High-fidelity SpCas9 nuclease for genome modification

Abstract

Engineered Cas9 protein variants and systems, nucleic acids encoding said protein variants and systems, and methods of making and using said protein variants and systems for genome modification.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 988,279, filed March 11, 2020, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety as part of this specification.

[0002] Sequence Listing This application contains a Sequence Listing that has been submitted electronically in ASCII format and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety as part of this specification. The ASCII copy, created on March 11, 2021, is named P20-035_WO-PCT_SL.txt and is 49,120 bytes in size.

[0003] Technical Field of the Disclosure The present disclosure relates to engineered Cas9 protein variants and systems, nucleic acids encoding such protein variants and systems, and methods of making and using such protein variants and systems for genome modification.

[0004] Background of the Disclosure Streptococcus pyogenes CRISPR Cas9 (SpCas9) has been widely adopted as a genome editing endonuclease in many cell and organism species. However, the wild-type nuclease has the tendency to induce mutations at unintended genomic sites with sequences similar to the target site. To improve this drawback, several SpCas9 mutants with improved specificity have been developed. These include eSpCas9 1.0 (K810A, K1003A, R1060A), eSpCas9 1.1 (K848A, K1003A, R1060A), SpCas9-HF1 (N497A, R661A, Q695A, Q926A), HypaCas9 (N692A, M694A, Q695A, H698A), EvoCas9 (M495V, Y515N, K526E, R661L), Sniper Cas9 (F539S, M763I, K890N), HiFi Cas9 V3 (R691A), Opti-SpCas9 (R661A and K1003H), and OptiHF-SpCas9 (Q695A, K848A, E293M, T924V and Q926A) (Slaymaker et al.,Science 351,84-88;Kleinstiver et al.,Nature 523,490-495;Chen et al.Nature 550,407-410;Casini et al. al., Nature Biotechnology 36, 265-271; Lee et al., Nature Communications 9, 3048; Vakulskas et al., Nature Medicine 24, 1216-1224; Choi et al., Nature Methods 16, 722-730). However, most of these mutants were identified by screening in plasmid form and often had low activity when converted into recombinant proteins for genome editing by ribonucleoprotein (RNP) delivery.

[0005] The greatly increased demand for SpCas9 recombinant protein in genome modification necessitates a need for recombinant protein forms of nucleases that can function with improved specificity and sustained activity across different genomic sites. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] Summary of the Disclosure Among the various aspects of the invention are provided engineered Cas9 protein variants and systems comprising same.

[0007] Briefly, therefore, the present disclosure relates to engineered Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 (SpCas9) protein variants comprising modifications at one, two or more of amino acid positions 526, 562, 652, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060, where lysine (K) at one or more of said amino acid positions is changed to leucine (L) or glutamine (Q), and / or arginine (R) at one or more of said amino acid positions is changed to leucine (L) or glutamine (Q). For example, in one exemplary embodiment, the engineered SpCas9 protein variant comprises a K855L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 652, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In another exemplary embodiment, the engineered SpCas9 protein variant comprises a R661L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 652, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In certain embodiments, the mutations are selected from the following group: K562L-R661L-K855Q; K562Q-R661L-K855Q; K652L-R661L-K855Q; and K652Q-R661L-K855Q (see numbering system for Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9).

[0008] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to an engineered Cas9 system comprising an engineered Cas9 protein mutant disclosed herein and at least one engineered guide RNA, wherein each engineered RNA is designed to form a complex with the engineered Cas9 protein mutant.

[0009] Another aspect of the disclosure relates to nucleic acids encoding engineered Cas9 protein variants and systems comprising same. Vectors comprising the nucleic acids are also provided.

[0010] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to methods of making and using the engineered Cas9 protein variants and systems described herein.

[0011] Other objects and features will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1A] Figure 1A shows the on-target activity of five different substitutions of the K855 residue at the HEKSite4 target site in human U-2 OS cells. K855E and K855A have reduced on-target activity (Example 1). The figure discloses SEQ ID NO: 73.

[0013] [Figure 1B] FIG. 1B shows the off-target activity of five different substitutions of the K855 residue at the HEKSite4 off-target site in human U-2 OS cells (Example 1). The figure discloses SEQ ID NO: 74.

[0014] [Diagram 2] Figure 2 shows the on-target activity of different substitutions of R661, N692, or Q695 residues at the HEKSite4 target site in human U-2 OS cells (Example 2). The figure discloses SEQ ID NO: 73.

[0015] [Figure 3A] Figure 3A shows the on-target activity of triple and quadruple mutant proteins at the FANCF02 target site in human K562 cells (Example 3). The figure discloses SEQ ID NO: 75.

[0016] [Figure 3B]Figure 3B shows the off-target activity of triple and quadruple mutant proteins at the FANCF02 single mismatch off-target site in human K562 cells (Example 3). The figure discloses SEQ ID NO:76.

[0017] [Figure 3C] Figure 3C shows the on-target activity of triple and quadruple mutant proteins at the HBB03 target site in human K562 cells (Example 3). The figure discloses SEQ ID NO:77.

[0018] [Figure 3D] Figure 3D shows the off-target activity of triple and quadruple mutant proteins at the HBB03 single mismatch off-target site in human K562 cells (Example 3). SEQ ID NO: 78 is disclosed in the figure.

[0019] [Figure 4] Figure 4 shows the on-target activity of a select group of mutant proteins at five different genomic sites in K562 cells (Example 4). SEQ ID NOs: 79 to 83 are disclosed in order of appearance in the figure, respectively. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0020] Detailed Description The demand for SpCas9 recombinant protein in genome modification is greatly increasing, and thus there is a need for recombinant protein forms of nucleases that can function with improved specificity and sustained activity across different genome sites. Using recombinant protein-based screening approaches, at least two different groups of SpCas9 variants with different levels of specificity and activity have been identified. One group has a very high level of specificity compared to other SpCas9 variants, but has widely different activities across different genome sites. The other group has balanced specificity and activity, exceeding the well-established eSpCas9 1.1 in activity and the recently developed HiFi Cas9 V3 in specificity. This group of nucleases has great potential for broad application in eukaryotic genome modification.

[0021] Previous attempts to develop high fidelity SpCas9 variants have relied heavily on specific plasmid expression-based selection schemes. These variants often exhibited low activity when used as recombinant proteins. Without being bound by any particular theory, we speculate that overexpression of the plasmid in mammalian cells may camouflage the attenuation of activity of these variants due to specificity-enhancing mutations. To circumvent this confound caused by plasmid overexpression, we employed a recombinant protein-based screening approach to improve the nuclease. In addition, in contrast to previous attempts that always used alanine substitutions for key residue mutations, we used optimal amino acid substitutions to maintain on-target activity while improving specificity. These methodological differences make the disclosed protein distinctly superior to previous attempts to engineer SpCas9 proteins.

[0022] The mutations and their combinations include key residues likely involved in the various mechanisms underlying the stability of Cas9 DNA substrate binding, whereas previous attempts limited mutation combinations to key residues likely involved in one mechanism. For example, eSpCas9 was developed by mutating conserved positively charged amino acid residues that interact with the negatively charged phosphate backbone of the non-target strand, based on the hypothesis that these positively charged residues stabilize the non-target strand upon strand dissociation and subsequently the formation of the guide RNA-target DNA heteroduplex (Slaymaker et al., Science 351, 84-88). In contrast, SpCas9-HF1 was developed by reducing hydrogen bond or charge interactions with the phosphate backbone of the target strand (Kleinstiver et al., Nature 523, 490-495). On the other hand, HypaCas9 was obtained by mutating conserved residues (N692, M694, Q695 and H698) in the REC3 domain, which are predicted to sense RNA-DNA interactions and induce a structural switch in the HNH nuclease domain by transmitting this signal, to alanine (Chen et al., Nature 550, 407-410).

[0023] By employing a unique recombinant protein-based screening approach and extending rational design to different mechanistic combinations as disclosed herein, we have identified at least three distinct groups of SpCas9 variants with different levels of specificity and activity.

[0024] (I) Engineered Cas9 protein One aspect of the present disclosure relates to engineered Cas protein.Engineered Cas protein comprises at least one, at least two, or at least three amino acid substitutions, insertions or deletions compared to its wild-type protein; that is, engineered Cas9 protein comprises modification or mutation in amino acid sequence compared to wild-type Cas protein.Among various Cas proteins, Cas9 protein is, for example, a single effector protein of type II CRISPR system present in various bacteria.

[0025] In one embodiment, the engineered Cas9 proteins disclosed herein are derived from Streptococcus spp. In another embodiment, for example, the engineered Cas9 protein variants are derived from Streptococcus pyogenes (SpCas9). Thus, in some embodiments, the engineered Cas9 proteins described herein are homologs of SpCas9.

[0026] The wild-type Cas9 protein contains two nuclease domains, RuvC and HNH, each of which cleaves one strand of a double-stranded sequence. The Cas9 protein also contains a REC domain that interacts with the guide RNA (e.g., REC1, REC2) or the RNA / DNA heteroduplex (e.g., REC3), and a domain that interacts with the protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) (i.e., PAM-interacting domain).

[0027] As described herein, the Cas9 proteins of the present disclosure are engineered to contain one or more modifications (i.e., at least one amino acid substitution, at least one amino acid deletion, at least one amino acid insertion) such that the Cas9 protein has altered activity, specificity, and / or stability. These engineered Cas9 proteins do not occur in nature.

[0028] Generally, known and / or commercially available Cas9 mutants focus on point mutations in specific regions of the protein, without considering other regions and combinations of mutations in different regions of the protein. It has been advantageously found that combinations of mutations in different regions of the Cas9 protein can result in improved specificity, activity (e.g., on-target activity or off-target activity) and / or other beneficial properties compared to known Cas9 mutants.

[0029] For example, the Cas9 protein disclosed herein has at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that includes a non-target DNA strand contact residue, and / or has at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that includes a target DNA / guide RNA heteroduplex contact residue, and / or has at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that includes an alpha-helical lobe. For purposes of this disclosure, non-target DNA strand contact residues include, for example, amino acids R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060; target DNA / guide RNA heteroduplex contact residues include, for example, amino acids R661 and R691; and alpha-helical lobe residues include, for example, amino acids K526, K562, and K652 (see numbering system of Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9). Thus, in various embodiments, the Cas9 protein disclosed herein has at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that comprises a non-target DNA strand contacting residue, and at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that comprises a target DNA / guide RNA heteroduplex contacting residue. In other embodiments, the Cas9 protein disclosed herein has at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that comprises a non-target DNA strand contacting residue, and at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that comprises an alpha-helix lobe. In yet other embodiments, the Cas9 protein disclosed herein has at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that comprises a target DNA / guide RNA heteroduplex contacting residue, and at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that comprises an alpha-helix lobe. In yet other embodiments, the Cas9 protein disclosed herein has at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that comprises a non-target DNA strand contacting residue, and at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that comprises a target DNA / guide RNA heteroduplex contacting residue, and at least one mutation in a structural region of the protein that comprises an alpha-helix lobe.

[0030] The Cas9 protein variants disclosed herein have modified amino acid sequences identified by reference to the amino acid numbering at the corresponding positions in unmodified mature (wild-type) Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 (SEQ ID NO: 1). The Cas9 protein variants disclosed herein preferably have at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, at least 95%, at least 98%, or at least 99% identity to SEQ ID NO: 1. [ka]

[0031] For ease of reference, the designations of the 20 essential amino acids and their one-letter codes are given in Table A. [Table A]

[0032] It should be understood that the amino acid modifications described herein utilize a nomenclature that begins with a letter (single letter code) that refers to the amino acid to which the modification is effected, ends with a letter (single letter code) that designates the change, and the position of the amino acid residue is between the two letters. For example, if a hypothetical protein has an alanine residue at hypothetical amino acid position 100, it would be designated A100. As a further example, a modification of alanine to valine at hypothetical amino acid position 100 would be designated A100V. Modifications selected from two or more alternatives are designated with a " / ", e.g., a modification of alanine to valine or serine at hypothetical amino acid position 100 would be designated A100V / S.

