Volume 59, Issue 47 pp. 20754-20766
Minireview

CRISPR Mediated Biosensing Toward Understanding Cellular Biology and Point-of-Care Diagnosis

Dr. Yifan Dai

Corresponding Author

Dr. Yifan Dai

Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, 27708 USA

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, 44106 USA

These authors contributed equally to this work.

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Dr. Yanfang Wu

Corresponding Author

Dr. Yanfang Wu

School of Chemistry, Australian Centre for NanoMedicine, and ARC Centre of Excellence in Convergent Bio-Nano Science and Technology, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052 Australia

These authors contributed equally to this work.

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Prof. Guozhen Liu

Prof. Guozhen Liu

Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052 Australia

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Prof. J. Justin Gooding

Prof. J. Justin Gooding

School of Chemistry, Australian Centre for NanoMedicine, and ARC Centre of Excellence in Convergent Bio-Nano Science and Technology, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052 Australia

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First published: 10 June 2020
Citations: 188

Graphical Abstract

CRISPR, a sensing and actuating machine, mediates biosensing toward point-of-care diagnosis and understanding cellular biology.

Abstract

Recent advances in CRISPR based biotechnologies have greatly expanded our capabilities to repurpose CRISPR for the development of biomolecular sensors for diagnosing diseases and understanding cellular pathways. The key attribute that allows CRISPR to be widely utilized is the programmable and highly selective mechanism. In this Minireview, we first illustrate the molecular principle of CRISPR functioning process from sensing to actuating. Next, the CRISPR based biosensing strategies for nucleic acids, proteins and small molecules are summarized. We highlight some of recent advances in applications for in vitro detection of biomolecules and in vivo imaging of cellular networks. Finally, the challenges with, and exciting prospects of, CRISPR based biosensing developments are discussed.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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