Abstract
34
35
Somatic genome editing in mouse models has increased our understanding of the in vivo effects of 36
genetic alterations in areas ranging from neuroscience to cancer biology and beyond . However, 37
existing models are limited in their ability to create multiple targeted edits . Thus, our 38
understanding of the complex genetic interactions that underlie development, homeostasis, and 39
disease remains incomplete. Cas12a is an RNA-guided endonuclease with unique attributes that 40
enable simple targeting of multiple genes with crRNA arrays containing tandem guides . To 41
accelerate and expand the generation of complex genotypes in somatic cells, we generated 42
transgenic mice with Cre-regulated and constitutive expression of enhanced Acidaminococcus sp. 43
Cas12a ( enAsCas12a). In these mice , enAsCas12a -mediated somatic genome editing robustly 44
generated compound genotypes, as exemplified by the initiation of diverse cancer types driven by 45
homozygous inactivation of trios of tumor suppressor genes. We further integrated these modular 46
crRNA arrays with clonal barcoding to quantify the size and number of tumors with each array, as 47
well as the efficiency of each crRNA . These Cas12a alleles will enable the rapid generation of 48
disease models and broadly facilitate the high -throughput investigation of coincident genomic 49
alterations in somatic cells in vivo. 50
51
Introduction
52
Genetically engineered mouse models have been widely used to uncover phenotypes 53
resulting from defined genetic alterations 1. However, the creation of new mouse alleles has 54
remained a barrier to the study of more complex genotypes, due to the expense and time required 55
to generate a new allele and cross it with other alleles of interest 2. Somatic genome editing with 56
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Cas9 has greatly increased the rate at which single genes can be studied both ex vivo and in vivo, 57
but the ability of Cas9 to model complex genotypes has been limited by the need for each guide to 58
have its own promoter and tracrRNA, thereby requiring the laborious cloning of guides in 59
sequence3. 60
Cas12a (previously known as Cpf1) is a Class 2 Type V CRISPR -Cas system that has 61
unique value in genome editing due to its ability to easily target multiple genomic loci4–6. Unlike 62
Cas9, Cas12a has both RNase and DNase activity, and can process a single pre-crRNA transcript 63
(crRNA array) containing numerous spacers (guides) into its constituent crRNAs to direct Cas12a-64
mediated cleavage of their target regions4. Cas12a is also distinct from Cas9 in recognizing a T-65
rich 4 bp protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) and generating staggered cuts that are distal to the 66
PAM5. Cas12a from multiple species has been employed for genome editing in vitro, including 67
Cas12a from Acidaminococcus sp. (As) and Lachnospiraceae bacterium (Lb)4,6–11. Large-scale 68
screens have identified Cas12a variants with increased efficiency, broadened PAM recognition 69
ranges, and reduce d off-target cleavage 12–15. In particular , an enhanced version of AsCas12a 70
(enAsCas12a) with several substitutions (E174R/N282A/S542R/K548R) has superior genome 71
editing relative to wild type AsCas12a, in addition to a substantially expanded targeting range13. 72
The impact of complex genotypes is highly relevant in human cancer, which is defined by 73
its genetic complexity. Individual tumors can have tens to hundreds of non-synonymous mutations, 74
in addition to aberrant epigenetic modifications, gene duplications, chromosomal rearrangements, 75
and gains or losses of entire chromosomes16–18. Any or all of these alterations could contribute to 76
tumorigenesis, tumor progression, and resistance to therapy. Deconvoluting functional drivers 77
from human cancer sequencing data and understanding how these genes interact to generate cancer 78
phenotypes is complicated by the limited availability of samples, differences among patients and 79
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which therapies they have received, and technical variability of the approaches used to analyze 80
them. Functional interrogation of the phenotypes resulting from defined combinations of 81
alterations is thus critical for isolating the key drivers of these complex disease states. 82
To accelerate and expand our ability to generate complex genotypes in somatic cells, we 83
generated Cre-regulated and constitutive en AsCas12a transgenic mice. Efficiently multiplexed 84
somatic genome editing using Cas12a transgenic mice enables the rapid generation of complex 85
models and should facilitate the high-throughput investigation of coincident genomic alterations 86
in vivo. 87
88
Results
89
90
Generation and validation of Cre-regulated and constitutive enAsCas12a alleles 91
To enable Cas12a -mediated somatic genomic editing and thus take advantage of the 92
features that distinguish Cas12a from Cas9 (Supplementary Figure 1a), we generated transgenic 93
mice expressing enAsCas12a with an optimized nuclear localization sequence (NLS) 94
configuration that increases cutting efficiency and an HA tag to facilitate identification 95
(enAsCas12a; Figure 1a)13,19. We generated transgenic mice through integration of a CAGGS 96
promoter-driven Lox-Stop-Lox (LSL)-enAsCas12a-PolyA cassette into the H11 locus (H11LSL-97
Cas12a) ( Figure 1a ,b). Expression of Cre in fibroblasts from H11LSL-Cas12a mice induced 98
recombination of the LSL cassette and expression of Cas12a protein (Figure 1c). We also crossed 99
H11LSL-Cas12a mice to CMV-Cre “deleter” mice to generate a constitutive H11Cas12a allele (Figure 100
1d and Supplementary Figure 1b ). H11Cas12a mice were viable and fertile and had widespread 101
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expression of Cas12a (Figure 1e), with prominently nuclear protein localization ( Figure 1f and 102
Supplementary Figure 1c). 103
104
Cas12a-induced inactivation of Nf1, Rasa1 and Pten generate lung adenocarcinoma 105
Oncogene-negative lung adenocarcinoma represents ~30% of all lung adenocarcinomas 106
and has been modeled in mice through combinatorial inactivation of the tumor suppressor genes 107
Nf1, Rasa1 and Pten in lung epithelial cells 20. This was initially accomplished using Cas9 -108
mediated somatic genome editing and multi-step sgRNA cloning20. As an initial test of the ability 109
of the H11LSL-Cas12a allele to generat e tumors with complex genotypes in vivo , we generated 110
lentiviral vectors expressing Cre and a pre-crRNA array targeting Nf1, Rasa1, and Pten. Given the 111
ability to synthesize these three-crRNA arrays and their ease of cloning, we generated a pool of 27 112
lentiviral Cre vectors with every combination of three guides targeting each tumor suppressor gene 113
(Figure 2a). We cloned these pre-crRNA arrays into a vector that contained a diverse 16-114
nucleotide barcode (BC) at the 3’ end of the U6 promoter and Cre recombinase (Lenti -U6BC-115
crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre; Figure 2b). Cre in these vectors induce s Cas12a expression in somatic 116
cells in H11LSL-Cas12a mice, and amplification of the BC-crRNA region from bulk tumor-bearing 117
lungs followed by tumor barcoding and high -throughput barcode sequencing (Tuba -seqUltra; U6 118
barcode Labeling with per -Tumor Resolution Analysis) can quantify the size of each clonal 119
tumor21–23. 120
We transduced the lungs of H11LSL-Cas12a mice (some of which also contain ed a R26LSL-121
Tomato Cre-reporter allele), wild -type negative control mice, and KrasLSL-G12D;R26LSL-Tomato (KT) 122
positive control mice with Lenti-U6BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre (Figure 2c). Tumors in KT mice 123
form due to Cre-mediated expression of oncogenic KRAS in the absence of any Cas12a-mediated 124
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gene targeting. We anticipated that Cas12a-mediated homozygous inactivation of Nf1, Rasa1, and 125
Pten might be limited; therefore, we used a 5-fold higher titer in H11LSL-Cas12a mice relative to KT 126
mice in which every transduced cell will express oncogenic KRAS. Unexpectedly, only 9 weeks 127
after tumor initiation, the H11LSL-Cas12a mice developed extremely high tumor burden as assess ed 128
by lung weight (>15-folder higher than KT mice after subtracting normal lung weight) , direct 129
imaging of the lung lobes, and histology (Figure 2 d-f). Histology, positive immunohistochemical 130
staining for NKX2-1/TTF-1, and negative staining for UCHL1 confirmed that these tumors were 131
lung adenomas and adenocarcinomas (Figure 2f)20. Neoplastic cells in these tumors expressed 132
nuclear Cas12a (Supplementary Figure 2g). PCR amplification and Sanger sequencing of each 133
of the 9 target ed regions from genomic DNA from bulk tumor -bearing lungs from H11LSL-Cas12a 134
mice confirmed indels at each target site (Figure 2h). 135
136
Quantification of Cas12a-mediated tumorigenesis 137
We PCR-amplified and high-throughput sequenced the BC-crRNA region of the integrated 138
Lenti-U6BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre vectors from bulk tumor-bearing lungs (Tuba-seqUltra)21,23. This 139
approach enabled the precise quantification of the number of cancer cells in each clonal tumor, the 140
number of tumors in each mouse , and the relative efficiency of each guide (Figure 3a). Overall 141
tumor burden normalized to viral titer was more than 10-fold greater in H11LSL-Cas12a than KT mice 142
(Figure 3b). We also assessed the number of clonal barcoded tumors in each mouse and found 143
that H11LSL-Cas12a mice had 2-fold more tumors on average than KrasLSL-G12D mice when corrected 144
for viral titer (Figure 3c). These results are consistent with the high tumorigenic potential of lung 145
epithelial cells with combined inactivation of Nf1, Rasa1, and Pten20,24. 146
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Tumor sizes in H11LSL-Cas12a mice were dramatically larger than in KT mice, with the log-147
normal mean tumor size around 4 -fold greater in H11LSL-Cas12a mice ( Figure 3 d), suggesting 148
increased tumor growth of crNf1/Rasa1/Pten tumors compared to those driven by oncogenic 149
KRAS. Finally, each of the 9 crRNAs (Figure 3e-f) and 27 crRNA arrays (Supplementary Figure 150
2a-b) generated relatively similar tumor numbers and sizes. These results indicate efficient gene 151
inactivation and multiplexed somatic genome editing in H11LSL-Cas12a mice. 152
153
Induction of small-cell lung cancer through the Cas12a-mediated inactivation of Rb1, Trp53, 154
and Rbl2 155
Small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a neuroendocrine cancer that has been modeled in mice 156
through Cre/lox -mediated, and more recently Cas9 -mediated, inactivation of Rb1, Trp53 and 157
Rbl225,26. We generated a lentiviral vector expressing Cre and a pre-crRNA array with all 158
combinations of three guides targeting Rb1, Trp53, and Rbl2 to create 27 vectors for combinatorial 159
gene inactivation (Lenti -U6BC-crRb1/Trp53/Rbl2-Cre; Figure 4a). We transduced H11LSL-Cas12a 160
mice (some of which also contained an R26LSL-Tomato allele) and wild-type negative control mice 161
with Lenti-U6BC-crRb1/Trp53/Rbl2-Cre (Figure 4b). After 18 weeks, transduced H11LSL-Cas12a 162
mice had high lung tumor burden ( Figure 4c-d). Tumors in these mice included UCHL1positive 163
bronchiolar early-stage SCLC, along with more poorly differentiated regions (Figure 4e). Cancer 164
cells stained positive for the Cas12a HA tag (Figure 4e). Amplification of the BC-crRNA region 165
from bulk tumor-bearing lungs, high-throughput sequencing, and Tuba -seqUltra analysis revealed 166
that H11LSL-Cas12a mice transduced with Lenti -U6BC-crRb1/Trp53/Rbl2-Cre had large numbers of 167
clonal tumors and high tumor b urden, consistent with robust tumor growth (Figure 4f -g). 168
Microdissected tumors had indels at the targeted genomic sites (Figure 4h). Quantitative analysis 169
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of the crRNA arrays in tumors showed that different crRNAs generated similar tumor numbers 170
and sizes ( Figure 4i-j). Thus, H11LSL-Cas12a mice enabled rapid and efficient generation of this 171
recalcitrant cancer type. 172
173
Generation of autochthonous PDAC with inactivation of Trp53, Cdkn2a, and Smad4 174
TP53, CDKN2A, and SMAD4 are the three most frequently mutated tumor suppressor 175
genes in human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinom a (PDAC), and many diagrams of the genomic 176
progression of this cancer type show the acquisition of mutations /alterations in all three of these 177
genes27,28. However, despite extensive work to investigate these tumor suppressor genes in 178
pancreatic carcinogenesis in vivo 29–35, a model in which all three tumor suppressor genes are 179
inactivated has yet to be published. To determine whether Cas12a -mediated somatic genome 180
editing would also be efficient in adult pancreatic epithelial cells, we generated a lentiviral vector 181
expressing Cre and pre-crRNA arrays with three gRNAs targeting Trp53, Cdkn2a, and Smad4 182
(Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre; Figure 5a). 183
We delivered this pool to the pancrea ta of KT;H11LSL-Cas12a, Cas12a-negative KT, and 184
H11LSL-Cas12a mice through retrograde pancreatic ductal injection ( Figure 5b)36. Several 185
KT;H11LSL-Cas12a mice developed large multifocal pancreatic tumors as early as 6 weeks after 186
transduction, with some also showing metastatic dissemination to the liver ( Figure 5c-e). While 187
KT mice only developed PanIN lesions, KT;H11LSL-Cas12a mice developed large, Cas12a-expressing 188
primary tumors , including poorly-differentiated PDAC with cytological atypia and smaller 189
Cytokeratin-19positive mucinous regions with desmoplastic stroma and lobular structures (Figure 5f 190
and Supplementary Figure 3a -b). The pancreata of transduced H11LSL-Cas12a mice appeared 191
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entirely normal, suggesting that even the combined inactivation of these three tumor suppressors 192
has minimal effect in the absence of oncogenic KRAS (Figure 4f). 193
Tuba-seqUltra analysis indicated that KT;H11LSL-Cas12a and KT mice developed similar 194
numbers of clonal expansions/ tumors, consistent with the importance of oncogenic KRAS in 195
tumorigenesis (Figure 5g). However, KT;H11LSL-Cas12a mice had much larger tumors and thus 196
higher tumor burden ( Figure 5h and Supplementary Figure 3c-d). Analysis of bulk tissue 197
uncovered indels at all target sites (Supplementary Figure 3e). Tumors with each of the 9 crRNAs 198
had similar tumor number and size, further underscoring the broad efficiency of Cas12a-mediated 199
gene inactivation (Figure 5i and Supplementary Figure 3f). 200
Lentiviral vectors generated as a pool suffer from lentiviral template switching during 201
reverse transcription , which can shuffle different elements 37. We observed minimal 202
recombination-mediated shuffling of guides between different crRNA arrays (Supplementary 203
Figure 4a-f), likely due to the short distance between guides in Cas12a -based crRNA arrays, in 204
contrast to Cas9 -based approaches37,38. These data highlight the versatility of somatic Cas12a-205
mediated gene inactivation to generate novel and clinically relevant complex cancer genotypes. 206
207
Discussion
208
In this study, we used Cas12a mice and 3-guide crRNA arrays to rapidly generate complex 209
genotypes in somatic cells. By synthesizing and cloning arrays in a simple pooled manner, this 210
approach should enable the rapid generation of numerous complex genotypes in parallel, 211
dramatically increasing both the scale and the rate at which new disease models with complex 212
genotypes can be studied. Previous in vitro studies have employed as many as 25 guides together7, 213
suggesting that many loci could be targeted together in vivo with this transgenic model. 214
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We applied somatic CRISPR/Cas12a genome editing initially to study cancer, as cancer 215
has tremendous genomic complexity, yet the genetically engineered mouse models that have been 216
used to study these diseases generally have only a few designed genetic changes. While this has 217
enabled a reductionist approach to uncover key phenotypes controlled by different genes in cancer, 218
it has also limited our ability to model and understand key aspects of cancer that are driven by 219
combinations of genomic alterations. For instance, engineered mouse models often fail to develop 220
spontaneous metastases and those that do rarely metastasize to all organs commonly observed in 221
humans2. Indeed, metastases tend to have a greater degree of genomic complexity than primary 222
tumors39, so modeling metasta tic cancer in mice may be facilitate d by the generation of tumors 223
with additional engineered alterations. 224
While Cre/lox- and CRISPR/Cas9-mediated somatic genome editing have been used to 225
generate cancer models driven by complex combinations of loss of function alleles, the generation 226
