or 2, wherein the donor fluorophore is selected from the group consisting of 5-carboxyfluorescein (5-FAM), 6-carboxyfluorescein (6-FAM), 2',4',1,4-tetrachlorofluorescein (TET), 2',4',5',7',1,4-hexachlorofluorescein (HEX), 2',7'-dimethoxy-4',5'-dichloro-6-carboxyfluorescein (JOE), coumarin dyes, Alexa Fluor dyes, IRDye 800CW, Cascade Blue, Pacific Blue, Pacific Orange, Texas Red, and BODIPY® dyes.

4. Acceptor fluorophores include tetramethyl-6-carboxyrhodamine (TAMRA), tetrapropano-6-carboxyrhodamine (ROX), DABSYL, DABCYL (4-[[4-(dimethylamino)-phenyl]-azo]-benzoic acid), Cy5 and Cy5.5, anthraquinone dyes, nitrothiazole dyes, nitroimidazole dyes, LC-Red 610, LC-Red 640, LC-Red 705, JA286, DDQ-I, DDQ-II, QSY-7, QSY-21, IRDye QC1, Iowa Black FQ, and Iowa Black FQ.

4. The composition of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the fluorescein is selected from the group consisting of RQ, HEX (hexachloro-fluorescein), TET (tetrachloro-fluorescein), JOE (5'-dichloro-dimethoxy-fluorescein), BODIPY® dyes, Eclipse quenchers (4-[[2-chloro-4-nitro-phenyl]-azo]-aniline, BHQ-1 ([(4-(2-nitro-4-methyl-phenyl)-azo)-yl-((2-methoxy-5-methyl-phenyl)-azo)]-aniline), BHQ-2 ([(4-(1-nitro-phenyl)-azo)-yl-((2,5-dimethoxy-phenyl)-azo)]-aniline), and pyridinyl-isoquinoline-dione dyes.

5. 5. The composition of claim 1, wherein the exonuclease is selected from exonuclease III, T5 exonuclease, T7 exonuclease, lambda exonuclease, and BAL31 exonuclease, RNase R, RNase II, RNase D, RNase T, RNase BN, RNase PH, exoribonuclease I, and exoribonuclease II.

6. 2. The composition of claim 1, wherein the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR class I (CASCADE) endonuclease and the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-AAG-3', 5'-AGG-3', 5'-ATG-3', 5'-GAG-3', 5'-CAG-3', 5'-GTG-3', 5'-TAA-3', 5'-TGG-3', 5'-AAA-3', 5'-AAC-3', 5'-AAT-3', 5'-ATA-3', 5'-TAG-3', and 5'-TTG-3'.

7. the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease is a CRISPR Cas9 endonuclease or a CRISPR Cas12a endonuclease; 2. The composition of claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) consisting of a sequence selected from 5'-NGG-3', 5'-NGGNG-3', 5'-NNAAAAW-3', 5'-NNNNGATT-3', 5'-GNNNNCNNA-3', 5'-NNNACA-3', 5'-TTN-3', 5'-TTTN-3', and 5'-TTTV-3'.

8. 2. The composition of claim 1, wherein the nucleic acid-guided endonuclease comprises an endonuclease and a nucleic acid targeting nucleic acid (NATNA), wherein the NATNA comprises DNA and RNA nucleotides.

9. The composition according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the structure that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by an exonuclease is selected from a hairpin, a strand overhang, and a nucleic acid modification.

10. 1. A method for detecting endonuclease activity in a sample, comprising: (a) contacting a sample with a reaction mixture comprising the composition of any one of claims 1 to 9 under conditions suitable for endonuclease and exonuclease cleavage of the nucleic acid substrate; and (b) measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture as a result of endonuclease cleavage and subsequent exonuclease cleavage, wherein a change in fluorescence indicates endonuclease activity. A method comprising:

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the nucleic acid substrate or the endonuclease is in an unpurified form.

12. A kit for use in detecting endonuclease activity, comprising the composition according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

13. 12. A device when used to detect the activity of an endonuclease by the method of claim 10 or 11, comprising a reaction chamber for carrying out an enzymatic reaction and a fluorescence detector.

14. 1. A method for detecting the presence of a target nucleic acid in a sample, comprising: (a) contacting a sample containing a single-stranded or single-stranded target nucleic acid with the composition of any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the nucleic acid substrate is a probe capable of hybridizing to the target nucleic acid, the probe being single-stranded or single-stranded under conditions suitable for forming a duplex between the probe and the target nucleic acid and for endonuclease and exonuclease cleavage of the substrate; and (b) measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture, wherein a change in fluorescence indicates the presence of the target nucleic acid in the sample. A method comprising:

15. 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the sample comprises a crude preparation of nucleic acid.

16. A kit for use in carrying out a diagnostic method comprising detecting a target nucleic acid according to the method of claim 14, the kit comprising the composition of claim 1, wherein the target nucleic acid is selected from a sequence characteristic of a bacterium, a sequence characteristic of a virus, a sequence characteristic of a parasite, and a patient sequence characteristic of a disease or condition of the patient.

17. 1. A method for optimizing an endonuclease digestion reaction, comprising: (a) preparing a series of reaction mixtures using an exonuclease and a nucleic acid substrate according to the composition of any one of claims 1 to 9; (b) contacting each of a series of reaction mixtures with a different amount of endonuclease; (c) measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture, wherein a change in fluorescence indicates activity of the endonuclease; (d) selecting the amount of endonuclease that results in the highest fluorescence of the reaction mixture or the highest rate of increase in fluorescence of the reaction mixture as the optimal endonuclease concentration. A method comprising:

18. 1. A method for optimizing a CRISPR endonuclease digestion reaction, comprising: (a) preparing a series of reaction mixtures using a CRISPR endonuclease, an exonuclease, and a nucleic acid substrate, wherein the nucleic acid substrate is: i. a donor fluorophore that forms a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair and acceptor fluorophore; ii. at least one structure in at least one strand that inhibits cleavage of the substrate by an exonuclease; and iii. Recognition sequence for endonuclease containing; (b) contacting each of the series of reaction mixtures with a series of nucleic acid targeting nucleic acids (NATNAs); (c) measuring the fluorescence emitted by the reaction mixture, wherein a change in fluorescence indicates activity of the endonuclease; (d) Selecting the NATNA that results in the highest fluorescence of the reaction mixture as the optimal NATNA. A method comprising:

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