Journal: Nucleic Acids Res / Year: 2025 Title: Mechanistic insights into Cas13d enzymes from cryo-EM structures of CasRx and DjCas13d. Authors: Xiaoyan Chen / Yongru He / Maochao Guo / Shiyu Liu / Yue Li / Fuxing Zeng / Chongyuan Wang / Kai Yuan / Hongda Huang / Abstract: CasRx and its engineered variants have emerged as powerful RNA-targeting tools, exhibiting high specificity, robust efficiency, and minimal trans-cleavage activity. Recently, DjCas13d was identified ...CasRx and its engineered variants have emerged as powerful RNA-targeting tools, exhibiting high specificity, robust efficiency, and minimal trans-cleavage activity. Recently, DjCas13d was identified as a promising alternative, offering even lower trans-cleavage activity while retaining comparable cis-cleavage efficiency. Despite their broad utility in biotechnology and therapeutic development, the molecular mechanisms governing substrate recognition and activation in these functionally relevant Cas13d enzymes remain incompletely understood. Here, we present comparative structural and biochemical analyses of CasRx and DjCas13d. Using cryogenic electron microscopy, we determined structures of both enzymes in binary (protein-crRNA) and ternary (protein-crRNA-target RNA) states, and additionally solved the apo structure of DjCas13d. Biochemical assays revealed that both enzymes exhibit similar cis-cleavage activity, whereas DjCas13d shows substantially reduced trans-cleavage activity relative to CasRx. Structural comparisons uncovered key conformational changes linked to target RNA engagement and catalytic activation, providing mechanistic insight into their distinct cleavage behaviors. Furthermore, structure-guided mutagenesis yielded several CasRx variants that achieve a favorable balance between reduced trans-cleavage activity and preserved cis-cleavage efficiency, representing valuable starting points for further optimization. Together, these findings advance our mechanistic understanding of Cas13 enzymes and provide a structural framework for the rational design of RNA-targeting technologies.
In the structure databanks used in Yorodumi, some data are registered as the other names, "COVID-19 virus" and "2019-nCoV". Here are the details of the virus and the list of structure data.
Jan 31, 2019. EMDB accession codes are about to change! (news from PDBe EMDB page)
EMDB accession codes are about to change! (news from PDBe EMDB page)
The allocation of 4 digits for EMDB accession codes will soon come to an end. Whilst these codes will remain in use, new EMDB accession codes will include an additional digit and will expand incrementally as the available range of codes is exhausted. The current 4-digit format prefixed with “EMD-” (i.e. EMD-XXXX) will advance to a 5-digit format (i.e. EMD-XXXXX), and so on. It is currently estimated that the 4-digit codes will be depleted around Spring 2019, at which point the 5-digit format will come into force.
The EM Navigator/Yorodumi systems omit the EMD- prefix.
Related info.:Q: What is EMD? / ID/Accession-code notation in Yorodumi/EM Navigator
Yorodumi is a browser for structure data from EMDB, PDB, SASBDB, etc.
This page is also the successor to EM Navigator detail page, and also detail information page/front-end page for Omokage search.
The word "yorodu" (or yorozu) is an old Japanese word meaning "ten thousand". "mi" (miru) is to see.
Related info.:EMDB / PDB / SASBDB / Comparison of 3 databanks / Yorodumi Search / Aug 31, 2016. New EM Navigator & Yorodumi / Yorodumi Papers / Jmol/JSmol / Function and homology information / Changes in new EM Navigator and Yorodumi