[0033] In one embodiment, the engineered Cas9 protein variant comprises a mutation at one or more of amino acid positions 526, 562, 652, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see numbering system for Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9). In another embodiment, the engineered Cas9 protein variant comprises a mutation at two or more of amino acid positions 526, 562, 652, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see numbering system for Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9). Thus, for example, an engineered Cas9 protein can include mutations in one or more of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060. In another example, an engineered Cas9 protein can include mutations in two or more of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060. In another example, an engineered Cas9 protein can include mutations in three or more of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060. In another example, the engineered Cas9 protein may include mutations in four or more of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060. In another example, the engineered Cas9 protein may include mutations in five or more of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060. In another example, the engineered Cas9 protein may include mutations in six or more of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060. In another example, the engineered Cas9 protein may contain mutations at seven or more of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060.In another example, the engineered Cas9 protein may include mutations in eight or more of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060. In another example, the engineered Cas9 protein may include mutations in nine or more of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060. In another example, the engineered Cas9 protein may include mutations in ten or more of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060. In another example, the engineered Cas9 protein can include mutations at each of the following: K526, K562, K652, R661, R691, R780, K810, K848, K855, K1003, and R1060. In some of these various embodiments, for example, a lysine (K) at one or more of the foregoing amino acid positions is changed to a leucine (L) or glutamine (Q), and / or an arginine (R) at one or more of the foregoing amino acid positions is changed to a leucine (L) or glutamine (Q).

[0034] In one embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises a K526L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 562, 652, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In another embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises a K562L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 652, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In another embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises a K652L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In another embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises a R661L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In another embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises a R691L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 661, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In another embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises a R780L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 661, 691, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system).In another embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises a K810L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 661, 691, 780, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In another embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises a K848L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 661, 691, 780, 810, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In another embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises a K855L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 1003, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In another embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises a K1003L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, and 1060 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In another embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 mutant comprises an R1060L / Q mutation and at least one other mutation at amino acid positions 526, 562, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, and 1003 (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system).

[0035] Thus, in one embodiment, for example, an engineered SpCas9 protein mutant comprises two mutations at two different amino acid positions selected from K526L / Q, ​​K562L / Q, K652L / Q, K810L / Q, K848L / Q, K855L / Q, R661L / Q, R691L / Q, R780L / Q, K1003L / Q, and R1060L / Q (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). In other embodiments, for example, an engineered SpCas9 protein variant comprises three mutations at three different amino acid positions selected from K526L / Q, ​​K562L / Q, K652L / Q, K810L / Q, K848L / Q, K855L / Q, R661L / Q, R691L / Q, R780L / Q, K1003L / Q, and R1060L / Q (see numbering system for Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9). It should be understood that other embodiments are provided in which there are 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 mutations at amino acid positions selected from K526L / Q, ​​K562L / Q, K652L / Q, K810L / Q, K848L / Q, K855L / Q, R661L / Q, R691L / Q, R780L / Q, K1003L / Q, and R1060L / Q (see numbering system for Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9).

[0036] It will be understood that in the preceding paragraphs, art-known variants within the scope of specific embodiments or examples, if any, are to be excluded by disclaimer.

[0037] In another specific embodiment, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant comprises at least one of the following mutations: K526L, K526Q, K562L, K562Q, K652L, K652Q, K810L, K810Q, K848L, K848Q, K855L, K855Q, R661L, R661Q, R691L, R691Q, R780L, R780Q, K1003L, K1003Q, R1060L, and R1060Q (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system).

[0038] In another specific embodiment, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant comprises at least two of the following mutations: K526L, K526Q, K562L, K562Q, K652L, K652Q, K810L, K810Q, K848L, K848Q, K855L, K855Q, R661L, R661Q, R691L, R691Q, R780L, R780Q, K1003L, K1003Q, R1060L, and R1060Q (see numbering system for Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9).

[0039] In yet another specific embodiment, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant comprises at least three of the following mutations: K526L, K526Q, K562L, K562Q, K652L, K652Q, K810L, K810Q, K848L, K848Q, K855L, K855Q, R661L, R661Q, R691L, R691Q, R780L, R780Q, K1003L, K1003Q, R1060L, and R1060Q (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system).

[0040] In yet another specific embodiment, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant comprises at least 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 or 11 of the following mutations: K526L, K526Q, K562L, K562Q, K652L, K652Q, K810L, K810Q, K848L, K848Q, K855L, K855Q, R661L, R661Q, R691L, R691Q, R780L, R780Q, K1003L, K1003Q, R1060L, and R1060Q (see numbering system for Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9).

[0041] In one particular embodiment, the engineered SpCas9 protein is selected from one of the following groups of mutants: K562L-R661L-K855Q; K562Q-R661L-K855Q; K652L-R661L-K855Q; K652Q-R661L-K855Q; R661L K855Q-K1003Q; and R661L-K855Q-R1060Q (Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, see SpCas9 numbering system). In another particular embodiment, the engineered SpCas9 protein is selected from one of the following mutant groups: K562L-R661L-K855Q; K562Q-R661L-K855Q; K652L-R661L-K855Q; and K652Q-R661L-K855Q. Thus, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be K562L-R661L-K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be K562Q R661L K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be K652L-R661L-K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be K652Q-R661L-K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be R661L K855Q-K1003Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be R661L-K855Q-R1060Q. Members of this group of mutants have relatively balanced specificity and activity, outperforming the well-established eSpCas9 1.1 in activity and the recently developed HiFi Cas9 V3 in specificity.

[0042] In another specific embodiment, the engineered SpCas9 protein is selected from one of the following mutant groups: K526L-R661L-K855Q; R661L-R691L-K855Q; R661L-R780L-K855Q; R661L-R780Q-K855Q; R661L K810L-K855Q, and R661L-K848L-K855Q (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). Thus, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be K526L-R661L-K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be R661L R691L K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be R661L-R780L-K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be R661L-R780Q-K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be R661L K810L K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be R661L-K848L-K855Q. Members of this group of mutants have a very high level of specificity, but exhibit large differences in activity between target sites.

[0043] In another specific embodiment, the engineered SpCas9 protein is selected from one of the following groups of mutants: K526Q-R661L-K855Q; R661L-K810Q-K855Q; R661L-K855Q-K1003L; and R661L-K855Q-R1060L (see Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9 numbering system). Thus, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be K526Q R661L K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be R661L-K810Q-K855Q. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be R661L-K855Q-K1003L. Alternatively, for example, the engineered SpCas9 protein mutant can be R661L K855Q R1060L. Members of this group of mutants are similar to eSpCas9 1.1 in both specificity and activity levels; however, they differ from eSpCas9 1.1 in their mutational profile.

[0044] In addition to the various mutations described above, Cas9 protein may be engineered by one or more mutations and / or deletions to inactivate one or both of the nuclease domains. Inactivation of one nuclease domain produces a Cas9 protein that cleaves one strand of a double-stranded sequence (i.e., Cas9 nickase). The RuvC domain may be inactivated by mutations such as D10A, D8A, E762A, and / or D986A, and the HNH domain may be inactivated by mutations such as H840A, H559A, N854A, N856A, and / or N863A (see numbering system of Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9). Inactivation of both nuclease domains produces a Cas9 protein that does not have cleavage activity (i.e., catalytically inactive or dead Cas9).

[0045] In addition to the various mutations described above, the Cas9 protein may also be engineered with one or more amino acid substitutions, deletions, and / or insertions to have improved targeting specificity, improved fidelity, altered PAM specificity, reduced off-target effects, and / or increased stability. Non-limiting examples of one or more mutations that improve targeting specificity, improve fidelity, and / or reduce off-target effects include N497A, R661A, Q695A, K810A, K848A, K855A, Q926A, K1003A, R1060A, and / or D1135E (see numbering system for Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9).

[0046] In addition to the above various variants, Cas9 protein may be engineered to contain at least one heterologous domain, i.e., Cas9 is also fused to one or more heterologous domains. In the situation where two or more heterologous domains are fused to Cas9, the two or more heterologous domains may be the same or they may be different. One or more heterologous domains may be fused to the N-terminus, C-terminus, internal position, or a combination thereof. Fusion may be direct via chemical bond, or binding may be indirect via one or more linkers. In various embodiments, the heterologous domain is selected from a nuclear localization signal, a cell membrane permeation domain, a marker or reporter domain that facilitates detection (such as a fluorescent or enzymatic reporter protein), a chromatin modification domain, an epigenetic modification domain (e.g., a cytidine deaminase domain, a histone acetyltransferase domain, etc.), a transcriptional regulatory domain, a DNA or RNA deaminase domain, a uracil-DNA-glycosylase domain, a reverse transcriptase domain, a recombinase domain, an RNA aptamer binding domain, or a non-Cas9 nuclease domain.

[0047] (a) Nuclear localization signal In some embodiments, one or more heterologous domains may be a nuclear localization signal (NLS). Non-limiting examples of nuclear localization signals include PKKKRKV (SEQ ID NO:2), PKKKRRV (SEQ ID NO:3), KRPAATKKAGQAKKKK (SEQ ID NO:4), YGRKKRRQRRR (SEQ ID NO:5), RKKRRQRRR (SEQ ID NO:6), PAAKRVKLD (SEQ ID NO:7), RQRRNELKRSP (SEQ ID NO:8), VSRKRPRP (SEQ ID NO:9), PPKKARED (SEQ ID NO:10), PQPKKKPL (SEQ ID NO:11), SALIKKKKMAP (SEQ ID NO:12). , PKQKKRK (SEQ ID NO:13), RKLKKKIKKL (SEQ ID NO:14), REKKKFLKRR (SEQ ID NO:15), KRKGDEVDGVDEVAKKKSKK (SEQ ID NO:16), RKCLQAGMNLEARKTKK (SEQ ID NO:17), NQSSNFGPMKGGNFGGRSSGPYGGGGQYFAKPRNQGGY (SEQ ID NO:18), and RMRIZFKNKGKDTAELRRRRVEVSVELRKAKKDEQILKRRNV (SEQ ID NO:19).

[0048] (b) Cell membrane-permeable domain In other embodiments, one or more heterologous domains may be a cell membrane permeation domain. Examples of suitable cell membrane permeation domains include, but are not limited to, GRKKRRQRRRPPQPKKKRKV (SEQ ID NO: 20), PLSSIFSRIGDPPKKKRKV (SEQ ID NO: 21), GALFLGWLGAAGSTMGAPKKKRKV (SEQ ID NO: 22), GALFLGFLGAAGSTMGAWSQPKKKRKV (SEQ ID NO: 23), KETWWETWWTEWSQPKKKRKV (SEQ ID NO: 24), YARAAARQARA (SEQ ID NO: 25), THRLPRRRRRR (SEQ ID NO: 26), GGRRARRRRRR (SEQ ID NO: 27), RRQRRTSKLMKR (SEQ ID NO: 28), GWTLNSAGYLLGKINLKALAALAKKIL (SEQ ID NO: 29), KALAWEAKLAKALAKALAKHLAKALAKALKCEA (SEQ ID NO: 30), and RQIKIWFQNRRMKWKK (SEQ ID NO: 31).