of new models remains time-consuming2. Furthermore, given the complexity of genotypes within 227
human tumors, the generation of a single model of a given cancer type (e.g. our model of oncogene-228
negative lung adenocarcinoma) 20 should not be seen as a model for all patients with th at broad 229
class of tumors. Here, we have developed enAsCas12a mice to close the gap between the 230
complexity of human tumors and the relative simplicity of genetically engineered mouse models. 231
While our study focused on the use of Cas12a for multi ple gene inactivation in cancer 232
models, this system is versatile and should have numerous applications within and beyond cancer 233
modeling. Cas12a-generated staggered DNA breaks could make it more suitable for the 234
Introduction
of exogenous DNA sequences through homology -directed repair 9. Furthermore, 235
while we used delivery of lentiviral Cre driven by a ubiquitous promoter to initiate Cas12 a 236
expression and editing, use of Cre driven by more specific promoters would enable control of 237
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Cas12a expression in particular cell types of interest. Somatic Cas12a-mediated genome editing 238
may also be well -suited for generating chromosomal rearrangements, such as oncogenic 239
translocations that require the simultaneous targeting of pairs of loci, as well as the generation of 240
panels of larger deletions. The multiplicity of Cas12a targeting could make it suitable for modeling 241
even more complex mutational states , such as chromothripsis or aneuploidy (through 242
chromosomal destruction). Finally, transgenic Cas12a in our model s obviates the need for 243
exogenous delivery of the large (4 kb) Cas12a gene and negates concerns of pre-existing immunity, 244
which has been shown to dramatically affect cells with exogenous Cas9 expression40. 245
Compared to Cas9, Cas12a creates more diverse indels and continues cutting its target loci 246
for longer due to the greater distance between its PAM and cleavage site s41. As a result, we 247
previously used Cas12a to generate an evolving barcode system to map cellular phylogen ies41. 248
Incorporation of this system into in vivo models of development and disease could complement 249
Cas9-based approaches, and the multiplexed ability of Cas12a crRNA expression could allow 250
lineage tracing in combination with gene inactivation. This could dramatically increase our ability 251
to both generate and study complex genotypes42–45. 252
The generation of somatic cells with complex genotype s could be of broad value, both in 253
cancer modeling and beyond. Somatic genome editing with Cas9 transgenic mice has enabled 254
rapid analysis of the in vivo effects of genetic alterations in neuroscience 46–49, cancer 22,50–53, 255
immunology54, and other fields55,56. These Cas12a transgenic mice will enable the generation of 256
pairwise and higher -order combinations of genetic alterations to be generated in cell types of 257
interest to map complex phenotypes to complex genotypes and improve our understanding of 258
human disease. 259
260
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FIGURE LEGENDS 261
262
Figure 1. Generation of Cre-regulated and constitutive Cas12a mice 263
a. Schematic of the H11LSL-Cas12a transgene. Enhanced AsCas12a containing several substitutions 264
to increase on-target efficiency and PAM binding sequence range (Kleinstiver et al. (2019). Nature 265
Biotechnology), has two nuclear localization sequences (NLS), and three HA tags at the C -266
terminus (Liu et al. (2019), Nucleic Acids Research), controlled by Cre-mediated removal of the 267
LoxP-Stop-LoxP (LSL) cassette. 268
b. PCR genotyping of mice of the indicated H11LSL-Cas12a and wild-type (WT) genotypes. 269
c. Western blots on tail tip fibroblasts from H11LSL-Cas12a and wild-type control mice 3 days after 270
Adeno-Cre (Cre) treatment. Cas12a was detected by both anti -HA and anti -Cas12a antibodies. 271
αTubulin shows loading. 272
d. Schematic of the H11Cas12a transgene, following Cre-mediated removal of the LSL cassette. 273
e. Western blots on tissue lysates from H11Cas12a/WT or H11LSL-Cas12a/WT mice. αTubulin shows 274
loading. 275
f. Immunohistochemical staining for the HA tag on Cas12a on liver sections from the indicated 276
genotypes of mice. Scale bars, 25 μm. 277
278
Figure 2. Rapid and efficient generation of oncogene-negative lung tumors through Cas12a-279
mediated coincident inactivation of three tumor suppressor genes 280
a. Lenti-U6BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre pool has guides targeting Nf1, Rasa1, and Pten. Each gene 281
is targeted by three crRNAs in all combinations. 282
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b. Design of a lentiviral vector that expresses Cre recombinase and has a pre -crRNA array with 283
three spacers (guides) downstream of a bovine U6 promoter with an integrated barcode region. 284
c. Intratracheal delivery of Lenti -U6BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre to H11LSL-Cas12a, KrasLSL-285
G12D;R26LSL-Tom (KT), and wild-type ( WT) mice. Viral titer (infectious units, ifu) and mouse 286
numbers are indicated. 287
d. Lung weights from mice of the indicated genotypes 9 weeks after transduction with Lenti-U6BC-288
crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre. Each dot represents a mouse. Means +/- standard deviation are indicated. 289
e. Light (upper) and Tomato fluorescent (lower) images of lung lobes from the indicated genotypes 290
of mice 9 weeks after transduction with Lenti -U6BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre. Dashed lines outline 291
tissues. Tumors are Tomato-positive due to recombination of the R26LSL-Tomato allele. Scale bars, 5 292
mm. 293
f. Hematoxylin & eosin (upper), NKX2-1 (middle), and UCHL1 (lower) staining of lung sections 294
from the indicated genotypes. Scale bars, 100 μm. 295
g. Immunohistochemical staining for the Cas12a HA tag on lung tissue from representative H11LSL-296
Cas12a and WT mice transduced with Lenti-U6BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre. Scale bars, 100 μm. 297
h. Indel frequencies for genomic regions targeted by each crRNA within bulk tumor-bearing lung 298
tissue from H11LSL-Cas12a mice. Means +/ - standard deviation of three tumor -bearing lungs are 299
shown. 300
301
Figure 3. Integration of crRNA arrays with tumor barcoding enables quantification of tumor 302
initiation and tumor size 303
a. Schematic of tumor barcoding with high -throughput BC-crRNA sequencing to determine the 304
size of each Cas12a-induced clonal tumor. 305
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b. Total number of neoplastic cells (Total tumor burden) in each mouse normalized to viral titer. 306
Each dot represents a mouse, and the bars are means. P-value calculated with Wilcoxon rank-sum 307
test. 308
c. Number of tumors in each mouse normalized to viral titer. Each dot represents a mouse, and the 309
bars are means. P-value calculated with Wilcoxon rank-sum test. 310
d. Mean tumor size given a log-normal tumor size distribution. Each dot represents a mouse, and 311
bars are means. P-value calculated with Wilcoxon rank-sum test. 312
e. Number of tumors for each crRNA (guide) relative to the median value for each gene. 95% 313
confidence intervals are shown. 314
f. Mean tumor size assuming a log -normal distribution for each crRNA (guide) relative to the 315
median value for each gene. 95% confidence intervals are shown. 316
317
Figure 4. Induction of small -cell lung cancer through the simultaneous Cas12a -mediated 318
inactivation of Trp53, Rb1 and Rbl2 319
a. Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre pool has guides targeting Trp53, Rb1, and Rbl2. Each gene 320
is targeted by three crRNAs in all 27 combinations. 321
b. Intratracheal delivery of Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre to H11LSL-Cas12a and wild-type (WT) 322
mice. Viral titer (infectious units, ifu) and mouse numbers are indicated. 323
c. Lung weights from mice of the indicated genotypes 18 weeks after transduction with Lenti -324
U6BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre. Each dot represents a mouse. Mean +/ - standard deviation is 325
indicated. 326
d. Light (upper) and Tomato fluorescent (lower) images of lung lobes from the indicated genotypes 327
of mice 18 weeks after transduction with Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre. Dashed line outlines 328
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tissue. Tumors are Tomato-positive due to recombination of the R26LSL-Tomato allele. Scale bars, 5 329
mm. 330
e. Hematoxylin & eosin (upper), UCHL1 (middle) and HA tag (lower) staining of lung sections 331
from an H11LSL-Cas12a mouse. Scale bars, 100 μm. 332
f. Total number of neoplastic cells (Total tumor burden) in each mouse normalized to viral titer. 333
Each dot represents a mouse, and the bar is the mean. 334
g. The number of tumors in each mouse normalized to viral titer. Each dot represents a mouse, and 335
the bar is the mean. 336
h. Indel frequencies for genomic regions targeted by each crRNA within micro -dissected tumor 337
tissue from H11LSL-Cas12a mice. Symbol shapes and colors identify values from the same sample. 338
Bars represent means. 339
i,j. Number of tumors ( i) and mean tumor size assuming a log -normal distribution ( j) for each 340
crRNA (guide) relative to the median value for each gene. 95% confidence intervals are shown. 341
342
Figure 5. Rapid generation of PDAC through somatic Cas12a-mediated inactivation of 343
commonly mutated tumor suppressor genes 344
a. Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre pool has guides targeting Trp53, Cdkn2a, and Smad4. 345
Each gene is targeted by three crRNAs in all 27 combinations. 346
b. Intrapancreatic delivery of Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre to KrasLSL-G12D;R26LSL-Tom 347
(KT), KT;H11LSL-Cas12a, and H11LSL-Cas12a mice. Viral titer (infectious units, ifu) and mouse numbers 348
are indicated. 349
c. Survival curve of mice of the indicated genotypes transduced with Lenti-U6BC-350
crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre. 351
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d. Light (upper) and fluorescent Tomato (lower) pancreas images from the indicated genotypes of 352
mice 6 weeks ( KT;H11LSL-Cas12a) or 11 weeks ( KT) after transduction with Lenti-U6BC-353
crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre. Dashed lines outline tissues. Scale bars, 5 mm. 354
e. Light and fluorescent Tomato images of a liver lobe from a KT;H11LSL-Cas12a mouse. Dashed 355
line outlines tissue. Scale bars, 5 mm. 356
f. Immunohistochemistry images of pancreas sections from the indicated genotypes, showing 357
hematoxylin & eosin (H&E; upper) and Alcian Blue (AB; lower) staining. KT;H11LSL-Cas12a panels 358
show representative regions with poorly differentiated sarcomatoid carcinoma (left; approximately 359
80-90% of tumor area) and more differentiated areas with mucinous cells and some lobular 360
structure (right). Scale bars, 100 μm. 361
g. The number of tumors in each mouse normalized to viral titer. Each dot represents a mouse, and 362
bars are means. Note that two H11LSL-Cas12a mice did not have detectable tumor burden and are not 363
plotted. P-value calculated with Wilcoxon rank-sum test. 364
h. Mean tumor size given a log-normal tumor size distribution. Each dot represents a mouse, and 365
bars are means. Note that two H11LSL-Cas12a mice did not have detectable tumor burden and are not 366
plotted. P-value calculated with Wilcoxon rank-sum test. 367
i. Number of tumors for each crRNA (guide) relative to the median value for each gene. 95% 368
confidence intervals are shown. 369
370
371
372
373
374
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Methods
375
376
Generation of the H11LSL-Cas12a transgenic allele 377
A targeting vector containing 5’ and 3’ homology arms flanking the chicken beta -actin 378
/CMV enhancer/gamma globulin splice acceptor (CAGGS) promoter, loxP-STOP(6xSV40 379
polyA)-loxP cassette (LSL), enhanced Acidaminococcus sp. Cas12a 380
(E174R/N282A/S542R/K548R; enAsCas12a) 13, a nucleoplasmin nuclear localization signal 381
(NLS), a 3xHA epitope sequence, an SV40 NLS 19, and a rabbit β -globin polyadenylation signal 382
(RBG pA) was used to generate the H11LSL-Cas12a knock-in mice. An sgRNA targeting the mouse 383
Hipp11 (H11) locus (GAACACTAGTGCACTTATCCTGG), the targeting vector, and Cas9 384
mRNA were co -injected into fertilized C57BL/6J mouse oocytes (Cyagen Biosciences). F0 385
founder animals were identified by PCR followed by sequence analysis. A founder mouse was 386
bred with C57BL/6J mice to establish the H11LSL-Cas12a line. H11LSL-Cas12a mice were crossed to 387
CMV-Cre “deleter” mice to generate the constitutive H11Cas12a mice. PCR genotyping for the 388
H11LSL-Cas12a transgene was performed with the following primers: forward, 5’ 389
ATGCCATCATGCTCTCACTGC 3’; reverse, 5’ GGCTATGAACTAATGACCCCGTAATTG 390
3’; alternative reverse, 5’ CTTGTGGGTCTTCCACCTTTCTT 3’. PCR genotyping to distinguish 391
H11LSL-Cas12a from H11Cas12a was performed with the following primers: forward, 3’ 392
AGGTCGAGGGACCTAATAACTTCG 5’; alternative forward, 5’ 393
ATCTGTGCGGAGCCGAAATC 3’; reverse, 5’ TGCGTGCTTTGTCTTCCTCG 3’. 394
395
396
397
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Design, generation, barcoding, and production of lentiviral vectors 398
Pre-crRNA arrays with three guides were designed with diverse direct repeat sequences 399
flanking each guide 11, with BsmBI cut sites on both ends of the array (all guide and array 400
sequences in Supplementary Table 1). Guides for enAsCas12a were designed using CRISPick 401
for the Mouse GRCm38 reference genome (NCBI RefSeq v.108.20200622) 11,57. Arrays were 402
ordered as single -stranded DNA pools (Twist Biosciences) containing all 27 combinations of 3 403
guides for each of the 3 genes targeted in an array. Barcoded lentiviral vector backbones were 404
created by cloning a 98 bp oligo with a 16 -nucleotide diverse barcode (BC) and two BsmBI 405
restriction sites into the 3’ end of the bovine U6 promoter with Gibson Assembly (NEBuilder HiFi, 406
New England Biosciences) in a vector also containing PGK -Cre recombinase23. After low-cycle 407
PCR amplification, pre-crRNA arrays were ligated via Golden Gate Assembly with BsmBI into 408
the barcoded vector backbone. The cloning product was then electroporated into competent E. coli 409
(C3020K, New England Biosciences) and plated onto LB -ampicillin plates. To ensure sufficient 410
barcode diversity for Tuba -seqUltra sequencing and delineation of tumors, ~10 6 colonies were 411
collected for each Lenti-U6BC-crRNA-Cre pool. 412
Lentiviral vectors were produced using polyethylenimine (PEI)-based transfection of 293T 413
cells with delta8.2 and VSV-G packaging plasmids in 15 cm cell culture plates. Sodium butyrate 414
(B5887, Sigma Aldrich) was added 8 hours after transfection to achieve a final concentration of 415
20 mM. Media was refreshed 24 hours after transfection. 20 mL of virus -containing supernatant 416
was collected 36, 48, and 60 hours after transfection. The three collections were then pooled and 417
concentrated by ultracentrifugation (112,000 g for 1.5 hours), resuspended overnight in 120 µL 418
PBS, and then frozen at -80°C. Viruses were titered against a lab standard of known titer. 419
420
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Mice and tumor initiation 421
The use of mice for this study was approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use 422
Committee at Stanford University, protocol number 26696. CMV-Cre 423
(RRID:IMSR_JAX:006054)58, KrasLSL-G12D/+ (RRID:IMSR_JAX:008179)59 and R26LSL-tdTomato 424
(RRID:IMSR_JAX:007914)60 mice were on a C57BL/6 J background. H11LSL-Cas12a mice 425
(JAX:038388) and H11Cas12a mice (JAX:038389) are available through the Jackson Laboratory. 426
Lung tumors were initiated by intratracheal delivery of 60 μ L of lentiviral vectors in PBS 427
to isoflurane-anesthetized mice. Pancreatic tumors were initiated by retrograde ductal delivery of 428
150 μL of lentiviral vectors in PBS to isoflurane -anesthetized mice as previous described , and 429
mice were injected intraperitoneally with 100 µg/kg cerulein (C9026, Sigma-Aldrich) every hour 430
for 8 hours over two consecutive days, two weeks after lentiviral delivery 36. For small-cell lung 431
cancer tumors, mice were pre-treated with naphthalene53. Briefly, corn oil (C8267, Sigma-Aldrich) 432
was filter-sterilized with a 0.22 µm filter and aliquoted into 5 mL portions. Naphthalene was then 433
dissolved into the corn oil vehicle at a concentration of 50 mg/mL before it was administered into 434
mice via intraperitoneal injections at a dosage of 200 mg/kg. Roughly 46-48 hours later, mice were 435
administered virus intratracheally and supplemented with a bowl of DietGel76A (72 -07-5022, 436
ClearH2O) food to promote recovery. Infectious units (ifu) of lentivirus used for each experiment 437
are indicated in each respective figure. 438
439
Histology and immunohistochemistry 440
