Essential HDRescue: A Co-Targeting Strategy to Enhance Precision Genome Editing by Co-Editing Essential Genes

Authors:
Siwak JF, Connelly JP, Pruett-Miller SM
In:
Source: Cell
Publication Date: (2026)
Issue: :
Research Area:
Cancer Research/Cell Biology
Immunotherapy / Hematology
Basic Research
Molecular Biology
Regenerative medicine
Cells used in publication:
HeLa
Species: human
Tissue Origin: cervix
U-2 OS
Species: human
Tissue Origin: bone
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell (iPS), human
Species: human
Tissue Origin:
Platform:
4D-Nucleofector® X-Unit
Experiment

2.1. Cell Culture and Reagents


BJFF.6 iPSCs (Cellosaurus, CVCL-VU02 [40]) and AN1.1 iPSCs (Washington University, St. Louis, MO, USA; T-019532) were cultured in StemFlex media (Gibco, Carlsbad, CA,
USA), supplemented with 1% (v/v) antibiotic/antimycotic (Gibco) and 5% (v/v) CO2 in a humidified incubator at 37 ?C. Edited iPSC pools were generated using CRISPR-Cas9
technology and homologous DNA donors. One million iPSCs were nucleofected (4D Nucleofector ™ X-unit; Lonza, Basel, Switzerland) per the manufacturer’s recommended
protocol with pre-complexed ribonucleoprotein (RNPs) consisting of 100 pmol chemically modified single guide RNA (sgRNA; Integrated DNA Technologies, Coralville, IA, USA) (Supplementary Table S1) and 33 pmol 3XNLS SpCas9 protein (St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital [SJCRH] Protein Production Facility, Memphis, TN, USA) using P3 nucleofector solution and CA-137 program in 20-µL or 100-µL cuvettes. Control cell pools contained a non-targeting sgRNA and a non-targeting DNA donor to control for RNP, and donor concentrations added to an HDRescue editing experiment. Unless otherwise noted, editing rates were assessed on day 10 post-transfection.

U2OS cells (ATCC, HTB-96) were cultured in Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM) (Corning, 10-013-CV, Corning, NY, USA) supplemented with 10% (v/v) FBEssence,
1% (v/v) penicillin-streptomycin, and 1X GlutaMAX at 37 ?C, 5% v/v CO2 in a humidified incubator. U2OS cell pools were generated by nucleofecting 500,000 cells as described above using P3 nucleofector solution (Lonza) and the CM-104 program in 20-µL cuvettes. Unless otherwise noted, editing rates were assessed on day 28 post-transfection. 

HeLa cells (ATCC, CRM-CCL-2) were cultured in DMEM supplemented with 10% (v/v) FBEssence, 1% (v/v) penicillin-streptomycin, and 1X GlutaMAX at 37 ?C,
5% v/v CO2 in a humidified incubator. HeLa cells pools were generated by nucleofecting 500,000 HeLa cells as described above using SE nucleofector solution (Lonza) and DS-150 program in 20-µL cuvettes. Unless otherwise noted, editing rates were assessed on day 16 post-transfection.

Abstract

Genome editing is widely used and conceptually simple, yet in practice, it is hindered by laborious workflows and high costs. These challenges stem from the difficulty of identifying and isolating cells that contain the desired user-defined modifications, a problem compounded by the wide variability in editing efficiencies across cell types. While homology-directed repair (HDR) provides a mechanism for precise genome modification following nuclease-induced double-strand breaks (DSBs), it is frequently outcompeted by the dominant mutagenic non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) pathway in mammalian cells. Therefore, we developed a novel enrichment method, Essential HDRescue, to increase the frequency of HDR events at a target site by co-targeting an essential genomic locus. Using both intrinsic positive and negative selection at a common essential gene, we enabled enrichment of precise editing events at a second, unlinked target site. We demonstrated that co-targeting essential genes in cancer cell lines and iPSCs increased HDR rates without the need for an exogenous reporter or selective drug. Analysis of resulting clones revealed that Essential HDRescue produced up to a 6-fold increase in single-allele edits and an ~4-fold increase in homozygous edits relative to single-targeted controls. By harnessing the intrinsic cellular dependencies that arise from DSB repair at essential loci, Essential HDRescue offers a widely applicable method to improve precise genome editing outcomes in mammalian cells, leaving only a minimal, protein-silent scar at the essential gene.