Altering Cas9 and its guide for fewer off-target edits

A pair of new studies propose separate strategies to mitigate off-target activity of CRISPR-Cas 9 (CRISPR-associated protein 9) -- a growing concern as gene editing techniques move closer to in vivo applications.

While potential safety issues stemming from off-target editing have concerned investors for years, uncertainty rose last year when a letter to the editor published in Nature Methods shared data suggesting that CRISPR-Cas9's off-target mutation rate might be much higher than previously thought (see BioCentury Extra, May 30, 2017). ...