Tissues were fixed in 4% formalin for 24 hours, stored in 70% ethanol, and paraffin -441
embedded. 4 µm thick sections were used for Hematoxylin and Eosin staining and 442
immunohistochemistry. Immunohistochemistry was performed using an Avidin/Biotin Blocking 443
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Kit (SP-2001, Vector Laboratories), Avidin-Biotin Complex kit (PK-4001, Vector Laboratories), 444
and DAB Peroxidase Substrate Kit (SK-4100, Vector Laboratories) following standard protocols. 445
Alcian Blue and Trichrome stains were performed following standard protocols (Histo -Tec 446
Laboratory, Inc.). The following primary antibodies were used: anti -HA (3724, Cell Signaling 447
Technology), anti -TTF1 (NKX2 -1; ab76013, Abcam), anti -CK19 (Ab2133570, TROMA -III, 448
Developmental Study Hybridoma Bank), and anti-UCHL1 (HPA005993, Sigma-Aldrich). 449
450
Western blot analyses 451
For immunoblotting, cells and homogenized tissues were lysed in Cell Lysis Buffer (Cell 452
Signaling Technology) containing a complete mini-protease inhibitor cocktail (Roche), then equal 453
quantities of protein lysate (3 -10 µg) were separated by SDS -PAGE using 4 –12% gradient gels 454
(Invitrogen) and transferred to PVDF membranes. Membranes were blocked with 5% milk in PBS 455
with 0.1% Tween 20 (PBST) for 1 hour at room temperature, followed by incubation with primary 456
antibodies diluted in PBST with 5% milk overnight at 4oC. After 4x15 minute washes with PBST, 457
membranes were incubated with an HRP-conjugated goat anti-rabbit secondary antibody (12-348, 458
Sigma-Aldrich) diluted 1:5000 in PBST with 5% milk. After 4x15 minute washes with PBST, 459
protein expression was then visualized with enhanced chemiluminescence reagents (PI80196, 460
Fisher Scientific). Primary antibodies were used at the following dilutions: rabbit anti-HA, 1:1000 461
(3724, Cell Signaling); rabbit anti-Cas12a, 1:1000 (19984, Cell Signaling); and rabbit anti-alpha-462
Tubulin, 1:2000 (2144, Cell Signaling). 463
464
465
466
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Analysis of indels at target sites 467
The target sites for each crRNA were PCR -amplified from genomic DNA extracted from 468
bulk tumor-bearing tissue (Figure 2h and Supplementary Figure 3e) or microdissected tumors 469
(Figure 4h ) using GoTaq Green® Mastermix (Promega) and the primer pairs listed in 470
Supplementary Table 2 . Microdissected tumors were isolated under a dissecting microscope; 471
however, due to the high tumor burden, samples may have contained more than one tumor. 472
Amplicons were run on 1% agarose gels, gel-extracted (QIAquick PCR & Gel Cleanup Kit, 473
Qiagen), and Sanger sequenced (Elim Biopharm, Inc). The Sanger sequencing traces were 474
analyzed with TIDE61 to estimate the percent of the DNA with indels at each site. As these lungs 475
each contain many clonal tumors, the DNA should be a mix of that from non -neoplastic cells 476
(normal lung and stromal cells), tumors with indels at that site, and tumor with indels at the target 477
sites of the other crRNAs targeting that gene. 478
479
Tuba-seqUltra library preparation and analysis 480
Benchmark control cell lines containing unique barcodes ( 50,000 cells each) were added 481
to each lung sample prior to lysis to enable the calculation of the absolute number of neoplastic 482
cells in each tumor23. Bulk tumor-bearing tissues were homogenized in 6 m L of cell lysis buffer 483
(Puregene, 158063, Qiagen) using a FastPrep -24 5G tissue homogenizer (116005500, MP 484
Biomedicals) and digested overnight with proteinase K (AM2544, Life Technologies). To remove 485
RNA, samples were incubated with RNase A prior to genomic DNA extraction using a Puregene 486
kit according to the manufacturer’s recommended protocol. Q5 High -Fidelity 2x Master Mix 487
(M0494X, New England Biolabs) was used to amplify the U6-BC-crRNA region from 32 μg of 488
genomic DNA in a total reaction volume of 800 μL per sample using unique dual-indexed primers 489
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as described23. The conc entration of the amplified barcode product in each PCR was measured 490
using D1000 screentape reagents ( 5067-5582, Agilent Technologies) and the Tapestation 491
instrument (Agilent Technologies). Amplicons were pooled at equal molar ratios of barcode 492
product, normalized to the estimated burden of tumors in each mouse lung sample (measured lung 493
mass minus an estimated normal lung weight of 0.15 g). Pooled PCR products were purified using 494
Agencourt AMPure XP beads (A63881, Beckman Coulter) using a double size selection protocol 495
and sequenced on the Illumina NextSeq 6000 platform (read length 2x150bp) for barcode analysis 496
and MiSeq (2x300) for crRNA array analysis. 497
Paired-end reads were processed with regular expressions to identify the three gRNA 498
sequences (henceforth referred to as the tumor -genotype) and clonal barcodes. When identifying 499
gRNA sequences, we strictly required a perfect match with the designed sequences. The 12 -500
nucleotide random clonal barcode sequence possesses a high theoretical diversity of approximately 501
412 (> 107). Given the virus titer we used (2x10 5 or 1x106 infectious units per mouse), there are 502
typically fewer than 10,000 clonal tumors for each tumor -genotype per mouse. As such, the 503
probability of two clonal tumors with the same tumor-genotype possessing two barcodes within a 504
1-hamming distance of each other is extremely low. Consequently, when we encountered low -505
frequency clonal barcodes within a 1 -hamming distance of high -frequency clonal barcodes, we 506
attributed them to sequencing or PCR errors. These low -frequency barcodes were merged with 507
barcodes of higher frequencies. After extracting barcode and crRNA information, we converted 508
the read counts associated with clonal tumors into absolute neoplastic cell numbers. This 509
conversion was accomplished by normalizing the reads of the clonal tumor to the number of reads 510
of the "spike-in" benchmark cell lines added to each sample prior to lung lysis and DNA extraction. 511
We imposed a minimum tumor size cutoff of 300 cells for downstream analysis. 512
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513
Characterization of overall tumor growth and initiation 514
To quantify tumor growth, we used the log-normal mean (LN mean) tumor size, which is 515
the maximum-likelihood estimate of mean tumor size , assuming a log -normal tumor size 516
distribution. In addition to the tumor size metric, we characterized the effects of gene inactivation 517
on tumorigenesis by accounting for both the number of tumors (“tumor number”) and the 518
cumulative number of neoplastic cell s (“tumor burden”). When comparing tumor growth and 519
initiation across different genotypes of mice tumor number and tumor burden are normalized by 520
the amount of virus delivered. 521
522
Estimation of tumor growth and initiation effects of individual crRNA arrays 523
To estimate the relative effect of individual crRNAs on tumor growth, we calculated the 524
relative LN mean tumor size by normalizing the LN mean of tumors with a specific crRNA to the 525
average LN mean size of the three crRNAs targeting the same gene. This normalization process 526
extended to the analysis of tumors with specific crRNA arrays, where the relative LN mean tumor 527
size for a tumor with an array was normalized to the mean of all 27 distinct crRNA arrays. Unlike 528
the LN mean tumor size, tumor number is linearly affected by lentiviral titer and is thus sensitive 529
to underlying differences in the representation of each Lenti-U6BC-crRNA-Cre vector in the viral 530
pool. Relative tumor number was computed by initially standardizing the tumor number in Cas12a-531
expressive mice against that in control mice lacking Cas12a. Subsequently, this standardized tumor 532
number was then normalized using the same methodology applied to the relative LN mean. 533
534
535
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Tumor exclusion based on PCR template shuffling and unexpected crRNA arrays 536
Ideally, each clonal barcode would be uniquely paired with one crRNA array. However, 537
instances where the same clonal barcode is associated with multiple crRNA arrays have been 538
observed, which may be attributed to several factors: (1) multiple copies of the same barcode 539
molecule ligated to distinct arrays during vector cloning; (2) template switching during lentiviral 540
reverse transcription; and (3) PCR uncoupling throughout library preparation37,38. The first two 541
