The New State of the Art: Cas9 for Gene Activation and Repression

CRISPR-Cas9 technology has rapidly changed the landscape for how biologists and bioengineers study and manipulate the genome. Derived from the bacterial adaptive immune system, CRISPR-Cas9 has been coopted and repurposed for a variety of new functions, including the activation or repression of gene expression (termed CRISPRa or CRISPRi, respectively). This represents an exciting alternative to previously used repression or activation technologies such as RNA interference (RNAi) or the use of gene overexpression vectors. We have only just begun exploring the possibilities that CRISPR technology offers for gene regulation and the control of cell identity and behavior. In this review, we describe the recent advances of CRISPR-Cas9 technology for gene regulation and outline advantages and disadvantages of CRISPRa and CRISPRi (CRISPRa/i) relative to alternative technologies.