[0049] (c) Marker domainIn alternative embodiments, one or more heterologous domains may be marker domains. Marker domains include fluorescent proteins and purification or epitope tags. Suitable fluorescent proteins include, but are not limited to, green fluorescent proteins (e.g., GFP, eGFP, GFP-2, tagGFP, turboGFP, Emerald, Azami Green, Monomeric Azami Green, CopGFP, AceGFP, ZsGreen1), yellow fluorescent proteins (e.g., YFP, EYFP, Citrine, Venus, YPet, PhiYFP, ZsYellow1), blue fluorescent proteins (e.g., BFP, EBFP, EBFP2, Azurite, mKalama1, GFPuv, Sapphire, T-sapphire), cyan fluorescent proteins (e.g., ECFP, Cerulean, CyPet, AmCyan1, Midoriishi-Cyan), red fluorescent proteins (e.g., mKate, mKate2, mPlum, DsRed, etc.). Monomer, mCherry, mRFP1, DsRed-Express, DsRed2, DsRed-Monomer, HcRed-Tandem, HcRed1, AsRed2, eqFP611, mRasberry, mStrawberry, Jred), orange fluorescent protein (e.g., mOrange, mKO, Kusabira-Orange, Monomeric Kusabira-Orange, mTangerine, tdTomato), or combinations thereof. The marker domain may comprise tandem repeats of one or more fluorescent proteins (e.g., Suntag). Non-limiting examples of suitable purification or epitope tags include 6xHis (SEQ ID NO: 32), FLAG®, HA, GST, Myc, SAM, and the like.Non-limiting examples of heterologous fusions that facilitate detection or enrichment of CRISPR complexes include streptavidin (Kipriyanov et al., Human Antibodies, 1995, 6(3):93-101), avidin (Airenne et al., Biomolecular Engineering, 1999, 16(1-4):87-92), monomeric forms of avidin (in (Laitinen et al., Journal of Biological Chemistry, 2003, 278(6):4010-4014), and peptide tags that facilitate biotinylation during recombinant production (Cull et al., Methods in Enzymology, 2000, 326:430-440).

[0050] (d) Chromatin regulatory motifs In yet other embodiments, one or more of the heterologous domains may be a chromatin regulatory motif (CMM). Non-limiting examples of CMMs include high mobility group (HMG) proteins (e.g., HMGB1, HMGB2, HMGB3, HMGN1, HMGN2, HMGN3a, HMGN3b, HMGN4, and HMGN5 proteins), the central globular domain of histone H1 variants (e.g., histones H1.0, H1.1, H1.2, H1.3, H1.4, H1.5, H1.6, H1.7, H1.8, H1.9, and H.1.10), or DNA-binding domains of chromatin remodeling complexes (e.g., SWI / SNF (SWItch / Sucrose Non-Fermentable), ISWI (Imitation SWItch), CHD (Chromodomain-Helicase-DNA Binding), and the like). CMMs include nucleosome interacting peptides derived from Mi-2 / NuRD (nucleosome remodeling and deacetylase), INO80, SWR1, and the RSC complex. In other embodiments, CMMs may also be derived from topoisomerases, helicases, or viral proteins. The source of the CMMs may and should vary. CMMs may be from humans, animals (i.e., vertebrates and invertebrates), plants, algae, or yeast. Non-limiting examples of specific CMMs are listed in Table B below. Those skilled in the art can readily identify homologs in other species and / or associated fusion motifs therewith. [Table B]

[0051] (e) Epigenetic modification domain In yet other embodiments, one or more heterologous domains may be epigenetic modification domains. Non-limiting examples of suitable epigenetic modification domains include DNA deamination (e.g., cytidine deaminase, adenosine deaminase, guanine deaminase), DNA methyltransferase activity (e.g., cytosine methyltransferase), DNA demethylase activity, DNA amination, DNA oxidation activity, DNA helicase activity, histone acetyltransferase (HAT) activity (e.g., the HAT domain from the E1A binding protein p300), histone deacetylase activity, histone methyltransfer ... In certain embodiments, the epigenetic modification domain may comprise a cytidine deaminase activity, an adenosine deaminase activity, a histone acetyltransferase activity, a histone demethylase activity, a histone kinase activity, a histone phosphatase activity, a histone ubiquitin ligase activity, a histone deubiquitination activity, a histone adenylation activity, a histone deadenylation activity, a histone sumoylation activity, a histone desumoylation activity, a histone ribosylation activity, a histone deribosylation activity, a histone myristoylation activity, a histone demyristoylation activity, a histone citrullination activity, a histone alkylation activity, a histone dealkylation activity, or a histone oxidation activity.

[0052] (f) Transcriptional regulatory domain In other embodiments, one or more heterologous domains may be transcriptional regulatory domains (i.e., transcriptional activation domains or transcriptional repressor domains). Suitable transcriptional activation domains include, but are not limited to, herpes simplex virus VP16 domain, VP64 (i.e., four tandem copies of VP16), VP160 (i.e., ten tandem copies of VP16), NFκB p65 activation domain (p65), Epstein-Barr virus R transcriptional activator (Rta) domain, VPR (i.e., VP64+p65+Rta), p300-dependent transcriptional activation domain, p53 activation domains 1 and 2, heat shock factor 1 (HSF1) activation domain, Smad4 activation domain (SAD), cAMP response element binding protein (CREB) activation domain, E2A activation domain, nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) activation domain, or combinations thereof. Non-limiting examples of suitable transcriptional repressor domains include Kruppel-associated box (KRAB) repressor domain, Mxi repressor domain, inducible cAMP early repressor (ICER) domain, YY1 glycine-rich repressor domain, Sp1-like repressor, E(spl) repressor, IκB repressor, Sin3 repressor, methyl-CpG binding protein 2 (MeCP2) repressor, or combinations thereof. The transcriptional activation or repressor domain may be genetically fused to the Cas9 protein or may be attached via non-covalent protein-protein, protein-RNA, or protein-DNA interactions.

[0053] (g) RNA aptamer binding domain In further embodiments, one or more heterologous domains may be an RNA aptamer binding domain (Konermann et al., Nature, 2015, 517(7536):583-588; Zalatan et al., Cell, 2015, 160(1-2):339-50). Examples of suitable RNA aptamer protein domains include MS2 coat protein (MCP), PP7 bacteriophage coat protein (PCP), Mu bacteriophage Com protein, lambda bacteriophage N22 protein, stem-loop binding protein (SLBP), fragile X mental retardation syndrome-associated protein 1 (FXR1), proteins derived from bacteriophages such as AP205, BZ13, f1, f2, fd, fr, ID2, JP34 / GA, JP501, JP34, JP500, KU1, M11, M12, MX1, NL95, PP7, ΦCb5, ΦCb8r, ΦCb12r, ΦCb23r, Qβ, R17, SP-β, TW18, TW19, and VK, fragments thereof, or derivatives thereof.

[0054] (h) Non-Cas9 nuclease domain In yet other embodiments, one or more heterologous domains may be non-Cas9 nuclease domains. Suitable nuclease domains may be derived from any endonuclease or exonuclease. Non-limiting examples of endonucleases from which the nuclease domain may be derived include, but are not limited to, restriction endonucleases and homing endonucleases. In some embodiments, the nuclease domain may be derived from a type II-S restriction endonuclease. Type II-S endonucleases typically cleave DNA at a site several base pairs away from the recognition / binding site and have separable binding and cleavage domains. These enzymes are generally monomers that associate transiently to form dimers and cleave each strand of DNA at offset positions. Non-limiting examples of suitable type II-S endonucleases include BfiI, BpmI, BsaI, BsgI, BsmBI, BsmI, BspMI, FokI, MboII, and SapI. In some embodiments, the nuclease domain may be a FokI nuclease domain or a derivative thereof. The type II-S nuclease domain may be modified to facilitate dimerization of two different nuclease domains. For example, the cleavage domain of FokI may be modified by mutating specific amino acid residues. As a non-limiting example, the amino acid residues at positions 446, 447, 479, 483, 484, 486, 487, 490, 491, 496, 498, 499, 500, 531, 534, 537, and 538 of the FokI nuclease domain are targets for modification. In certain embodiments, the FokI nuclease domain may include a first FokI half-domain that includes a Q486E, I499L, and / or N496D mutation, and a second FokI half-domain that includes an E490K, I538K, and / or H537R mutation.

[0055] (i) Nucleic acid base modifying enzyme The engineered Cas9 mutants described herein can also include nucleobase-modifying enzymes or catalytic domains thereof.

[0056] A variety of nucleobase modifying enzymes are suitable for use in the systems disclosed herein. The nucleobase modifying enzyme can be a DNA base editor. In some embodiments, the DNA base editor can be a cytidine deaminase that converts cytidine to uridine, which is read as thymine by the polymerase enzyme. Non-limiting examples of cytidine deaminases include cytidine deaminase 1 (CDA1), cytidine deaminase 2 (CDA2), activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AICDA), apolipoprotein B mRNA-editing complex (APOBEC) family cytidine deaminases (e.g., APOBEC1, APOBEC2, APOBEC3A, APOBEC3B, APOBEC3C, APOBEC3D / E, APOBEC3F, APOBEC3G, APOBEC3H, APOBEC4), APOBEC1 complementation factor / APOBEC1 stimulatory factor (ACF1 / ASF) cytidine deaminase, cytosine deaminase acting on RNA (CDAR), bacterial long isoform cytidine deaminase (CDDL), and cytosine deaminase acting on tRNA (CDAT). In other embodiments, a DNA base editor can be an adenosine deaminase, which converts adenosine to inosine, which is read as guanosine by a polymerase enzyme. Non-limiting examples of adenosine deaminases include tRNA adenine deaminase, adenosine deaminase, adenosine deaminase acting on RNA (ADAR), and adenosine deaminase acting on tRNA (ADAT).

[0057] The nucleobase modifying enzymes (base editors) can be wild-type or fragments thereof, modified versions thereof (e.g., non-essential domains can be deleted), or engineered versions thereof. The nucleobase modifying enzymes (base editors) can be of eukaryotic, bacterial or archaeal origin.

[0058] In some embodiments, the nucleobase modifying enzyme (base editor) can be a cytidine deaminase or a catalytic domain thereof. The cytidine deaminase can be from human, mouse, lamprey, abalone, or E. coli. In embodiments where the nucleobase modifying enzyme is a cytidine deaminase, the RNA-guided nucleobase modifying system can further comprise at least one uracil glycosylase inhibitor (UGI) domain. The removal of uracil from DNA, which is the result of the deamination of cytosine, is inhibited by UGI. Suitable UGI domains are known in the art.

[0059] In some embodiments, the system that employs cytidine deaminase and UGI may have negative effects when these components are overexpressed. To prevent overexpression, degradation tags may be added. Degradation tags mark proteins that should be degraded by protein recycling systems. These degradation tags result in different protein half-lives. Non-limiting examples of degradation tags are LVA, AAV, ASV and LAA.

[0060] (j) Reverse transcriptase In some embodiments, the domain fused to an engineered SpCas9 variant described herein is a reverse transcriptase. Exemplary reverse transcriptases include avian myeloblastosis virus (AMV) reverse transcriptase and Moloney murine leukemia virus (MMLV) reverse transcriptase.

[0061] (k) Recombinase / Integrase In some embodiments, the domain fused to the engineered SpCas9 variants described herein is a recombinase or integrase. Non-limiting examples of suitable recombinases include Cre recombinase, FLP recombinase, Gin recombinase, Bacteroides intN2 tyrosine integrase (encoded by the NBU2 gene), Streptomyces phage phiC31 (φC31) recombinase, E. coli phage P4 recombinase, E. coli phage lambda integrase, Listeria A118 phage recombinase, lentivirus or HIV integrase, and actinophage R4 Sre recombinase. Recombinases / integrases can either mediate recombination between two sequence-specific recognition (or attachment) sites (e.g., an attP and an attB site or two Cre / loxP sites) or can randomly insert DNA, such as HIV integrase.

[0062] (l) Linker The one or more heterologous domains may be directly linked to the Cas9 protein via one or more chemical bonds (e.g., covalent bonds) or the one or more heterologous domains may be indirectly linked to the Cas9 protein via one or more linkers.

[0063] A linker is a chemical group that links to one or more other chemical groups through at least one covalent bond. Suitable linkers include amino acids, peptides, nucleotides, nucleic acids, organic linker molecules (e.g., maleimide derivatives, N-ethoxybenzylimidazole, biphenyl-3,4',5-tricarboxylic acid, p-aminobenzyloxycarbonyl, etc.), disulfide linkers, and polymer linkers (e.g., PEG). Linkers may include one or more spacing groups, including, but not limited to, alkylene, alkenylene, alkynylene, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, alkoxy, aryl, heteroaryl, aralkyl, aralkenyl, aralkynyl, etc. Linkers may be neutral or may have a positive or negative charge. Additionally, linkers may be cleavable such that the covalent bond of the linker that connects the linker to another chemical group can be broken or cleaved under certain conditions, including pH, temperature, salt concentration, light, catalyst, or enzyme. In some embodiments, the linker may be a peptide linker. The peptide linker may be a flexible amino acid linker (e.g., containing small non-polar or polar amino acids). Non-limiting examples of flexible linkers include LEGGGS (SEQ ID NO: 33), TGSG (SEQ ID NO: 34), GGSGGGSG (SEQ ID NO: 35), (GGGGS) 1-4( (SEQ ID NO:36), and (Gly)6-8 (SEQ ID NO:37). Alternatively, the peptide linker may be a rigid amino acid linker. Such linkers include (EAAAK) 1-4 (SEQ ID NO:38), A(EAAAK) 2-5 A (SEQ ID NO: 39), PAPAP (SEQ ID NO: 40), and (AP) 6-8 (Including SEQ ID NO: 41. Further examples of suitable linkers are well known in the art, and programs for designing linkers are readily available (e.g., Crasto et al., Protein Eng., 2000, 13(5):309-312).

[0064] (m) Production of engineered Cas9 proteins In some embodiments, the engineered Cas9 protein may be produced recombinantly in a cell-free system, bacterial cells, or eukaryotic cells and purified using conventional purification methods. In other embodiments, the engineered Cas9 protein is produced in vivo in a eukaryotic cell of interest from a nucleic acid encoding the engineered Cas9 protein (see Section (III) below and incorporated by reference in this Section (I)).

[0065] In embodiments where the engineered Cas9 protein comprises nuclease or nickase activity, the engineered Cas9 protein may further comprise at least one nuclear localization signal, cell membrane permeation domain, and / or marker domain, and at least one chromatin disruption domain. In embodiments where the engineered Cas9 protein is linked to an epigenetic modification domain, the engineered Cas9 protein may further comprise at least one nuclear localization signal, cell membrane permeation domain, and / or marker domain, and at least one chromatin disruption domain. Furthermore, in embodiments where the engineered Cas9 protein is linked to a transcriptional regulatory domain, the engineered Cas9 protein may further comprise at least one nuclear localization signal, cell membrane permeation domain, and / or marker domain, and at least one chromatin disruption domain and / or at least one RNA aptamer binding domain.

[0066] (II) Engineered Cas9 system Another aspect of the disclosure provides an engineered Cas9 system comprising an engineered Cas9 protein variant as described above in section (I), which is incorporated by reference in this section (II) (e.g., the engineered Cas9 protein variant comprises modifications at one or more (e.g., two or three) of amino acid positions 526, 562, 652, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see numbering system of Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9), where a lysine (K) at one or more of the foregoing amino acid positions is changed to a leucine (L) or a glutamine (Q), and / or an arginine (R) at one or more of the foregoing amino acid positions is changed to a leucine (L) or a glutamine (Q), and an engineered guide RNA, where each engineered guide RNA is designed to form a complex with a specific engineered Cas9 protein. Each engineered guide RNA comprises a 5' guide sequence designed to hybridize to a target sequence of the double-stranded sequence, where the target sequence is 5' of a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM).

[0067] (a) Engineered guide RNA The engineered guide RNA is designed to form a complex with a specific engineered Cas9 protein. The guide RNA comprises (i) a CRISPR RNA (crRNA) that contains a guide sequence at its 5' end that hybridizes with the target sequence, and (ii) a trans-acting crRNA (tracrRNA) sequence that recruits the Cas9 protein. The crRNA guide sequence of each guide RNA is different (i.e., sequence-specific). The tracrRNA sequence is generally the same in guide RNAs designed to form a complex with the Cas9 protein from a specific bacterial species.

[0068] The crRNA guide sequence is designed to hybridize with the target sequence (i.e., protospacer) in a double-stranded sequence. Typically, the complementarity between the crRNA and the target sequence is at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 95%, or at least 99%. In certain embodiments, the complementarity is complete (i.e., 100%). In various embodiments, the length of the crRNA guide sequence may range from about 15 nucleotides to about 25 nucleotides. For example, the crRNA guide sequence may be about 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, or 25 nucleotides long. In certain embodiments, the crRNA is about 19, 20, or 21 nucleotides long. In one embodiment, the crRNA guide sequence has a length of 20 nucleotides.

[0069] The guide RNA comprises a repeat sequence that forms at least one stem-loop structure that interacts with the Cas9 protein, and a 3' sequence that remains single-stranded. The length of each loop and stem may vary. For example, the loop may range from about 3 to about 10 nucleotides in length, and the stem may range from about 6 to about 20 base pairs in length. The stem may include one or more overhangs of 1 to about 10 nucleotides. The length of the single-stranded 3' region may vary. The tracrRNA sequence in the engineered guide RNA is generally based on the wild-type tracrRNA coding sequence in the bacterial species of interest. The wild-type sequence may be modified to facilitate secondary structure formation, increase secondary structure stability, facilitate expression in eukaryotic cells, etc. For example, one or more nucleotide changes may be introduced into the guide RNA coding sequence (see Example 3 below). The tracrRNA sequence may range from about 50 nucleotides to about 300 nucleotides in length. In various embodiments, the tracrRNA may range in length from about 50 to about 90 nucleotides, about 90 to about 110 nucleotides, about 110 to about 130 nucleotides, about 130 to about 150 nucleotides, about 150 to about 170 nucleotides, about 170 to about 200 nucleotides, about 200 to about 250 nucleotides, or about 250 to about 300 nucleotides.

[0070] Typically, an engineered guide RNA is a single molecule (i.e., a single chimeric guide RNA or sgRNA) in which the crRNA sequence is linked to the tracrRNA sequence. In some embodiments, however, the engineered guide RNA may be two separate molecules (e.g., a bimolecular guide RNA). For example, a guide RNA may comprise a first molecule (or region) comprising a crRNA that comprises a 3' sequence (comprising about 6 to about 20 nucleotides) that can base pair with the 5' end of the second molecule, and a second molecule (or region) comprising a tracrRNA that comprises a 5' sequence (comprising about 6 to about 20 nucleotides) that can base pair with the 3' end (or region) of the first molecule.

[0071] In some embodiments, the tracrRNA sequence of the engineered guide RNA may be modified to include one or more aptamer sequences (Konermann et al., Nature, 2015, 517(7536):583-588; Zalatan et al., Cell, 2015, 160(1-2):339-50). Suitable aptamer sequences include those selected from MCP, PCP, Com, SLBP, FXR1, AP205, BZ13, f1, f2, fd, fr, ID2, JP34 / GA, JP501, JP34, JP500, KU1, M11, M12, MX1, NL95, PP7, ΦCb5, ΦCb8r, ΦCb12r, ΦCb23r, Qβ, R17, SP-β, TW18, TW19, VK, fragments thereof, or derivatives thereof, and include an aptamer sequence that binds to an adaptor protein. One of skill in the art will appreciate that the length of the aptamer sequence may vary.

[0072] In other embodiments, the guide RNA may further comprise at least one detectable label. The detectable label may be a fluorophore (e.g., FAM, TMR, Cy3, Cy5, Texas Red, Oregon Green, Alexa Fluors, Halo tags, or suitable fluorescent dyes), a detection tag (e.g., biotin, digoxigenin, etc.), a quantum dot, or a gold particle.

[0073] The guide RNA may comprise standard and / or modified ribonucleotides. In some embodiments, the guide RNA may comprise standard or modified deoxyribonucleotides. In embodiments in which the guide RNA is enzymatically synthesized (i.e., in vivo or in vitro), the guide RNA generally comprises standard ribonucleotides. In embodiments in which the guide RNA is chemically synthesized, the guide RNA may comprise standard or modified ribonucleotides and / or deoxyribonucleotides. The modified ribonucleotides and / or deoxyribonucleotides include base modifications (e.g., pseudouridine, 2-thiouridine, N6-methyladenosine, etc.) and / or sugar modifications (e.g., 2'-O-methyl, 2'-fluoro, 2'-amino, locked nucleic acid (LNA), etc.). The backbone of the guide RNA may also be modified to include phosphorothioate linkages, boranophosphate linkages, or peptide nucleic acids.

[0074] (b) PAM sequence The engineered Cas9 system described above targets a specific sequence of double-stranded DNA located upstream of a PAM sequence. The PAM sequence may include a typical 5'-NGG-3'PAM or an atypical PAM, such as 5'-NAG-3'PAM. In some embodiments, the engineered Cas9 system described above may be modified to recognize alternative PAMs, such as 5'-NGAN-3', 5'-NGNG-3', and 5'-NGCG-3'PAM.

[0075] (III) Nucleic acid Further aspects of the disclosure provide nucleic acids encoding the engineered Cas9 protein variants and systems described in sections (I) and (II) above, which are incorporated by reference in this section (III) (e.g., the engineered Cas9 protein variants include modifications at one or more (e.g., two or three) of amino acid positions 526, 562, 652, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (see numbering system of Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9, SpCas9), where a lysine (K) at one or more of the aforementioned amino acid positions is changed to a leucine (L) or a glutamine (Q), and / or an arginine (R) at one or more of the aforementioned amino acid positions is changed to a leucine (L) or a glutamine (Q)). The proteins and systems may be encoded by a single nucleic acid or multiple nucleic acids. The nucleic acids may be DNA or RNA, linear or circular, single-stranded or double-stranded. The RNA or DNA may be codon optimized for efficient translation into protein in the eukaryotic cell of interest. Codon optimization programs are available as freeware or from commercial sources.

[0076] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid encoding the engineered Cas9 protein may be RNA. The RNA may be enzymatically synthesized in vitro. For this purpose, the DNA encoding the engineered Cas9 protein may be operably linked to a promoter sequence recognized by a phage RNA polymerase for in vitro RNA synthesis. For example, the promoter sequence may be a T7, T3, or SP6 promoter sequence or a variant of a T7, T3, or SP6 promoter sequence. The DNA encoding the engineered protein may be part of a vector as detailed below. In such embodiments, the in vitro transcribed RNA may be purified, capped, and / or polyadenylated. In other embodiments, the RNA encoding the engineered Cas9 protein may be part of a self-replicating RNA (Yoshioka et al., Cell Stem Cell, 2013, 13:246-254). Self-replicating RNA may be derived from the non-infectious, self-replicating Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis (VEE) virus RNA replicon, which is a single-stranded positive-stranded RNA that allows self-replication for a limited number of cell divisions and can be modified to encode a protein of interest (Yoshioka et al., Cell Stem Cell, 2013, 13:246-254).

[0077] In other embodiments, the nucleic acid encoding the engineered Cas9 protein may be DNA. The DNA coding sequence may be operably linked to at least one promoter control sequence for expression in a cell of interest. In some embodiments, the DNA coding sequence may be operably linked to a promoter sequence for expression of the engineered Cas9 protein in a bacterial (e.g., E. coli) cell or a eukaryotic (e.g., yeast, insect, or mammalian) cell. Suitable bacterial promoters include, but are not limited to, the T7 promoter, the lac operon promoter, the trp promoter, the tac promoter (which is a hybrid of the trp and lac promoters), variants of any of the foregoing, and combinations of any of the foregoing. Non-limiting examples of suitable eukaryotic promoters include constitutive, regulated, or cell or tissue specific promoters. Suitable eukaryotic constitutive promoter control sequences include, but are not limited to, the cytomegalovirus immediate early promoter (CMV), the simian virus (SV40) promoter, the adenovirus major late promoter, the Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) promoter, the mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) promoter, the phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK) promoter, the elongation factor (ED1)-alpha promoter, the ubiquitin promoter, the actin promoter, the tubulin promoter, the immunoglobulin promoter, fragments thereof, or combinations of any of the foregoing. Examples of suitable eukaryotic regulated promoter control sequences include, but are not limited to, those regulated by heat shock, metals, steroids, antibiotics, or alcohol. Non-limiting examples of tissue-specific promoters include B29 promoter, CD14 promoter, CD43 promoter, CD45 promoter, CD68 promoter, desmin promoter, elastase-1 promoter, endoglin promoter, fibronectin promoter, Flt-1 promoter, GFAP promoter, GPIIb promoter, ICAM-2 promoter, INF-β promoter, Mb promoter, NphsI promoter, OG-2 promoter, SP-B promoter, SYN1 promoter, and WASP promoter.The promoter sequence may be wild-type, or it may be modified for more efficient or effective expression. In some embodiments, the DNA coding sequence may also be linked to a polyadenylation signal (e.g., SV40 polyA signal, bovine growth hormone (BGH) polyA signal, etc.) and / or at least one transcription termination sequence. In some situations, the engineered Cas9 protein may be purified from bacteria or eukaryotic cells.

[0078] In yet other embodiments, the engineered guide RNA may be encoded by DNA. In some cases, the DNA encoding the engineered guide RNA may be operably linked to a promoter sequence recognized by a phage RNA polymerase for in vitro RNA synthesis. For example, the promoter sequence may be a T7, T3, or SP6 promoter sequence or a variant of a T7, T3, or SP6 promoter sequence. In other examples, the DNA encoding the engineered guide RNA may be operably linked to a promoter sequence recognized by an RNA polymerase III (Pol III) for expression in a eukaryotic cell of interest. Examples of suitable Pol III promoters include, but are not limited to, mammalian U6, U3, H1, and 7SL RNA promoters.

[0079] In various embodiments, the nucleic acid encoding the engineered Cas9 protein may be present in a vector. In some embodiments, the vector may further comprise a nucleic acid encoding an engineered guide RNA. Suitable vectors include plasmid vectors, viral vectors, and self-replicating RNA (Yoshioka et al., Cell Stem Cell, 2013, 13:246-254). In some embodiments, the nucleic acid encoding the composite or fusion protein may be present in a plasmid vector. Non-limiting examples of suitable plasmid vectors include pUC, pBR322, pET, pBluescript, and variants thereof. In other embodiments, the nucleic acid encoding the composite or fusion protein may be part of a viral vector (e.g., a lentiviral vector, an adeno-associated viral vector, an adenoviral vector, etc.). The plasmid or viral vector may comprise additional expression control sequences (e.g., enhancer sequences, Kozak sequences, polyadenylation sequences, transcription termination sequences, etc.), selectable marker sequences (e.g., antibiotic resistance genes), origins of replication, etc. Further information about vectors and their use can be found in "Current Protocols in Molecular Biology" Ausubel et al., John Wiley & Sons, New York, 2003 or "Molecular Cloning: A Laboratory Manual" Sambrook & Russell, Cold Spring Harbor Press, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, 3rd edition, 2001.

[0080] (IV) Eukaryotic cells Another aspect of the disclosure relates to at least one engineered Cas9 protein variant as detailed in Section (I) above, which is incorporated by reference in this Section (IV), e.g., variants of the Cas9 protein at amino acid positions 526, 562, 652, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (Streptococcus pyogenes and / or an engineered Cas9 protein variant comprising a modification at one or more (e.g., two or three) of the amino acid residues (e.g., Cas9, see numbering scheme for SpCas9) at one or more of the aforementioned amino acid positions, wherein a lysine (K) at one or more of the aforementioned amino acid positions is changed to a leucine (L) or a glutamine (Q), and / or an arginine (R) at one or more of the aforementioned amino acid positions is changed to a leucine (L) or a glutamine (Q), and / or a eukaryotic cell comprising at least one nucleic acid encoding an engineered Cas9 protein, and / or a system, and / or an engineered guide RNA, as detailed above in Sections (I), (II), and (III) (each of which is incorporated by reference in this Section (V)).

[0081] The eukaryotic cell may be a human cell, a non-human mammalian cell, a non-mammalian vertebrate cell, an invertebrate cell, a plant cell, or a unicellular eukaryote. Examples of suitable eukaryotic cells are detailed below in section (V)(c). The eukaryotic cell may be in vitro, ex vivo, or in vivo.

[0082] (V) Method of modifying the sequence. Further aspects of the disclosure include methods for modifying chromosomal sequences in eukaryotic cells. Generally, the methods include introducing into a eukaryotic cell of interest at least one engineered Cas9 system as detailed in Section (II) above, further comprising an engineered Cas9 protein variant as detailed in Section (I) above, each of Sections (I) and (II) being incorporated by reference in this Section (V) (e.g., amino acid positions 526, 562, 652, 661, 691, 780, 810, 848, 855, 1003, and 1060 (Streptococcus pyogenes)). an engineered Cas9 protein variant comprising a modification at one or more (e.g., two or three) of the amino acid residues (e.g., Cas9, see numbering scheme for SpCas9) at one or more of the aforementioned amino acid positions, where a lysine (K) at one or more of the aforementioned amino acid positions has been changed to a leucine (L) or a glutamine (Q), and / or an arginine (R) at one or more of the aforementioned amino acid positions has been changed to a leucine (L) or a glutamine (Q); and / or at least one nucleic acid encoding an engineered Cas9 protein, and / or a system, and / or an engineered guide RNA, as detailed above in Sections (I), (II), and (III) (each of which is incorporated by reference in this Section (IV)).

[0083] In embodiments in which the engineered Cas9 protein comprises nuclease or nickase activity, the chromosomal sequence modification may comprise a substitution of at least one nucleotide, a deletion of at least one nucleotide, an insertion of at least one nucleotide. In some iterations, the method comprises introducing into the eukaryotic cell one engineered Cas9 system comprising nuclease activity or two engineered Cas9 systems comprising nickase activity, without a donor polynucleotide, such that one or more systems of engineered Cas9 introduce a double-stranded break at a target site in the chromosomal sequence, and repair of the double-stranded break by cellular DNA repair processes introduces at least one nucleotide change (i.e., an indel), thereby inactivating the chromosomal sequence (i.e., a gene knockout). In other iterations, the method involves introducing one engineered Cas9 system containing nuclease activity or two engineered Cas9 systems containing nickase activity into a eukaryotic cell along with a donor polynucleotide such that the engineered Cas9 system or systems introduce a double-stranded break at a target site in the chromosomal sequence and repair of the double-stranded break by cellular DNA repair processes results in the insertion or exchange of a sequence in the donor polynucleotide into the target site in the chromosomal sequence (i.e., gene correction or gene knock-in).

[0084] In embodiments in which the engineered Cas9 protein comprises epigenetic modifying activity or transcriptional modulating activity, the chromosomal sequence alteration can comprise the conversion of at least one nucleotide in the chromosomal sequence at or near the target site, the modification of at least one nucleotide in the chromosomal sequence at or near the target site, the modification of at least one histone protein in the chromosomal sequence at or near the target site, and / or an alteration of transcription in the chromosomal sequence at or near the target site.

[0085] Furthermore, it should be understood that the engineered Cas9 variants described herein can also be used to modify non-eukaryotic, e.g., microbial, genomes.

[0086] (a) Introduction into cells As described above, the methods involve introducing at least one engineered Cas9 system and / or a nucleic acid encoding the system (and a donor polynucleotide, if desired) into a eukaryotic cell. The at least one system and / or nucleic acid / donor polynucleotide may be introduced into the cell of interest by a variety of means.

[0087] In some embodiments, cells may be transfected with suitable molecules (i.e., proteins, DNA, and / or RNA). Suitable transfection methods include nucleofection (or electroporation), calcium phosphate mediated transfection, cationic polymer transfection (e.g., DEAE-dextran or polyethyleneimine), viral transduction, virosome transfection, virion transfection, liposome transfection, cationic liposome transfection, immunoliposome transfection, non-liposomal lipid transfection, dendrimer transfection, heat shock transfection, magnetofection, lipofection, gene gun delivery, impalefection, sonoporation, optical transfection, and proprietary agent enhanced uptake of nucleic acids. Transfection methods are well known in the art (see, for example, "Current Protocols in Molecular Biology" Ausubel et al., John Wiley & Sons, New York, 2003 or "Molecular Cloning: A Laboratory Manual" Sambrook & Russell, Cold Spring Harbor Press, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, 3rd edition, 2001). In other embodiments, molecules may be introduced into cells by microinjection. For example, molecules may be injected into the cytoplasm or nucleus of a cell of interest. The amount of each molecule introduced into a cell may vary, but those skilled in the art are familiar with the means to determine suitable amounts.

[0088] The various molecules may be introduced into the cell simultaneously or sequentially. For example, the engineered Cas9 system (or its encoding nucleic acid) and the donor polynucleotide may be introduced simultaneously. Alternatively, one may be introduced into the cell first and the other may be introduced thereafter.

[0089] Generally, cells are maintained under suitable conditions for cell growth and / or maintenance. Suitable cell culture conditions are well known in the art and described, for example, in Santiago et al., Proc.Natl.Acad.Sci.USA, 2008,105:5809-5814; Moehle et al. Proc.Natl.Acad.Sci.USA, 2007,104:3055-3060; Urnov et al., Nature, 2005,435:646-651; and Lombardo et al., Nat.Biotechnol., 2007,25:1298-1306. Those skilled in the art will understand that methods for culturing cells are known in the art and can and should vary depending on cell type. In all cases, routine optimization can be used to determine the optimal technique for a particular cell type.

[0090] (b) any donor polynucleotide In embodiments where the engineered Cas9 protein comprises nuclease or nickase activity, the method may further comprise introducing at least one donor polynucleotide into the cell. The donor polynucleotide may be single-stranded or double-stranded, linear or circular, and / or RNA or DNA. In some embodiments, the donor polynucleotide may be a vector, such as a plasmid vector.

[0091] The donor polynucleotide comprises at least one donor sequence. In some embodiments, the donor sequence of the donor polynucleotide may be a modified version of an endogenous or natural chromosomal sequence. For example, the donor sequence may be substantially identical to a portion of the chromosomal sequence at or near the sequence targeted by the engineered Cas9 system, but includes at least one nucleotide change. Thus, upon integration or exchange with the natural sequence, the sequence at the targeted chromosomal location includes at least one nucleotide change. For example, the change may be an insertion of one or more nucleotides, a deletion of one or more nucleotides, a substitution of one or more nucleotides, or a combination thereof. As a result of the "genetic correction" integration of the modified sequence, the cell can produce a modified gene product from the targeted chromosomal sequence.

[0092] In other aspects, the donor sequence of the donor polynucleotide may be an exogenous sequence. As used herein, an "exogenous" sequence refers to a sequence that is not native to the cell or whose natural location is a different location in the genome of the cell. For example, the exogenous sequence may include a protein coding sequence that may be operably linked to an exogenous promoter control sequence, which allows the cell to express the protein encoded by the integrated sequence when integrated into the genome. Alternatively, the exogenous sequence may be integrated into a chromosomal sequence such that its expression is regulated by an endogenous promoter control sequence. In other iterations, the exogenous sequence may be a transcription control sequence, another expression control sequence, an RNA coding sequence, etc. As mentioned above, the integration of an exogenous sequence into a chromosomal sequence is referred to as "knock-in".

[0093] As can be understood by one of skill in the art, the length of the donor sequence can and should vary, for example, the length of the donor sequence can vary from a few nucleotides to hundreds of nucleotides to hundreds of thousands of nucleotides.

[0094] Typically, the donor sequence in the donor polynucleotide is flanked by upstream and downstream sequences that have substantial sequence identity to the sequences located upstream and downstream, respectively, of the sequence targeted by the engineered Cas9 system. Due to these sequence similarities, the upstream and downstream sequences of the donor polynucleotide allow for homologous recombination between the donor polynucleotide and the chromosomal sequence to be targeted, such that the donor sequence can be integrated (or exchanged) into the chromosomal sequence.

[0095] As used herein, upstream sequence refers to a nucleic acid sequence that shares substantial sequence identity with the chromosomal sequence upstream of the sequence targeted by engineered Cas9 system.Similarly, downstream sequence refers to a nucleic acid sequence that shares substantial sequence identity with the chromosomal sequence downstream of the sequence targeted by engineered Cas9 system.As used herein, the phrase "substantial sequence identity" refers to a sequence that has at least about 75% sequence identity.Thus, the upstream and downstream sequences in donor polynucleotide may have about 75%, 76%, 77%, 78%, 79%, 80%, 81%, 82%, 83%, 84%, 85%, 86%, 87%, 88%, 89%, 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, or 99% sequence identity with the upstream or downstream sequence for the target sequence. In exemplary embodiments, the upstream and downstream sequences in the donor polynucleotide may have about 95% or 100% sequence identity to the chromosomal sequence upstream or downstream of the sequence targeted by the engineered Cas9 system.

