Cao Jingchao, Guo Zihang, Xu Xueling, Li Pan, Fang Yi, Deng Shoulong
College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China.
National Center of Technology Innovation for Animal Model, National Human Diseases Animal Model Resource Center, National Health Commission of China (NHC) Key Laboratory of Human Disease Comparative Medicine, Institute of Laboratory Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Comparative Medicine Center, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
Animal Model Exp Med. 2025 Jun;8(6):1004-1022. doi: 10.1002/ame2.70033. Epub 2025 Jun 10.
Cell lineage tracing is a key technology for describing the developmental history of individual progenitor cells and assembling them to form a lineage development tree. However, traditional methods have limitations of poor stability and insufficient resolution. As an efficient and flexible gene editing tool, CRISPR-Cas9 system has been widely used in biological research. Furthermore, CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing-based tracing methods can introduce fluorescent proteins, reporter genes, or DNA barcodes for high-throughput sequencing, enabling precise lineage analysis, significantly improving precision and resolution, and expanding its application range. In this review, we summarize applications of CRISPR-Cas9 system in cell lineage tracing, with special emphasis on its successful applications in traditional model animals (e.g., zebrafish and mice), large animal models (pigs), and human cells or organoids. We also discussed its potential prospects and challenges in xenotransplantation and regenerative medicine.
细胞谱系追踪是描述单个祖细胞发育历史并将它们组装形成谱系发育树的关键技术。然而，传统方法存在稳定性差和分辨率不足的局限性。作为一种高效且灵活的基因编辑工具，CRISPR-Cas9系统已在生物学研究中广泛应用。此外，基于CRISPR-Cas9基因编辑的追踪方法可引入荧光蛋白、报告基因或用于高通量测序的DNA条形码，实现精确的谱系分析，显著提高精度和分辨率，并扩大其应用范围。在本综述中，我们总结了CRISPR-Cas9系统在细胞谱系追踪中的应用，特别强调了其在传统模式动物（如斑马鱼和小鼠）、大型动物模型（猪）以及人类细胞或类器官中的成功应用。我们还讨论了其在异种移植和再生医学中的潜在前景与挑战。
