Computational correction of copy number effect improves specificity of CRISPR-Cas9 essentiality screens in cancer cells.

ABSTRACT: The CRISPR-Cas9 system has revolutionized gene editing both at single genes and in multiplexed loss-of-function screens, thus enabling precise genome-scale identification of genes essential for proliferation and survival of cancer cells. However, previous studies have reported that a gene-independent antiproliferative effect of Cas9-mediated DNA cleavage confounds such measurement of genetic dependency, thereby leading to false-positive results in copy number-amplified regions. We developed CERES, a computational method to estimate gene-dependency levels from CRISPR-Cas9 essentiality screens while accounting for the copy number-specific effect. In our efforts to define a cancer dependency map, we performed genome-scale CRISPR-Cas9 essentiality screens across 342 cancer cell lines and appli

SUBMITTER: Meyers RM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5709193 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature