A produção de proteínas terapêuticas recombinantes compreende moléculas complexas e de alto valor agregado, incluindo a enzima glucocerebrosidase (GCase). Sua deficiência resulta na Doença de Gaucher, passível de tratamento por meio da terapia de reposição enzimática. A forma ativa da GCase recombinante usada na terapia apresenta resíduos terminais de manose expostos no seu perfil de glicosilação. Perfil este que espera-se ser reproduzido por meio da construção de uma linhagem de Pichia pastoris com um padrão de glicosilação humanizado, por meio da deleção de dois genes envolvidos no sistema de glicosilação da levedura: alg3 e och1, responsáveis pela posterior hiper-manosilação característica desse organismo. Assim, a expressão da GCase será usada como modelo no desenvolvimento desta linhagem de Pichia pastoris que permita a expressão de glicoproteínas com um perfil humanizado específico de glicosilação. Além da produção da linhagem mutante pela técnica de CRISPR/Cas9, propomos a construção de duas linhagens controle: uma expressando a proteína GCase para análise do seu padrão selvagem de glicosilação em P. pastoris e outra expressando a proteína Cas9 de Streptoccocus pyogenes (SpCas9). A linhagem P. pastoris/GCase foi construída testando-se duas sequências sinal de secreção diferentes: fosfatase alcalina (PHO1) e albumina humana (Alb). Resultados de western blot mostraram a GCase no lisado celular e baixos níveis de proteína secretada no sobrenadante de cultura, sendo mais expresso na linhagem contendo a sequência PHO1. A linhagem P. pastoris/SpCas9 foi construída e a enzima SpCas9 foi detectada via western blot no lisado celular após indução com metanol. Para a produção da linhagem com padrão de glicosilação humanizado propôs-se a deleção dos genes alg3 e och1 e a inserção, pela via de reparo por recombinação homóloga (HDR), de marcas de resistência aos antibióticos higromicina ou canamicina. Para tal, propusemos a construção de dois vetores finais de expressão do sistema CRISPR/Cas9 em P. pastoris, cada um contendo a enzima SpCas9 e os RNAs guia (gRNAs) para deleção do gene alg3 ou och1, e também a construção de dois fragmentos para HDR contendo o gene de resistência ao antibiótico flanqueado por regiões de 1Kb de homologia com a região de deleção do gene alg3 ou och1. A construção dos vetores e fragmentos para HDR foram inicialmente feitas por meio de técnicas de clonagem clássica. No entanto, apesar de inúmeras tentativas, resultados de PCR e sequenciamento mostraram o insucesso das construções. Partiu-se então para a técnica de Gibson Assembly®, através da qual os dois fragmentos para HDR foram construídos. Porém, os vetores de expressão contendo SpCas9 e os gRNAs ainda apresentam dificuldades na sua construção. Esforços ainda estão sendo feitos para a construção dos vetores e consequente tentativa de estabelecimento das linhagens mutantes. O sucesso no estabelecimento de um sistema de expressão de proteínas heterólogas com este padrão de glicosilação humano específico permitirá a obtenção e possível comercialização da GCase em sua forma terapêutica. Além disso, permitirá possíveis edições genômicas futuras para um padrão de maior complexidade de glicosilação humanizado, criando uma plataforma nacional para produção de outras glicoproteínas terapêuticas de interesse biotecnológico. / The production of therapeutic recombinant protein comprises complex and high valued molecules, including the glucocerebrosidase enzyme (GCase). Its deficiency results in Gaucher Disease, susceptible of treatment by enzymatic replacement therapy. The active form of recombinant GCase employed in therapy presents exposed terminal mannose residues in its glycosylation pattern. We hope to reproduce such pattern by constructing a Pichia pastoris strain with a specific human glycosylation pattern through the deletion of two genes involved in yeast glycosylation system, alg3 and och1, responsible for the final hyper-mannosylation characteristic of this organism. Therefore, the expression of GCase will be a case model for the development of the recombinant Pichia pastoris strain that could allow the expression of glycoproteins with a specific humanized glycosylation profile. Despite the establishment of the mutant strain using the CRISPR/Cas9 technique, we propose the construction of two control strains: one expressing the GCase protein for analysis of its wild type glycosylation pattern and another one expressing the Cas9 protein from Streptoccocus pyogenes (SpCas9). The P. pastoris/GCase strain was constructed testing two different secretion signal sequences: alkaline fosfatase (PHO1) and human albumin (Alb). Western blot results have shown GCase in cell lysate and in low expression levels in culture supernatant, being more expressed in the strain containing the PHO1 signal sequence. P. pastoris/SpCas9 strain was constructed and SpCas9 enzyme was detected via western blot in cell lysate after