The CRISPR-Cas Mechanism for Adaptive Immunity and Alternate Bacterial Functions Fuels Diverse Biotechnologies.

ABSTRACT: Bacterial and archaeal CRISPR-Cas systems offer adaptive immune protection against foreign mobile genetic elements (MGEs). This function is regulated by sequence specific binding of CRISPR RNA (crRNA) to target DNA/RNA, with an additional requirement of a flanking DNA motif called the protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) in certain CRISPR systems. In this review, we discuss how the same fundamental mechanism of RNA-DNA and/or RNA-RNA complementarity is utilized by bacteria to regulate two distinct functions: to ward off intruding genetic materials and to modulate diverse physiological functions. The best documented examples of alternate functions are bacterial virulence, biofilm formation, adherence, programmed cell death, and quorum sensing. While extensive complementarity between the crRNA a

SUBMITTER: Newsom S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7876343 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature