New enzyme family enables targeted cuts in single-stranded DNA

Institut national de la recherche scientifique - INRSApr 16 2025An INRS team discovers a new family of enzymes capable of inducing targeted cuts in single-stranded DNA .A few years ago, the advent of technology known as CRISPR was a major breakthrough in the scientific world. Developed from a derivative of the immune system of bacteria, CRISPR enables double strands of nucleotides in deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) to be cut. This makes it possible to specifically modify a targeted gene in plant, animal and human cells. Ultimately, CRISPR became a preferred method in the search for treatments for acquired or hereditary diseases.Recently, Professor Frédéric Veyrier at the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) and his team developed a new genetic tool based on a family of specific enzymes called Ssn that allows targeted cuts to be induced exclusively in single-stranded DNA.The results of their work were recently published in the journal Nature Communications. This major break...