[0096] In some embodiments, the upstream sequence shares substantial sequence identity with a chromosomal sequence located immediately upstream of the sequence targeted by the engineered Cas9 system. In other embodiments, the upstream sequence shares substantial sequence identity with a chromosomal sequence located within about one hundred (100) nucleotides upstream from the target sequence. Thus, for example, the upstream sequence may share substantial sequence identity with a chromosomal sequence located about 1 to about 20, about 21 to about 40, about 41 to about 60, about 61 to about 80, or about 81 to about 100 nucleotides upstream from the target sequence. In some embodiments, the downstream sequence shares substantial sequence identity with a chromosomal sequence located immediately downstream of the sequence targeted by the engineered Cas9 system. In other embodiments, the downstream sequence shares substantial sequence identity with a chromosomal sequence located within about one hundred (100) nucleotides downstream from the target sequence. Thus, for example, the downstream sequence may share substantial sequence identity with a chromosomal sequence located about 1 to about 20, about 21 to about 40, about 41 to about 60, about 61 to about 80, or about 81 to about 100 nucleotides downstream from the target sequence.

[0097] Each upstream or downstream sequence may range in length from about 20 nucleotides to about 5000 nucleotides. In some embodiments, the upstream and downstream sequences may comprise about 50, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000, 1100, 1200, 1300, 1400, 1500, 1600, 1700, 1800, 1900, 2000, 2100, 2200, 2300, 2400, 2500, 2600, 2800, 3000, 3200, 3400, 3600, 3800, 4000, 4200, 4400, 4600, 4800, or 5000 nucleotides. In certain embodiments, the upstream and downstream sequences may range in length from about 50 to about 1500 nucleotides.

[0098] (c) Cell type A variety of cells are suitable for use in the methods described herein, including prokaryotic cells (e.g., bacterial) and eukaryotic cells (e.g., animal, insect and plant cells). For example, the cell may be a human cell, a non-human mammalian cell, a non-mammalian vertebrate cell, an invertebrate cell, an insect cell, a plant cell, a yeast cell, or a single-cell eukaryote. In some embodiments, the cell may be a one-cell embryo. For example, non-human mammalian embryos include rat, hamster, rodent, rabbit, cat, dog, sheep, pig, cow, horse, and primate embryos. In yet other embodiments, the cell may be a stem cell, such as an embryonic stem cell, an ES-like stem cell, a fetal stem cell, an adult stem cell, and the like. In one embodiment, the stem cell is not a human embryonic stem cell. Additionally, the stem cell may include those made by the techniques described in WO2003 / 046141 or Chung et al. (Cell Stem Cell, 2008, 2:113-117), which are incorporated herein in their entirety. The cells may be in vitro (i.e., in culture), ex vivo (i.e., in tissue isolated from an organism), or in vivo (i.e., within an organism). In exemplary embodiments, the cells are mammalian cells or mammalian cell lines. In certain embodiments, the cells are human cells or human cell lines.

[0099] By way of example, in some embodiments, the eukaryotic cell or population of eukaryotic cells is a T cell, a CD8+ T cell, a CD8+ naive T cell, a central memory T cell, an effector memory T cell, a CD4+ T cell, a stem cell memory T cell, a helper T cell, a regulatory T cell, a cytotoxic T cell, a natural killer T cell, a hematopoietic stem cell, a long-term hematopoietic stem cell, a short-term hematopoietic stem cell, a multipotent progenitor cell, a lineage-committed progenitor cell, a lymphoid progenitor cell, a competent ... Cell, Pancreatic progenitor cell, Endocrine progenitor cell, Exocrine progenitor cell, Myeloid progenitor cell, Common myeloid progenitor cell, Erythroid progenitor cell, Megakaryocytic erythroid progenitor cell, Monocytic progenitor cell, Endocrine progenitor cell, Exocrine cell, Fibroblast, Hepatoblast, Myoblast, Macrophage, Islet beta cell, Cardiomyocyte, Blood cell, Duct cell, Acinar cell, Alpha cell, Beta cell, Delta cell, PP cell, Bile duct cell, Retinal cell, Photoreceptor cell, Rod cell, Cone cell, Retina Pigment epithelial cells, trabecular meshwork cells, cochlear hair cells, outer hair cells, inner hair cells, lung epithelial cells, bronchial epithelial cells, alveolar epithelial cells, lung epithelial progenitor cells, striated muscle cells, cardiac muscle cells, muscle satellite cells, muscle cells, nerve cells, neural stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells, induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, embryonic stem cells, monocytes, megakaryocytes, neutrophils, eosinophils, basophils, mast cells, reticular cells, B cells, e.g., precursor B cells, pre-B cells, pro-B cells The cell is a human ovarian cancer cell, ...Non-limiting examples of suitable mammalian cells or cell lines include human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC), human T cells (autologous or allogeneic), human B cells, human macrophages, human hematopoietic stem cells, (hHSC), human liver cells, human retinal cells, pancreatic islets, human embryonic kidney cells (HEK293, HEK293T); human cervical carcinoma cells (HELA); human lung cells (W138); human liver cells (Hep G2); human U2-OS osteosarcoma cells, human A549 cells, human A-431 cells, and human K562 cells; Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells, baby hamster kidney (BHK) cells; mouse myeloma NS0 cells, mouse embryonic fibroblast 3T3 cells (NIH3T3), mouse B lymphoma A20 cells; mouse melanoma B16 cells; mouse myoblast C2C12 cells; mouse myeloma SP2 / 0 cells; mouse embryonic mesenchymal C3H-10T1 / 2 cells; mouse carcinoma CT26 cells, mouse mouse prostate DuCuP cells; mouse mammary EMT6 cells; mouse hepatocellular carcinoma Hepa1c1c7 cells; mouse myeloma J5582 cells; mouse epithelial cell MTD-1A cells; mouse cardiac MyEnd cells; mouse kidney RenCa cells; mouse pancreatic RIN-5F cells; mouse melanoma X64 cells; mouse lymphoma YAC-1 cells; rat glioblastoma 9L cells; rat B lymphoma RBL cells; rat neuroblastoma B35 cells; rat hepatocytes (HTC); buffalo rat liver BRL 3A cells; canine kidney cells (MDCK); canine mammary gland (CMT) cells; rat osteosarcoma D17 cells; rat monocyte / macrophage DH82 cells; monkey kidney SV-40 transformed fibroblast (COS7) cells; monkey kidney CVI-76 cells; African green monkey kidney (VERO-76) cells. An extensive list of mammalian cell lines can be found in the American Type Culture Collection catalog (ATCC, Manassas, VA).

[0100] Other aspects of the present disclosure include animals engineered to encode nucleic acids or vectors as described above, or animals permanently modified by the engineered Spcas9 mutants of the present disclosure. For example, the animal can be a model animal (Drosophila melanogaster, mouse, mosquito, rat), or the animal can be a livestock or farmed fish, or a pet. As another example, the animal can be a vector for at least one disease. As another example, the organism can be a vector for a human disease (i.e., mosquito, tick, bird).

[0101] Yet other aspects of the disclosure include plants engineered using a nucleic acid or vector as described above, or modified, either temporarily or permanently, by the engineered SpCas9 of the disclosure. For example, the plant can be a crop (i.e., rice, soybean, wheat, tobacco, cotton, alfalfa, canola, corn, sugar beet, etc.).

[0102] (VI) Application The compositions and methods disclosed herein can be used in a variety of therapeutic, diagnostic, industrial, and research applications. In some embodiments, the present disclosure can be used to modify chromosomal sequences of interest in cells, animals, or plants to model and / or study the function of genes, study genetic or epigenetic conditions of interest, or study biochemical pathways involved in various diseases or disorders. For example, transgenic organisms can be created that model diseases or disorders in which the expression of one or more nucleic acid sequences associated with the disease or disorder is altered. Disease models can be used to study the effects of mutations in organisms, study the onset and / or progression of a disease, study the effects of pharmacologic active compounds on a disease, and / or evaluate the efficacy of potential gene therapy strategies.

[0103] In other embodiments, the compositions and methods can be used to perform efficient and cost-effective functional genomic screens that can be used to study the function of genes involved in specific biological processes and how any changes in gene expression can affect the biological process, or to perform saturating mutagenesis or deep scanning of genomic loci in conjunction with cellular phenotypes. Saturating or deep scanning mutagenesis can be used, for example, to determine the critical minimal signatures and individual vulnerabilities of functional elements required for gene expression, drug resistance, and disease reversal.

[0104] In further embodiments, the compositions and methods disclosed herein can be used for diagnostic testing to establish the presence of a disease or disorder and / or for use in determining treatment options. Examples of suitable diagnostic tests include detection of specific mutations in cancer cells (e.g., specific mutations in EGFR, HER2, etc.), detection of specific mutations associated with specific diseases (e.g., trinucleotide repeats, mutations in β-globin associated with sickle cell disease, specific SNPs, etc.), detection of hepatitis, detection of viruses (e.g., Zika), etc.

[0105] In further embodiments, the compositions and methods disclosed herein can be used to correct genetic mutations associated with a particular disease or disorder, for example, to correct globin gene mutations associated with sickle cell disease or thalassemia, to correct mutations in the adenosine deaminase gene associated with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID), to reduce expression of HTT, the gene responsible for Huntington's disease, or to correct mutations in the rhodopsin gene for the treatment of retinitis pigmentosa. Such modifications may be performed in cells ex vivo.

[0106] In yet other embodiments, the compositions and methods disclosed herein can be used to generate crop plants with improved characteristics or increased resistance to environmental stress. The present disclosure can also be used to generate livestock or production animals with improved characteristics. For example, pigs have many characteristics that make them attractive as biomedical models, especially in regenerative medicine or xenotransplantation.

[0107] As an example, the disclosure provides a nucleotide or nucleic acid or vector sequence as described above for use as a pharmaceutical for gene therapy. The disclosure also provides a pharmaceutical composition comprising a nucleotide or nucleic acid or vector sequence as described above and at least one pharma- ceutically acceptable excipient. The disclosure also provides a pharmaceutical composition comprising a recombinant Cas9 polypeptide comprising the above-mentioned mutation and at least one pharma-ceutically acceptable excipient. A pharma-ceutically acceptable excipient typically includes an inactive ingredient used as a vehicle, diluent, or component of a dosage form, or component of a pharmaceutical composition including a drug, such as a therapeutic agent. A pharma-ceutically acceptable excipient typically includes an inactive ingredient that imparts a binding function (i.e., a binder), a disintegrating function (i.e., a disintegrant), a lubricating function (lubricant), and / or other functions (i.e., a solvent, a surfactant, etc.) to the composition. Furthermore, the disclosure provides an in vitro use of a nucleotide or nucleic acid or vector sequence as described above for genome engineering, cell engineering, protein expression, or other biotechnology applications. The disclosure further provides for the in vitro use of recombinant Cas9 polypeptides containing the above-described mutations in conjunction with a guide RNA (e.g., a single-molecule (i.e., chimeric) guide RNA or a bi-molecule (i.e., bipartite) guide RNA) for genome engineering, cell engineering, protein expression or other biotechnology applications.

[0108] Other aspects of the present disclosure relate to kits that contain various components as described herein, such as the Cas9 protein variants described herein, guide RNAs, vectors, primers, etc., and include instructions for their use in genome engineering, cell engineering, protein expression or other biotechnology applications.

[0109] definition The following definitions and methods are provided to better define the present invention and to guide those of ordinary skill in the art in the practice of the present invention. Unless otherwise specified, terms are to be understood according to conventional usage by those of ordinary skill in the relevant art.