scenarios would yield tumors that accurately reflect the genotype information conveyed by the 542
crRNA array, while the latter scenario would generate spurious tumors (i.e. BC-crRNA reads 543
that do not originate from a genuine tumor in the sample). Such spurious tumors, resulting from 544
PCR uncoupling (a relatively rare event) will typically be markedly smaller than their genuine 545
counterparts. To discern spurious tumors from genuine tumors with the same clonal barcode, we 546
created a reference null distribution of size ratios between large and small tumors by randomly 547
sampling pairs of tumors within the same mouse. When a clonal barcode was found associated 548
with multiple crRNA arrays, we designated the crRNA array with the largest tumor as genuine 549
and others as potentially aberrant. By calculating the size ratio of the genuine to the potential 550
spurious tumor and comparing it against the upper 95th percentile of the reference distribution, 551
we can identify and eliminate most, if not all, spurious tumors. 552
In cases when tumors were found to be associated with crRNA arrays that were not from 553
the “correct” lentiviral libraries, these tumors could have arisen from the coincident transduction 554
of a cell with the “correct” virus and a “contaminating” virus. To eliminate these tumors from the 555
analysis in the most conservative manner, we identified each clonal barcode linked to the 556
“contaminating” vector, a corresponding clonal barcode associated with the “correct” vector that 557
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exhibited the most similar tumor size within the same mouse, and excluded both clonal barcodes 558
from further analysis. 559
560
Cell line generation 561
Tail tip fibroblasts were generated by mechanically dissociating depilated tail tips, 562
digesting them in 0.25% trypsin (Life Technologies) for 30 minutes, collecting tissue fragments 563
with centrifugation at 500 rcf for 5 minutes, then resuspending and plating in high glucose 564
Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle Medium (Life Technologies) containing 20% fetal bovine serum and 565
2% penicillin-streptomycin (Thermo Fisher Scientific). 566
567
Acknowledgements
568
569
We thank the Stanford Veterinary Animal Care Staff for expert animal care, Greg Charville 570
for advice on histologic characterization of tumors, and members of the Winslow laboratory for 571
helpful comments. J.D.H was supported by an American Cancer Society Fellowship (PF-21-112-572
01-MM) and a TRDRP Postdoctoral fellowship (T31FT1619). Y.J.T was partly supported by the 573
Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR) postdoctoral fellowship (MFE-176568). P.A.R. was 574
supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (DGE-2146755) and 575
the Lucille P. Markey Stanford Graduate Fellowship. This work was supported by NIH R01 -576
CA230025 (to M.M.W), NIH P01-CA244114 (to M.M.W.), NIH R01-CA231253 (to M.M.W and 577
D.A.P), NIH R01-CA234349 (to M.M.W and D.A.P.), NIH R35 -CA231997 (to J.S.), NIH R35 -578
HG011316 and R01 -GM141627 (to L.C.), and in part by the Stanford Cancer Institute support 579
grant (NIH P30-CA124435). 580
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581
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was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
The copyright holder for this preprint (whichthis version posted May 25, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.07.583774doi: bioRxiv preprint
a
H11LSL-Cas12a
enAsCas12a
CAGGS
NLS
NLS
rBG
PolyA
loxP
loxP
3xHA
(E174R/N282A/S542R/K548R)
6x SV40
PolyA
Stop
Hebert et al.
H11Cas12a
enAsCas12a
CAGGS
NLS
NLS
rBG
PolyA
loxP
3xHA
(E174R/N282A/S542R/K548R)
Control
Cre - + - +
Cas12a
αTubulin
140 kDa-
50 kDa-
αTubulin
HA
H11LSL-Cas12a
140 kDa-
50 kDa-
140 kDa-
50 kDa-
Brain
Heart
Kidney
Lung
Muscle
Pancreas
Spleen
Thymus
HA
αTubulin
H11Cas12a/WT
Brain
Heart
Kidney
Liver
Lung
Muscle
Pancreas
Spleen
Thymus
H11LSL-Cas12a/WT
Liver
HA
H11LSL-Cas12a/WT H11Cas12a/WTH11WT/WT
H11LSL-Cas12a/LSL-Cas12a
H11LSL-Cas12a/WT
H11WT/WT
H11WT
H11LSL-Cas12a
500 bp-
200 bp-
d
b c
e f
Figure 1. Generation of Cre-regulated and constitutive Cas12a mice
a. Schematic of the H11 LSL-Cas12a transgene. Enhanced AsCas12a containing several substitutions to increase on-target efficiency and PAM
binding sequence range (Kleinstiver et al. (2019). Nature Biotechnology), has two nuclear localization sequences (NLS), and three HA tags at
the C-terminus (Liu et al. (2019), Nucleic Acids Research), controlled by Cre-mediated removal of the LoxP-Stop-LoxP (LSL) cassette.
b. PCR genotyping of mice of the indicated H11
LSL-Cas12a and wild-type (WT) genotypes.
c. Western blots on tail tip fibroblasts from H11LSL-Cas12a and wild-type control mice 3 days after Adeno-Cre (Cre) treatment. Cas12a was detected
by both anti-HA and anti-Cas12a antibodies. αTubulin shows loading.
d. Schematic of the H11
Cas12a transgene, following Cre-mediated removal of the LSL cassette.
e. Western blots on tissue lysates from H11Cas12a/WT or H11LSL-Cas12a/WT mice. α−Tubulin shows loading.
f. Immunohistochemical staining for the HA tag on Cas12a on liver sections from the indicated genotypes of mice. Scale bars, 25 μm.
was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
The copyright holder for this preprint (whichthis version posted May 25, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.07.583774doi: bioRxiv preprint
Hebert et al.
Lenti-U6BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre
Wild-type (WT; 106 ifu/mouse; n=5)
9
weeks
KrasLSL-G12D ;R26LSL-Tom
(2x105 ifu (1/5th titer)/mouse;KT; n=4)
H11LSL-Cas12a (+/- R26LSL-Tom(T);106 ifu/mouse; n=6)
Lenti-U6BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre
crNf1#2
crNf1#3
crNf1#1
crRasa1#2
crRasa1#3
crRasa1#1
crPten#2
crPten#3
crPten#1
X X
27 combinations
bU6
pre-crRNA array
Guides
Repeats
U6-integrated
diverse barcode (BC)
Cre
PGK LTRLTR
0.00
0.25
0.50
0.75
1.00
1.25
1.50Lung weight (g)
H11LSL-Cas12a
WT
KT(1/5
th
titer)
normal
lung
Light
H11LSL-Cas12a;
R26LSL-Tom WT KT(1/5th titer)
Tomato
H&ENKX2-1
H11LSL-Cas12a WT KT(1/5th titer)
UCHL1
H11LSL-Cas12a
HA
WT
crNf1#2crNf1#3crNf1#1
crRasa1#2crRasa1#3crRasa1#1
crPten#2crPten#3crPten#1
Indel Percent
0
10
20
30
Figure 2. Rapid and efficient generation of oncogene-negative lung tumors through Cas12a-mediated coincident inactivation of
three tumor suppressor genes
a. Lenti-U6
BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre pool has guides targeting Nf1, Rasa1, and Pten. Each gene is targeted by three crRNAs in all
combinations.
b. Design of a lentiviral vector that expresses Cre recombinase and has a pre-crRNA array with three spacers (guides) downstream of a
bovine U6 promoter with an integrated barcode region.
c. Intratracheal delivery of Lenti-U6
BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre to H11LSL-Cas12a, KrasLSL-G12D;R26LSL-Tom (KT), and wild-type (WT) mice. Viral
titer (infectious units, ifu) and mouse numbers are indicated.
d. Lung weights from mice of the indicated genotypes 9 weeks after transduction with Lenti-U6
BCcrNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre. Each dot
represents a mouse. Means +/- standard deviation are indicated.
e. Light (upper) and Tomato fluorescent (lower) images of lung lobes from the indicated genotypes of mice 9 weeks after transduction
with Lenti-U6
BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre. Dashed lines outline tissues. Tumors are Tomato-positive due to recombination of the R26LSL-Tomato
allele. Scale bars, 5 mm.
f. Hematoxylin & eosin (upper), NKX2-1 (middle), and UCHL1 (lower) staining of lung sections from the indicated genotypes. Scale bars,
100 μm.
g. Immunohistochemical staining for the Cas12a HA tag on lung tissue from representative
H11LSL-Cas12a and WT mice transduced with
Lenti-U6BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre. Scale bars, 100 μm.
h. Indel frequencies for genomic regions targeted by each crRNA within bulk tumor-bearing lung tissue from H11LSL-Cas12a mice. Means +/-
standard deviation of three tumor-bearing lungs are shown.
a b c
d e f
g h
was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
The copyright holder for this preprint (whichthis version posted May 25, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.07.583774doi: bioRxiv preprint
Figure 3. Integration of crRNA arrays with tumor barcoding enables quantification of tumor initiation and tumor size
a. Schematic of tumor barcoding with high-throughput BC-crRNA sequencing to determine the size of each Cas12a-induced clonal
tumor.
b.
