Chemical modification of guide RNAs for improved CRISPR activity in CD34+ human hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells

Human CD34⁺ hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) have the unique ability to repopulate the entire hematopoietic system and thus are at the center of diverse, therapeutically relevant studies. The recent development of the CRISPR/Cas9 tool made the powerful research technique of genome editing highly accessible. Our previous studies demonstrated that high editing efficiency is reached when the CRISPR/Cas9 is introduced to CD34+ HSPCs as a ribonucleoprotein (RNP) complex with chemically modified guide RNAs (gRNAs). The current protocol details a quick 4-day procedure for ex vivo genome editing in CD34+ HSPCs by RNP complexes that are targeted to a specific locus by either a single gRNA (sgRNA) or a 2-part gRNA. The delivery of RNP complexes is performed by electroporation in the presence of a nonspecific, ssDNA electroporation enhancer, which highly improves editing efficiency under the described conditions. This approach is simple and effective with the potential to accelerate many biotechnological and therapeutic applications of the CRISPR/Cas9 technology.