[0110] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the meanings commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this invention belongs.The following documents provide those skilled in the art with the general definitions of many terms used in this invention: Singleton et al., Dictionary of Microbiology and Molecular Biology (2nd Ed. 1994); The Cambridge Dictionary of Science and Technology (Walker ed., 1988); The Glossary of Genetics, 5th Ed., R. Rieger et al. (eds.), Springer Verlag (1991); and Hale & Marham, The Harper Collins Dictionary of Biology (1991).The following terms used herein have the meanings ascribed to them unless otherwise specified.

[0111] When introducing elements of the present disclosure or preferred embodiments thereof, the articles "a," "an," "the," and "said" are intended to mean that there are one or more elements. The terms "comprising," "containing," and "having" are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements.

[0112] The term "about" when used in reference to a numerical value x means, for example, x±5%.

[0113] The term "complementary" or "complementarity" as used herein refers to the association of double-stranded nucleic acids by base pairing through specific hydrogen bonds. Base pairing can be standard Watson-Crick base pairing (e.g., 5'-AGTC-3' pairs with the complementary sequence 3'-TCAG-5'). Base pairing can also be Hoogsteen or reverse Hoogsteen hydrogen bonding. Complementarity is typically measured over the double-stranded region, thus excluding, for example, overhangs. Complementarity between two strands of a double-stranded region can be partial and expressed as a percentage (e.g., 70%) when only some bases (e.g., 70%) are complementary. Non-complementary bases are "mismatched". Complementarity can also be complete (i.e., 100%) when all bases in the double-stranded region are complementary.

[0114] As used herein, the term "CRISPR / Cas system" or "Cas9 system" refers to a complex comprising a Cas9 protein (i.e., a nuclease, nickase, or catalytically inactive protein) and a guide RNA.

[0115] As used herein, the term "endogenous sequence" refers to a chromosomal sequence that is native to a cell.

[0116] The term "exogenous" as used herein refers to a sequence that is not native to the cell or a chromosomal sequence that is in a chromosomal location that differs from its native location in the genome of the cell.

[0117] As used herein, "gene" refers to a DNA region (including exons and introns) that encodes a gene product, and all DNA regions that regulate the production of the gene product, whether or not such regulatory sequences are adjacent to the coding and / or transcribed sequence. Thus, a gene includes, but is not necessarily limited to, promoter sequences, terminators, translational regulatory sequences, such as ribosome binding sites and internal ribosome entry sites, enhancers, silencers, insulators, boundary elements, origins of replication, matrix attachment sites, and locus control regions.

[0118] The term "heterologous" refers to an entity that is not endogenous or native to a cell of interest. For example, a heterologous protein refers to a protein that is derived or originally derived from an exogenous source, such as an exogenously introduced nucleic acid sequence. In some cases, a heterologous protein is a protein that is not normally produced by the cell of interest.

[0119] The term "nickase" refers to an enzyme that cleaves one strand of a double-stranded nucleic acid sequence (i.e., nicks the double-stranded sequence). For example, a nuclease with double-strand cleavage activity can be modified by mutation and / or deletion to function as a nickase and cleave only one strand of a double-stranded sequence.

[0120] The term "nuclease" as used herein refers to an enzyme that cleaves both strands of a double-stranded nucleic acid sequence.

[0121] The terms "nucleic acid" and "polynucleotide" refer to deoxyribonucleotide or ribonucleotide polymers in linear or circular structures and in either single-stranded or double-stranded form. For the purposes of this disclosure, these terms should not be construed as limiting the length of the polymer. The terms may include known analogs of natural nucleotides, as well as nucleotides that are modified in the base, sugar, and / or phosphate moieties (e.g., phosphorothioate backbones). In general, analogs of a particular nucleotide have the same base-pairing specificity; i.e., an analog of A will base pair with T.

[0122] The term "nucleotide" refers to deoxyribonucleotides or ribonucleotides. A nucleotide may be a standard nucleotide (i.e., adenosine, guanosine, cytidine, thymidine, and uridine), a nucleotide isomer, or a nucleotide analog. A nucleotide analog refers to a nucleotide with a modified purine or pyrimidine base or a modified ribose moiety. A nucleotide analog may be a natural nucleotide (e.g., inosine, pseudouridine, etc.) or a non-natural nucleotide. Non-limiting examples of modifications in the sugar or base portion of a nucleotide include the addition (or removal) of acetyl, amino, carboxyl, carboxymethyl, hydroxyl, methyl, phosphoryl, and thiol groups, and the substitution of carbon and nitrogen atoms of the base with other atoms (e.g., 7-deazapurines). Nucleotide analogs also include dideoxynucleotides, 2'-O-methyl nucleotides, locked nucleic acids (LNA), peptide nucleic acids (PNA), and morpholinos.

[0123] The terms "polypeptide" and "protein" are used interchangeably to refer to a polymer of amino acid residues.

[0124] The terms "target sequence," "target chromosomal sequence," and "target site" are used interchangeably to refer to a specific sequence in chromosomal DNA to which an engineered Cas9 system is targeted and the site at which the engineered Cas9 system modifies the DNA or modifies a protein associated with that DNA.

[0125] Techniques for determining the identity of nucleic acid and amino acid sequences are known in the art. Typically, such techniques involve determining the nucleotide sequence of the mRNA for a gene and / or determining the amino acid sequence encoded thereby, and comparing these sequences with a second nucleotide or amino acid sequence. Genomic sequences may also be determined and compared in this manner. In general, identity refers to the exact nucleotide-to-nucleotide or amino acid-to-amino acid correspondence of two polynucleotide or polypeptide sequences, respectively. Two or more sequences (polynucleotide or amino acid) may be compared by determining their percent identity. The percent identity of two sequences, whether nucleic acid or amino acid sequences, is the number of exact matches between the two aligned sequences divided by the length of the shorter sequence, multiplied by 100. Approximate alignment of nucleic acid sequences is provided by the local homology algorithm of Smith and Waterman, Advances in Applied Mathematics 2:482-489 (1981). This algorithm can be applied to amino acid sequences by using a scoring matrix developed by Dayhoff, Atlas of Protein Sequences and Structure, MO Dayhoff ed., 5 suppl. 3: 353-358, National Biomedical Research Foundation, Washington, DC, USA, and normalized by Gribskov, Nucl. Acids Res. 14 (6): 6745-6763 (1986). An exemplary implementation of this algorithm for determining percent identity of sequences is provided by Genetics Computer Group (Madison, Wis.) in the "BestFit" utility application. Other suitable programs for calculating percent identity or similarity between sequences are generally known in the art, for example, another alignment program is BLAST, used with default parameters.For example, BLASTN and BLASTP can be used using the following default parameters: genetic code=standard; filter=none; strand=both; cutoff=60; expect=10; Matrix=BLOSUM62; Descriptions=50 sequences; sort by=HIGH SCORE; Databases=non-redundant, GENBANK+EMBL+DDBJ+PDB+GENBANK CDS translations+Swiss protein+Spupdate+PIR. Details of these programs can be found at the GENBANK NIH Gene Sequence Database website.

[0126] Although the invention has been described in detail, it will be apparent that modifications and variations are possible without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. It should be further understood that all embodiments in this disclosure are provided as non-limiting examples. EXAMPLES

[0127] The following non-limiting examples are provided to further illustrate the present invention. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that the techniques disclosed in the following examples represent approaches that the inventors have found to work well in the practice of the present invention, and thus can be considered to constitute examples of the manner of carrying out the present invention. However, those skilled in the art should understand in light of this disclosure that many changes can be made in the specific embodiments disclosed and still obtain the same or similar results without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0128] Example 1: Different amino acid substitutions at K855 have different on-target activities The K855 residue of wild-type SpCas9 was mutated to alanine, glutamic acid, isoleucine, methionine, or glutamine, and recombinant proteins were purified from E. coli to >95% homogeneity. The amino acid sequence of the K855Q mutant protein is shown in Table 1. All K855 mutant proteins share an identical polypeptide sequence except for the K855 single mutation. Wild-type SpCas9 protein was purchased from MilliporeSigma for use as a control. Chemically synthesized HEKSite4 single-stranded guide RNA (sgRNA) with the guide sequence 5'-GGCACUGCGGCUGGAGGUGG-3' (SEQ ID NO: 42) was also purchased from MilliporeSigma. Each protein was tested in triplicate biological replicates.

[0129] Ribonucleoprotein (RNP) complexes were prepared in a 1.5 mL microcentrifuge tube by adding buffer (20 mM HEPES, 100 mM KCl, 0.5 mM DTT, 0.1 mM EDTA, pH 7.5), 150 pmol sgRNA, and 8 μg Cas9 protein in a total reaction volume of 10 μL. The molar ratio of sgRNA to Cas9 protein was approximately 3:1. The complexes were incubated at room temperature for 15 min and placed on ice until transfection. 80% confluent human U-2 OS cells were detached with trypsin solution and washed twice with Hank's balanced salt solution. Approximately 0.25 × 10 per 100 μL. 6 Cells were resuspended in Nucleofector Solution V (Lonza). Nucleofection was performed by transferring 100 μL of cells into the RNP complex, immediately mixing by gently pipetting up and down to avoid introducing air bubbles, and then transferring to a cuvette for electroporation using Amaxa program X-001. Cells were immediately transferred to a 6-well plate with 2 mL of prewarmed medium per well and grown at 37°C, 5% CO2 for 3 days before harvesting for genome modification assays.

[0130] Genomic DNA extracts of transfected cells were prepared using QuickExtract Solution. Target genomic regions were PCR amplified with next-generation sequencing (NGS) primers using the KAPA HiFi HotStart ReadyMix PCR Kit (Roche) under the following cycle conditions: 95°C / 3m; 34 cycles of 98°C / 20s, 68°C / 30s, and 72°C / 45s; 72°C / 5m. NGS primers for HEKSite4 target sites are: 5'-TCGTCGGCAGCGTCAGATGTGTATAAGAGACAGNNNNNNGGAACCCAGGTAGCCAGAGA-3' (forward) (SEQ ID NO: 43) and 5'-GTCTCGTGGGCTCGGAGATGTGTATAAGAGACAGNNNNNNGGGGTGGGGTCAGACGT-3' (reverse) (SEQ ID NO: 44). The NGS primers for the HEKSite4 off-target sites were: 5'-TCGTCGGCAGCGTCAGATGTGTATAAGAGACAGNNNNNNCTAGAGCAAACCTTGGCATTGTCC-3' (forward) (SEQ ID NO: 45) and 5'-GTCTCGTGGGCTCGGAGATGTGTATAAGAGACAGNNNNNNACCCTCTACCCTCCCTGATG-3' (reverse) (SEQ ID NO: 46). The primary PCR products were then amplified using the JumpStart for Quantitative PCR Kit (MilliporeSigma). (商標) Taq ReadyMix (商標)The PCR products were reamplified using Illumina index primers under the following cycle conditions: 95°C / 3m; 8 cycles at 95°C / 30s, 55°C / 30s, and 72°C / 30s; 72°C / 5m. The indexed PCR products were purified using the Select-a-Size DNA Clean & Concentrator kit (Zymo) and quantified with PicoGreen (ThermoFisher). PCR products were then normalized and pooled to generate NGS libraries. NGS was performed using an Illumina MiSeq instrument and 2x300bp kit. FASTQ files from each sample were analyzed for genome editing frequency using the NGS analysis pipeline.

[0131] The results are shown in Figures 1A and 1B. The results show that different K855 mutant proteins have different levels of on-target activity, and all five K855 mutant proteins substantially reduce off-target effects to comparable levels. The results also show that glutamic acid and alanine are not optimal substitutions for K855 to maintain on-target activity. [Table 1]

[0132] Example 2: Double mutants with optimal amino acid substitutions maintain on-target activity Different amino acid substitutions at R611, N692 or Q695 were introduced into the K855M and K855Q mutant backgrounds to generate double mutants. Recombinant proteins were purified from E. coli to >95% homogeneity. All double mutants share identical polypeptide sequences, except for the indicated mutations, with the K855Q mutant shown in Table 1. Each protein was tested in triplicate biological replicates on the same HEKSite4 target site in U2-OS cells. Preparation of RNP complexes, cell transfection, and NGS analysis were as described in Example 1.

