CRISPR and Beyond: A Review of Next-Generation Genome Editing Technologies
Keywords:
Base editing, prime editing, genome engineering, delivery systems, epigenome editing, CRISPR-associated transposase, RNA editing, ethical frameworks.Abstract
This review summarizes the rapid evolution of genome editing technologies from Clustered Regularly
Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)-Cas systems to a new generation of tools that expand
editing scope, precision, delivery, and regulation. We provide a taxonomy of contemporary technologies classical CRISPR-Cas nucleases, base editors, prime editors, RNA-targeting systems, CRISPR-associated transposases and integrases, epigenome and transcriptional modulators, and anti-CRISPR proteins and survey their mechanisms, strengths, limitations, and representative applications across basic research, biotechnology, agriculture, and medicine. We discuss delivery strategies (viral vectors, lipid nanoparticles, physical methods), specificity and off-target concerns, immunogenicity, and the regulatory and ethical landscape. We highlight recent advances addressing current bottlenecks, including engineered variants with broadened Protospacer Adjacent Motif (PAM) compatibility, improved fidelity, novel programmable transposases for site-specific insertions, and non-nuclease editing modalities that reduce double-strand break (DSB)-associated risks. Finally, we outline future directions integrating machine learning for design, therapeutic pipelines for in vivo correction, and convergent technologies (synthetic biology, delivery innovations, and population-level genomics) and provide recommendations for responsible translation.
