High-Content Analysis of CRISPR-Cas9 Gene-Edited Human Embryonic Stem Cells

The authors developed a genome-editing method where they utilize surface-modified multiwell plates containing one-pot transcribed single-guide RNAs for automated, live, high-content imaging and analysis. To test the speed and efficiency of the genome editing method the authors used the LAMA5 gene encoding a-5 laminin since this extracellular matrix protein is known to be an important autocrine/paracrine factor regulating survival and self-renewal of hESCs. The LAMA5 edited hESC clones exhibited decreased rates of self-renewal and increased rate of apoptosis and culture on Matrigel was insufficient to rescue the growth phenotype. However, when cultured on human recombinant laminin-521, all LAMA5 gene-edited lines were rescued with growth rate and levels of apoptosis similar to the wild-type cells. This publication is another proof of principle for the LN-521 stem cell matrix showing that a5 laminin is a critical factor for hPSC survival and self-renewal.