[0133] The results are shown in Figure 2. The results show that different amino acid substitutions at R661, N692, or Q695 result in different levels of on-target activity. For the R661 residue, substitution with isoleucine resulted in a substantial decrease in activity, whereas substitution with leucine, asparagine, or glutamine maintained activity at the same level as that of WT Cas9. The effects of substitutions at the two uncharged residues were less predictable.

[0134] Example 3: Triple mutant with balanced characteristics of specificity and activity Leucine or glutamine substitutions were introduced into the R661L-K855Q background at K526, K562, K652, R691, R780, K810, K848, K1003, or R1060 to generate 18 triple and one quadruple mutant (R661L-K855Q-K1003Q-R1060Q). All triple and quadruple mutants share identical polypeptide sequences to that of K855Q shown in Table 1, except for the indicated mutations. Recombinant proteins were purified from E. coli to 95% homogeneity or higher. Synthetic sgRNAs targeting human FANCF02 and HBB03 were purchased from MilliporeSigma. The guide sequences of these sgRNAs are shown in Table 2. eSpCas9 1.1 protein was purchased from MilliporeSigma and HiFi Cas9 V3 protein was purchased from Integrated DNA Technologies, Inc. Each protein was tested in triplicate biological replicates.

[0135] RNP complexes were prepared as described in Example 1. Human K562 cells were diluted to 0.25 × 10 per mL the day before transfection. 6 Seed with cells at approximately 0.5 x 10 per mL at the time of transfection. 6 The cells were washed twice with Hank's Balanced Salt Solution and diluted with approximately 0.35 x 10 cells per 100 μL. 6Cells were resuspended in Nucleofector Solution V (Lonza). Nucleofection was performed by transferring 100 μL of cells into the RNP complex, immediately mixing by gently pipetting up and down to avoid introducing air bubbles, and then transferring to a cuvette for electroporation using the Amaxa program T-016. Cells were immediately transferred to a 6-well plate with 2 mL of prewarmed medium per well and grown at 37°C, 5% CO2 for 3 days before being harvested for genome modification assays. Genomic DNA extracts of transfected cells were prepared using QuickExtract Solution. Targeted genomic regions were transfected using JumpStart (商標) Taq ReadyMix (商標) PCR amplification was performed with NGS primers using the for Quantitative PCR Kit (MilliporeSigma) under the following cycle conditions: 98°C / 2m; 34 cycles of 98°C / 15s, 62°C / 30s, and 72°C / 45s; 72°C / 5m. NGS primer sequences are shown in Table 2. NGS library preparation, sequencing, and data analysis were as described in Example 1.

[0136] The results are shown in Figures 3A, 3B, 3C, and 3D. The results in Figures 3A and 3B show that all proteins had high activity at the FANCF02 target site, and there was little variation among them. However, there was a wide variation among proteins in off-target mutation frequency at the FANCF02 single mismatch off-target site. Six triple mutant proteins were better at reducing off-target activity than eSpCas9 1.1. These include K526L-R661L-K855Q, R661L-R691L-K855Q, R661L-R780L-K855Q, R661L-R780Q-K855Q, R661L-K810L-K855Q, and R661L-K848L-K855Q. The remaining mutant proteins, except for the outlier mutant protein R661L-R691Q-K855Q, were either comparable to eSpCas9 1.1 or between eSpCas9 1.1 and HiFi Cas9 V3 in reducing off-target mutation frequency compared to WT Cas9. The results in Figures 3C and 3D further distinguish the on-target activity and specificity levels between these proteins. The highly specific mutant protein identified at the FANCF02 site lost almost all on-target activity at the HBB03 site. However, the six triple mutant proteins have a similar level of off-target mutation frequency to eSpCas9 1.1, but a substantially higher level of on-target activity than eSpCas9 1.1 at the HBB03 site. Taken together, these results show that this group of mutant proteins has balanced specificity and activity. This selective group of mutant proteins includes K562L-R661L-K855Q, K562Q-R661L-K855Q, K652L-R661L-K855Q, K652Q-R661L-K855Q, R661L-K855Q-K1003Q, and R661L-K855Q-R1060Q. Based on the combined results, four eSpCas9 1.1-like triple mutant proteins were also identified, including K526Q-R661L-K855Q, R661L-K810Q-K855Q, R661L-K855Q-K1003L, and R661L-K855Q-R1060L. [Table 2]

[0137] Example 4: SPCAS9 nuclease with improved specificity mediates efficient editing across distinct genomic sites. sgRNAs targeting five human genomic sites were purchased from MilliporeSigma. The guide sequences of these sgRNAs are shown in Table 3. RNP complexes were prepared as described in Example 1. Human K562 cells were cultured at 0.25 x 10 per mL. 6 Cells were seeded the day before transfection at approximately 0.5 × 10 cells per mL at the time of transfection. 6 The cells were washed twice with Hank's Balanced Salt Solution and diluted with approximately 0.35 x 10 cells per 100 μL. 6 Cells were resuspended in Nucleofector Solution V (Lonza). Nucleofection was performed by transferring 100 μL of cells into the RNP and immediately mixing by gently pipetting up and down to avoid introducing air bubbles, then transferring to a cuvette for electroporation using Amaxa program T-016. Cells were immediately transferred to a 6-well plate with 2 mL of warmed medium per well and grown at 37°C, 5% CO2 for 3 days before harvesting for genome modification assays.

[0138] Genomic DNA extracts of transfected cells were prepared using QuickExtract Solution. (商標) Taq ReadyMix (商標)PCR amplification was performed using the for Quantitative PCR Kit (MilliporeSigma) with NGS primers under the following cycle conditions: 98 ° C / 2m; 34 cycles of 98 ° C / 15s, 62 ° C / 30s, and 72 ° C / 45s; 72 ° C / 5m. NGS primer sequences are shown in Table 3. NGS library preparation, sequencing, and data analysis were as described in Example 1. The results are shown in Figure 4. The results show that the four triple mutant proteins identified as having balanced specificity and activity had substantially higher editing efficiency than eSpCas9 1.1 and were equivalent to WT Cas9 in all five genomic target regions. [Table 3]

Claims

1. having at least 99% identity to SEQ ID NO:1, and the following group: K562L-R661L-K855Q; K562Q-R661L-K855Q; K652L-R661L-K855Q; K652Q-R661L-K855Q; R661L-K855Q-K1003Q; R661L-K855Q-R1060Q; R661L-R691L-K855Q; R661L-R780L-K855Q; R661L-R780Q-K855Q; R661L-K810L-K855Q; R661L-K848L-K855Q; R661L-K810Q-K855Q; R661L-K855Q-K1003L; and R661L-K855Q-R1060L; 1. An engineered Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 (SpCas9) protein comprising an amino acid sequence comprising a mutation selected from the group consisting of (referring to the amino acid numbering at the corresponding position of unmodified mature wild-type Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 shown in SEQ ID NO:1), wherein a Cas9 system comprising said engineered SpCas9 protein exhibits reduced off-target activity in genome editing compared to a Cas9 system comprising said wild-type SpCas9 protein shown in SEQ ID NO:

1.

2. 2. The engineered SpCas9 protein of claim 1, wherein the mutation is K652L-R661L-K855Q.

3. 3. The engineered SpCas9 protein of claim 1 or 2, further comprising one or more heterologous domains fused to the N-terminus, C-terminus, an internal position, or a combination thereof.

4. 4. The engineered SpCas9 protein of claim 3, wherein the heterologous domain is selected from a nuclear localization signal, a cell membrane permeation domain, a marker or reporter domain that facilitates detection, a chromatin modification domain, an epigenetic modification domain, a transcriptional regulatory domain, a DNA or RNA deaminase domain, a uracil-DNA-glycosylase domain, a reverse transcriptase domain, a recombinase domain, an RNA aptamer binding domain, and a non-Cas9 nuclease domain.

5. 5. The engineered SpCas9 protein of any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising at least one nuclear localization signal fused to the N-terminus, C-terminus, an internal position, or a combination thereof.

6. 6. The engineered SpCas9 protein of any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising at least one mutation in the RuvC domain, and / or at least one mutation in the HNH domain, and wherein the at least one mutation in the RuvC domain, if present, comprises at least one mutation selected from D10A, D8A, E762A, and D986A (with reference to the amino acid numbering at the corresponding positions of the unmodified mature wild-type Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 shown in SEQ ID NO:1); and the at least one mutation in the HNH domain, if present, comprises at least one mutation selected from H840A, H559A, N854A, N856A, and N863A (with reference to the amino acid numbering at the corresponding positions of the unmodified mature wild-type Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 shown in SEQ ID NO:1).

7. 7. An engineered Cas9 system comprising the engineered SpCas9 protein of any one of claims 1 to 6 and at least one engineered guide RNA, wherein the at least one engineered guide RNA is designed to form a complex with the engineered SpCas9 protein.

8. A plurality of nucleic acids encoding the engineered SpCas9 protein of any one of claims 1 to 6.

9. A plurality of nucleic acids encoding the engineered SpCas9 system of claim 7.

10. 10. The plurality of nucleic acids of claim 9, comprising at least one nucleic acid encoding an engineered SpCas9 protein and at least one nucleic acid encoding an engineered guide RNA.

11. The plurality of nucleic acids according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein at least one of the nucleic acids is RNA.

12. The plurality of nucleic acids according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein at least one of the nucleic acids is DNA.

13. 13. The plurality of nucleic acids of any one of claims 8 to 12, wherein at least one nucleic acid encoding an engineered SpCas9 protein is codon-optimized for expression in a eukaryotic cell.

14. 14. The plurality of nucleic acids of claim 13, wherein the eukaryotic cell is a human cell, a non-human mammalian cell, a non-mammalian vertebrate cell, an invertebrate cell, a plant cell, or a unicellular eukaryote.

15. 10. The plurality of nucleic acids of claim 9, wherein at least one nucleic acid encoding an engineered guide RNA is DNA.

16. 10. The plurality of nucleic acids of claim 9, wherein at least one nucleic acid encoding an engineered SpCas9 protein is operably linked to a phage promoter sequence for in vitro RNA synthesis or protein expression in a bacterial cell, and at least one nucleic acid encoding an engineered guide RNA is operably linked to a phage promoter sequence for in vitro RNA synthesis.

17. 10. The plurality of nucleic acids of claim 9, wherein at least one nucleic acid encoding an engineered Cas9 protein is operably linked to a eukaryotic promoter sequence for expression in a eukaryotic cell, and at least one nucleic acid encoding an engineered guide RNA is operably linked to a eukaryotic promoter sequence for expression in a eukaryotic cell.

18. At least one vector comprising a plurality of nucleic acids according to any one of claims 8 to 17.

19. 20. At least one vector according to claim 18, which is a plasmid vector, a viral vector or a self-replicating viral RNA replicon.

20. 11. A eukaryotic cell comprising at least one engineered Cas9 system according to claim 7 or a plurality of nucleic acids according to claim 9 or 10, the eukaryotic cell being exclusive of a human embryonic cell.

21. 21. The eukaryotic cell of claim 20, which is a human cell, a non-human mammalian cell, a plant cell, a non-mammalian vertebrate cell, an invertebrate cell, or a unicellular eukaryote, and excludes a human embryonic cell.

22. 22. The eukaryotic cell of claim 21, which is ex vivo or in vitro.

23. 7. The engineered SpCas9 protein of any one of claims 1 to 6, which is a Cas9 homologue.

24. A ribonucleoprotein (RNP) complex comprising the engineered SpCas9 protein of any one of claims 1 to 6.

25. A fusion protein comprising the engineered SpCas9 protein of any one of claims 1 to 6.

26. 7. A pharmaceutical composition comprising the engineered SpCas9 protein of any one of claims 1 to 6 and at least one pharma- ceutically acceptable excipient.

27. 10. A composition comprising an engineered SpCas9 protein according to any one of claims 1 to 6 for use in a method for modifying a chromosomal sequence in a eukaryotic cell, said method comprising expressing said engineered SpCas9 protein together with a guide RNA in said eukaryotic cell, and wherein said eukaryotic cell is other than a human embryonic cell.

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