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Mitochondrial genome editing gets precise

A bacterial toxin has been found that allows DNA in a cellular organelle called the mitochondrion to be precisely altered. This development could help to combat diseases caused by mutations in mitochondrial DNA.
  1. Magomet Aushev

    1. Magomet Aushev is in the Wellcome Centre for Mitochondrial Research, Biosciences Institute, Centre for Life, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4EP, UK.

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  2. Mary Herbert

    1. Mary Herbert is in the Wellcome Centre for Mitochondrial Research, Biosciences Institute, Centre for Life, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4EP, UK.

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The DNA in a cellular organelle called the mitochondrion encodes just 13 proteins, all of which are involved in generating the cell’s energy supply. Mutations in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) can cause a range of incurable, life-limiting metabolic diseases in humans1. The development of tools for editing mtDNA has therefore been a long-sought goal in mitochondrial genetics. Writing in Nature, Mok et al.2 report a molecular tool that for the first time enables precise editing of mtDNA. Key to this achievement was the discovery of a toxin secreted by bacteria to kill neighbouring bacteria.

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Nature 583, 521-522 (2020)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-01974-6

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