SUMMARY While the catalog of mammalian transcripts and their expression levels in different cell types and disease states is rapidly expanding, our understanding of transcript function lags behind. We present a robust technology enabling systematic investigation of the cellular consequences of repressing or inducing individual transcripts. We identify rules for specific targeting of transcriptional repressors (CRISPRi), typically achieving 90–99% knockdown with minimal off-target effects, and activators (CRISPRa) to endogenous genes via endonuclease-deficient Cas9. Together they enable modulation of gene expression over a ~1000-fold range. Using these rules, we construct genome-scale CRISPRi and CRISPRa libraries, each of which we validate with two pooled screens. Growth-based screens identify essential genes, tumor suppressors and regulators of differentiation. Screens for sensitivity to a cholera-diphtheria toxin provide broad insights into the mechanisms of pathogen entry, retro-translocation and toxicity. Our results establish CRISPRi and CRISPRa as powerful tools that provide rich and complementary information for mapping complex pathways.

Loss-of-function genetic screens in model organisms have elucidated numerous biological processes, but the diploid genome of mammalian cells has precluded large-scale gene disruption. We used insertional mutagenesis to develop a screening method to generate null alleles in a human cell line haploid for all chromosomes except chromosome 8. Using this approach, we identified host factors essential for infection with influenza and genes encoding important elements of the biosynthetic pathway of diphthamide, which are required for the cytotoxic effects of diphtheria toxin and exotoxin A. We also identified genes needed for the action of cytolethal distending toxin, including a cell-surface protein that interacts with the toxin. This approach has both conceptual and practical parallels with genetic approaches in haploid yeast.

Methods for site-specific modification of proteins are in high demand. Reactions that yield bioconjugates should be quantitative, site-specific, and versatile with respect to nature and size of the biological/chemical targets involved, require minimal modification of the target, display acceptable kinetics under physiological conditions, and be orthogonal to other labeling methods. Sortase-mediated transpeptidation reactions meet these criteria. Here we describe the expression and purification conditions for two orthogonal sortase A enzymes and provide the protocol that allows functionalization of any given protein at its C-terminus or for select proteins at an internal site. Sortase-mediated reactions take only a few minutes, but reaction times can be extended to increase yields.

Insertional mutagenesis in a haploid background can lead to complete disruption of gene function1. Here we generate a population of human cells that contain insertions in >98% of their expressed genes. We established Phenotypic Interrogation via Tag Sequencing (PhITSeq) as a method to examine millions of mutant alleles through selection and parallel sequencing. Analysis of pools of selected cells rather than individual clones provides a rapid assessment of the spectrum of genes involved in phenotypes under study. This facilitates comparative screens as illustrated here for the family of cytolethal distending toxins (CDTs). CDTs are virulence factors secreted by a variety of pathogenic gram-negative bacteria that cause tissue damage at distinct anatomical sites2. We identified 743 mutations distributed over 12 human genes important for intoxication by four different CDTs. While related CDTs may share host factors, they also exploit unique host factors yielding a characteristic profile for each CDT.

The unique reactivity of two sortase enzymes, SrtAstaph from Staphylococcus aureus and SrtAstrep from Streptococcus pyogenes, is exploited for site-specific labeling of a single polypeptide with different labels at its N and C termini. SrtAstrep is used to label the protein’s C terminus at an LPXTG site with a fluorescently labeled dialanine nucleophile. Selective N-terminal labeling of proteins containing N-terminal glycine residues is achieved using SrtAstaph and LPXT derivatives. The generality of N-terminal labeling with SrtAstaph is demonstrated by near-quantitative labeling of multiple protein substrates with excellent site specificity.

The antiradical activity of caffeic acid (1), dihydrocaffeic acid (5), and their corresponding n-alkyl esters was evaluated by using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH(*)) method. Dihydrocaffeic acid (5) was the most potent compound, having an antiradical effect higher than that of (+/-)-alpha-tocopherol, whereas caffeic acid (1) was less efficient. Esterification of the carboxyl group of dihydrocaffeic acid (5) had a dramatic effect on its antiradical potency, but similar effects were not observed for caffeic acid (1) derivatives. The n-alkyl esters of both phenolic series had similar potencies, and their antiradical activities were independent of the alkyl chain length. Dose-dependent scavenger effects were found in both series. Acid-base properties of the compounds, evaluated by using potentiometry and spectrophotometry, showed that the catechol moiety had pK(a2) and pK(a3) values of 9. 24-9.02 and 11.38-10.99 in the dihydrocaffeic series and 8.48-8.24 and 11.38-11.07 in the caffeic series, respectively. Antiradical activity and pK(a) values of the compounds were not related.

For many proteins, the N- or the C-terminus make essential contributions to substrate binding, for protein-protein interactions, or for anchoring the proteins to a membrane. In other circumstances, at least one of the termini is buried within the protein, rendering it inaccessible to labeling. The possibility of selective modification of one of the protein’s termini may present unique opportunities for biochemical and biological applications. We describe sortase-mediated reactions to selectively label the N-terminus of a protein with a variety of functional groups. If sortase, the protein of interest, and a suitably functionalized label are available, the reactions usually require less than 3 hours.

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