Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42045650›Full record

ReviewNature reviews. Molecular cell biology2026

Molecular mechanisms and biotechnology applications of CRISPR-Cas12a.

Aakash Saha, Rodrigo Fregoso Ocampo, Jacquelyn T Wright, David W Taylor, Giulia Palermo

Abstract readReview
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Nature reviews. Molecular cell biology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Aakash SahaDepartment of Bioengineering, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0776-9771
Rodrigo Fregoso OcampoDepartment of Molecular Biosciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0006-0951-8975
Jacquelyn T WrightDepartment of Molecular Biosciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8428-1863
David W TaylorDepartment of Molecular Biosciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA. dtaylor@utexas.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6198-1194
Giulia PalermoDepartment of Bioengineering, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA. giulia.palermo@ucr.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1404-8737

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

CRISPR-Cas12a is a versatile RNA-guided nuclease that has rapidly gained prominence for its dual functionality in genome editing and nucleic acid detection. In this Review, we discuss the structural, biochemical and mechanistic features of Cas12a that underpin its autonomous processing of the guide RNA and indiscriminate cleavage of single-stranded DNA, which enable Cas12a applications ranging from gene therapy to rapid diagnostics. We discuss key allosteric regulators and functional modules that orchestrate Cas12a activity, focusing on the core regulatory structural elements that control maturation of the guide RNA, target specificity, and both cis-cleavage and trans-cleavage activities, including the determinants of off-target cleavage. We provide a comparative analysis of Cas12a and the widely used Cas9, which further illuminates the distinctive attributes of Cas12a, and discuss recent advances in the characterization of its orthologues and in the development of engineered variants that expand its capabilities. Collectively, we present a comprehensive understanding of Cas12a and its increasing impact on biotechnology, therapeutics and molecular diagnostics.

Indexed as

Bacterial ProteinsBiotechnologyCRISPR-Associated ProteinsCRISPR-Cas SystemsEndodeoxyribonucleasesAnimalsHumansRNA, Guide, CRISPR-Cas SystemsBacterial ProteinsCas12a proteinCRISPR-Associated ProteinsEndodeoxyribonucleasesRNA, Guide, CRISPR-Cas Systems

Identifiers

PMID42045650

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.