Total number of neoplastic cells (Total tumor burden) in each mouse normalized to viral titer. Each dot represents a mouse, and
bars are means. P-value calculated with Wilcoxon rank-sum test.
c. Number of tumors in each mouse normalized to viral titer. Each dot represents a mouse, and bars are means. P-value calculated
with Wilcoxon rank-sum test.
d. Mean tumor size given a log-normal tumor size distribution. Each dot represents a mouse, and bars are means. P-value calculat-
ed with Wilcoxon rank-sum test.
e. Number of tumors for each crRNA (guide) relative to the median value for each gene. 95% confidence intervals are shown.
f. Mean tumor size assuming a log-normal distribution for each crRNA (guide) relative to the median value for each gene. 95%
confidence intervals are shown.
Extract DNA from tumor-bearing
lungs
Determine the number of tumors
with each crRNA array and the
size of each clonal tumor
PCR amplify BC-crRNA region
High-throughput sequence
Hebert et al.
Mean tumor size
(# of cells)
0.011
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
H11LSL-Cas12a KT
Tumor number
(# of tumors/105 ifu)
0
10,000
20,000
30,000 ns (0.14)
H11LSL-Cas12a KTH11LSL-Cas12a KT
106
107
108
Total tumor burden
(# of neoplasatic cells/105 ifu)
0.011a b c
d e f
1.2
0.8
1.0
0.6
0.4
Relative tumor number
crNf1#2crNf1#3crNf1#1
crRasa1#2crRasa1#3crRasa1#1
crPten#2crPten#3crPten#1
0.2
0.0
1.2
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.2
crNf1#2crNf1#3crNf1#1
crRasa1#2crRasa1#3crRasa1#1
crPten#2crPten#3crPten#1
Relative log-normalmean tumor size
0.4
0.0
was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
The copyright holder for this preprint (whichthis version posted May 25, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.07.583774doi: bioRxiv preprint
Figure 4. Induction of small-cell lung cancer through the simultaneous Cas12a-mediated inactivation of Trp53, Rb1 and Rbl2
a. Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre pool has guides targeting Trp53, Rb1, and Rbl2. Each gene is targeted by three crRNAs in all 27
combinations.
b. Intratracheal delivery of Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre to H11LSL-Cas12a and wild-type (WT) mice. Viral titer (infectious units, ifu)
and mouse numbers are indicated.
c. Lung weights from mice of the indicated genotypes 18 weeks after transduction with Lenti-U6
BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre. Each dot
represents a mouse. Mean +/- standard deviation is indicated.
d. Light (upper) and Tomato fluorescent (lower) images of lung lobes from the indicated genotypes of mice 18 weeks after transduc-
tion with Lenti-U6
BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre. Dashed line outlines tissue. Tumors are Tomato-positive due to recombination of the
R26LSL-Tomato allele. Scale bars, 5 mm.
e. Hematoxylin & eosin (upper), UCHL1 (middle) and HA tag (lower) staining of lung sections from an H11LSL-Cas12a mouse. Scale bars,
100 μm.
f. Total number of neoplastic cells (Total tumor burden) in each mouse normalized to viral titer. Each dot represents a mouse, and the
bar is the mean.
g. The number of tumors in each mouse normalized to viral titer. Each dot represents a mouse, and the bar is the mean.
h. Indel frequencies for genomic regions targeted by each crRNA within micro-dissected tumor tissue from
H11LSL-Cas12a mice. Symbol
shapes and colors identify values from the same sample. Bars represent means.
i,j. Number of tumors (i) and mean tumor size assuming a log-normal distribution (j) for each crRNA (guide) relative to the median
value for each gene. 95% confidence intervals are shown.
0.00
0.25
0.50
0.75
1.00
1.25
1.50Lung weight (g)
H11LSL-Cas12a
WT
Hebert et al.
cba
e fd
crTrp53#2
crTrp53#3
crTrp53#1
crRb1#2
crRb1#3
crRb1#1
crRbl2#2
crRbl2#3
crRbl2#1
X X
27 combinations
Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre
g
H11LSL-Cas12a/LSL-Cas12a (+/- R26LSL-Tom; n=6)
Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre
Wild type (WT; n=4)
18
weeks
(106 ifu/mouse for all)
H11LSL-Cas12a
0
8,000
2,000
4,000
6,000
Tumor number
(# of tumors/105 ifu)
H11LSL-Cas12a
Total tumor burden
(# of neoplasatic cells/105 ifu)
106
107
108
H&E
H11LSL-Cas12a
UCHL1
HA
H11LSL-Cas12a;R26LSL-Tom WT
Tomato Light
h i
0
20
40
60
80
100Indel Percent
crTrp53#2crTrp53#3crTrp53#1 crRb1#2crRb1#3crRb1#1 crRbl2#2crRbl2#3crRbl2#1
Relative log-normalmean tumor size
1.2
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
crTrp53#2crTrp53#3crTrp53#1 crRb1#2crRb1#3crRb1#1 crRbl2#2crRbl2#3crRbl2#1
j
Relative tumor number
1.4
1.2
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
crTrp53#2crTrp53#3crTrp53#1 crRb1#2crRb1#3crRb1#1 crRbl2#2crRbl2#3crRbl2#1
0.8
1.0
was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
The copyright holder for this preprint (whichthis version posted May 25, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.07.583774doi: bioRxiv preprint
Hebert et al.
cba
Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre
crTrp53#2
crTrp53#3
crTrp53#1
crCdkn2a#2
crCdkn2a#3
crCdkn2a#1
crSmad4#2
crSmad4#3
crSmad4#1
X X
27 combinations
fed
KT;H11LSL-Cas12a (n=4)
Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre
KrasLSL-G12D ;R26LSL-Tom (KT; n=4)
H11LSL-Cas12a (n=4)
0 5 10
0
50
100
Weeks post-transduction
Percent survival
KT;H11LSL-Cas12a
H11LSL-Cas12a
KT
KT;H11LSL-Cas12a
KT;H11LSL-Cas12a KT
Tomato Light
H&E
KT;H11LSL-Cas12a KT H11LSL-Cas12a
AB
(106 ifu/mouse for all)
KTKT;
H11LSL-Cas12a
H11LSL-Cas12a
Tumor number
(# of tumors/105 ifu)
ns (0.39)
102
103
104
105
100
101
Mean tumor size
(# of cells)
KTKT;
H11LSL-Cas12a
H11LSL-Cas12a
0.043
1,000
10,000
g h i
Figure 5. Rapid generation of PDAC through somatic Cas12a-mediated inactivation of commonly mutated tumor suppressor
genes
a. Lenti-U6
BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre pool has guides targeting Trp53, Cdkn2a, and Smad4. Each gene is targeted by three
crRNAs in all 27 combinations.
b. Intrapancreatic delivery of Lenti-U6
BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre to KrasLSL-G12D;R26LSL-Tom (KT), KT;H11LSL-Cas12a, and H11LSL-Cas12a
mice. Viral titer (infectious units, ifu) and mouse numbers are indicated.
c. Survival curve of mice of the indicated genotypes transduced with Lenti-U6
BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre.
d. Light (upper) and fluorescent Tomato (lower) pancreas images from the indicated genotypes of mice 6 weeks (KT;H11LSL-Cas12a) or 11
weeks (KT) after transduction with Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre. Dashed lines outline tissues. Scale bars, 5 mm.
e. Light and fluorescent Tomato images of a liver lobe from a KT;H11LSL-Cas12a mouse. Dashed line outlines tissue. Scale bars, 5 mm.
f. Immunohistochemistry images of pancreas sections from the indicated genotypes, showing hematoxylin & eosin (H&E; upper) and
Alcian Blue (AB; lower) staining. KT;H11LSL-Cas12a panels show representative regions with poorly differentiated sarcomatoid carcinoma
(left; approximately 80-90% of tumor area) and more differentiated areas with mucinous cells and some lobular structure (right). Scale
bars, 100 μm.
g. The number of tumors in each mouse normalized to viral titer. Each dot represents a mouse, and bars are means. Note that two
H11LSL-Cas12a mice did not have detectable tumor burden and are not plotted. P-value calculated with Wilcoxon rank-sum test.
h. Mean tumor size given a log-normal tumor size distribution. Each dot represents a mouse, and bars are means. Note that two
H11LSL-Cas12a mice did not have detectable tumor burden and are not plotted. P-value calculated with Wilcoxon rank-sum test.
i. Number of tumors for each crRNA (guide) relative to the median value for each gene. 95% confidence intervals are shown.
crTrp53#2crTrp53#3crTrp53#1
crCdkn2a#2crCdkn2a#3crCdkn2a#1 crSmad4#2crSmad4#3crSmad4#1
2.00
1.25
0.50
0.25
0.00
Relative tumor number
1.75
1.50
1.00
0.75
was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
The copyright holder for this preprint (whichthis version posted May 25, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.07.583774doi: bioRxiv preprint
Hebert et al.
