Application of CRISPR/Cas9 Technology to HBV

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Guigao Lin²  Kuo Zhang²  Jinming Li¹ 

[1]National Center for Clinical Laboratories, Beijing Hospital, Beijing 100730, China

关键词: CRISPR/Cas9;    HBV;    cccDNA;    antiviral;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijms161125950

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

More than 240 million people around the world are chronically infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV). Nucleos(t)ide analogs and interferon are the only two families of drugs to treat HBV currently. However, none of these anti-virals directly target the stable nuclear covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA), which acts as a transcription template for viral mRNA and pre-genomic RNA synthesis and secures virus persistence. Thus, the fact that only a small number of patients treated achieve sustained viral response (SVR) or cure, highlights the need for new therapies against HBV. The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas9 gene editing system can specifically target the conserved regions of the HBV genome. This results in robust viral suppression and provides a promising tool for eradicating the virus. In this review, we discuss the function and application of the CRISPR/Cas9 system as a novel therapy for HBV.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.