Ability to sequence across
3 guides
difficult easy
Cas9 Cas12a
RNA scaffold tracrRNA (~100 nt/guide) Direct repeats (DR;~20 nt each)
Promoter one per sgRNA one per crRNA array
Cut site relative to PAM 3 bp from PAM 18 bp from the PAM
Cuts blunt-end 5 nt staggered
Cloning one step per sgRNA one step per crRNA array
Structural features
Cutting
Guide uncoupling due to
lentiviral template switching
high low
a
H11LSL-Cas12a/WT
H11Cas12a/WT
H11LSL-Cas12a
H11Cas12a500 bp-
200 bp-
LungLiverKidney
H11LSL-Cas12a/WT H11Cas12a/WTH11WT/WT
HA
Supplementary Figure 1. Comparison of salient features of Cas9 and Cas12a, and broad nuclear expression of Cas12a in
H11Cas12a mice
a. Summary of features of Cas9 and Cas12a relevant to multiplexed genome editing. Note that the potential impact of off-target effects
is increased when targeting more genes.
b. PCR genotyping of mice of the indicated H11
LSL-Cas12a and H11Cas12a genotypes.
c. Immunohistochemical staining for the Cas12a HA tag in lung, liver and kidney sections from the indicated genotypes of mice. Scale
bars, 50 µm. Higher magnification images of these liver sections is shown in Figure 1f.
b c
was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
The copyright holder for this preprint (whichthis version posted May 25, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.07.583774doi: bioRxiv preprint
Supplementary Figure 2. Incorporation of Cas12a-mediated genome editing with Tuba-seq Ultra enables quanitification of the
effects of each crRNA array
a,b. Number of tumors (a) and mean tumor size assuming a log-normal distribution (b) for each crRNA array (27 combinations in total)
relative to the median value for all arrays in H11LSL-Cas12a mice. 95% confidence intervals are shown.
Hebert et al.
a
b
Pten crRNA # 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 12 2 2 2 2 2 2 23 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
Rasa1 crRNA # 1 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 32 3 1 2 3 1 2 31 2 3 1 2 3 2 3
Nf1 crRNA # 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 31 1 2 2 2 3 3 31 1 1 2 2 2
3
1
3 3 3
Relative tumor number
1.6
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
1.0
1.2
1.4
Pten crRNA # 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 12 2 2 2 2 2 2 23 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
Rasa1 crRNA # 1 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 32 3 1 2 3 1 2 31 2 3 1 2 3 2 3
Nf1 crRNA # 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 31 1 2 2 2 3 3 31 1 1 2 2 2
3
1
3 3 3
Relative log-normal mean tumor size
1.2
0.6
0.8
0.4
0.0
0.2
1.0
was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
The copyright holder for this preprint (whichthis version posted May 25, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.07.583774doi: bioRxiv preprint
Hebert et al.
a
c
Supplementary Figure 3. Inactivation of Trp53, Cdkn2a, and Smad4 greatly increases tumor size and leads to the
development of PDAC with differentiated areas with CK19+ cancer cells and desmoplastic stroma as well as more poorly
differentiated areas
a. Immunohistochemistry images of pancreas sections from the indicated genotypes, showing Trichrome (upper) and Cytokeratin-19
(CK19; lower) staining.
KT;H11LSL-Cas12a panels show representative poorly differentiated (left) and more differentiated (right) regions.
Scale bars, 100 μm.
b. Immunohistochemical staining for the Cas12a HA tag on pancreas tissue from representative KT;
H11LSL-Cas12a, KT and H11LSL-Cas12a
mice transduced with Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre. Scale bars, 100 μm.
c. Total number of neoplastic cells (Total tumor burden) in each mouse normalized to viral titer. Each dot represents a mouse and the
bar is the mean. Note that two H11LSL-Cas12a mice did not have detectable tumor burden and are not plotted. P-value calculated with
Wilcoxon rank-sum test.
d. Probability distribution of the size of tumors in the indicated genotypes of mice.
e. Indel frequencies for genomic regions targeted by each crRNA within bulk tumor-bearing pancreas tissue from KT;
H11LSL-Cas12a
mice. Tissue samples had variable tumor burden, likely explaining observed variability in indel frequencies. Symbol shapes and
colors identify values from the same mouse. Bars represent means.
f. Mean tumor size assuming a log-normal distribution for each crRNA (guide) relative to the median value for each gene. 95%
confidence intervals are shown.
TricrhomeCK19
KT;H11LSL-Cas12a KT H11LSL-Cas12a
d
KTKT;
H11LSL-Cas12a
H11LSL-Cas12a
0.021
106
107
108
Total tumor burden
(# of neoplasatic cells/105 ifu)
103
104
105
KT
KT;H11LSL-Cas12a
H11LSL-Cas12a
Tumor size
(# of neoplastic cells)
Probability
106 107103 104 105
10-3
10-2
10-1
100
10-5
10-4
b
e
HA
KT;H11LSL-Cas12a
KT H11LSL-Cas12a
crTrp53#2crTrp53#3crTrp53#1
crCdkn2a#2crCdkn2a#3crCdkn2a#1 crSmad4#2crSmad4#3crSmad4#1
Indel Percent
0
10
20
30
40
f
crTrp53#2crTrp53#3crTrp53#1
crCdkn2a#2crCdkn2a#3crCdkn2a#1 crSmad4#2crSmad4#3crSmad4#1
3.0
1.5
1.0
Relative log-normalmean tumor size
2.0
2.5
0.5
0.0
was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
The copyright holder for this preprint (whichthis version posted May 25, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.07.583774doi: bioRxiv preprint
Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre
Hebert et al.
Fraction of clonal barcodes
associated with only
one crRNA array
H11LSL-Cas12a KT
1.04
1.02
1.00
0.98
0.96
0.94
0.92
0.90
Fraction of total tumor
burden after filtering
1.01
1.00
0.99
0.98
0.97
0.96
0.95
H11LSL-Cas12a KT
1.04
1.02
1.00
0.98
0.96
0.94
0.92
0.90
Fraction of clonal barcodes
associated with only
one crRNA array
H11LSL-Cas12a
Fraction of total tumor
burden after filtering
1.01
1.00
0.99
0.98
0.97
0.96
0.95
H11LSL-Cas12a
Lenti-U6BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre
a
Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre
b
c d
e f
Supplementary Figure 4. Generation of Cas12a Lenti-U6BC-crRNA-Cre vector libraries is associated with minimal shuffling of
crRNA sequences
a,c,e. Fraction of all U6-integrated barcode reads that are associated with only a single crRNA array within each vector pool in the
indicated mouse genotypes: Lenti-U6 BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre (a), Lenti-U6 BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre (c), and
Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre (e). Bars represent medians.
b,d,f. Fraction of total neoplastic cells (total tumor burden) remaining after filtering out spurious “tumor” reads arising during library
preparation and sequencing of each pool in the indicated mouse genotypes: Lenti-U6 BC-crNf1/Rasa1/Pten-Cre (b),
Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Rb1/Rbl2-Cre (d), and Lenti-U6BC-crTrp53/Cdkn2a/Smad4-Cre (f). Bars represent medians.
1.05
1.00
0.95
0.90
0.85
0.80
Fraction of clonal barcodes
associated with only
one crRNA array
KTKT;
H11LSL-Cas12a
H11LSL-Cas12a
Fraction of total tumor
burden after filtering
1.0
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
KTKT;
H11LSL-Cas12a
H11LSL-Cas12a
was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
The copyright holder for this preprint (whichthis version posted May 25, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.07.583774doi: bioRxiv preprint
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