the induction with methanol. To produce the strain with the humanized glycosylation pattern, the deletion of alg3 and och1 genes was proposed along with the insertion, by homology directed repair pathway (HDR), of hygromycin and kanamycin antibiotics resistance marks. In order to do so, we have proposed the construction of two final expression vectors of the CRISPR/Cas9 system in P. pastoris, each one containing SpCas9 enzyme and the guide RNAs (gRNAs) for deletion of alg3 or och1, and also the construction of two fragments for HDR containing the antibiotics resistance gene flanked by 1Kb regions of homology with the deleted regions of alg3 or och1. Vectors and HDR fragments constructions were initially performed using classic cloning techniques. However, despite numerous tries, PCR and sequencing results have shown the failure of the constructions. Then, we moved on to the Gibson Assembly® technique, through which the two HDR fragments were built. Still, the expression vectors containing SpCas9 and the gRNAs presented difficulties in its assembly. Efforts continue to be made to successfully construct the remaining vectors and to establish the mutant lineage. Success in the establishment of a heterologous protein expression system with specific human glycosylation pattern will allow the obtainment and possible commercialization of the therapeutic form of GCase. Furthermore, it will also allow possible future genomic editing to a high complexity human glycosylation pattern, creating a national platform for the production of other therapeutic glycoproteins of biotechnological interest.

Un objectif important de la biologie du développement est de comprendre la base cellulaire de la morphogenèse, notamment le destin des différentes cellules souches dans l'embryon en développement. En décrivant la morphogenèse des espèces représentatives des différents groupes ou embranchements, on fournit une base solide pour comparer les processus similaires dans les différents organismes, et pour tirer des conclusions sur l'évolution des plans d'organisation des animaux. À cette fin, les scientifiques développent des techniques chez des espèces sélectionnées - celles-ci comprennent la manipulation de la fonction des gènes, le marquage et le suivi des populations distinctes de cellules, et l'imagerie in vivo.Dans cette thèse, je présente mes efforts pour améliorer la boîte à outils génomique du coléoptère Tribolium castaneum. J'utilise une technique d'édition du génome récemment découverte, CRISPR/Cas, pour introduire des modifications précises dans le génome de Tribolium, y compris l'introduction de grands fragments par recombinaison homologue. Je montre que l'expression de tous les composants de CRISPR/Cas est induite de manière efficace par des promoteurs endogènes de Tribolium. En me basant sur ces résultats, je développe VALCYRIE, une approche transgénique pourmarquer des clones de cellules uniques dans l'embryon de Tribolium.Ce travail me permet d'enquêter sur le devenir des cellules dans la région terminale postérieure du blastoderme de Tribolium. En utilisant une approche de marquage clonal, je montre que ces cellules donnent naissance à des cellules germinales primordiales et aumésoderme postérieur. Avec la même méthode, je montre que l'intestin postérieur de Tribolium se développe à partir d'une population distincte de cellules au début de la bandelette germinale. En utilisant une technique de microscopie timelapse haute résolution, je décris le sort de cellules individuelles dans le blastoderme de Triboliumet je fais la lumière sur le plan de développement des segments gnathal et thoracique de l'embryon à ce stade. En outre, je montre que l'amnios de Tribolium augmente considérablement au cours du développement précoce. En me basant sur des données d'imagerie, je passe en revue la cartographie du devenir de la bandelette germinale en ce qui concerne l'amnios et l'ectoderme embryonnaire / An important objective of developmental biology is to understand the cellular basis of morphogenesis, including fates of distinct progenitor cells in the developing embryo. Describing morphogenesis in representative species of different groups or phyla provides a solid basis for comparing similar processes in different organisms, and for drawing conclusions about the evolution of animal body plans. To this end, scientists develop techniques in selected species - these include manipulation of gene function, marking and tracking of distinct populations of cells, and in vivo imaging.In this thesis, I present my efforts to enhance the genomic toolkit of the beetle Tribolium castaneum. I use a recently discovered genome editing technique, CRISPR/Cas, to introduce precise alterations in the Tribolium genome, including the introduction of large fragments by homologous recombination. I show that all CRISPR/Cas components are driven efficiently by endogenous Tribolium promoters. Based on these results, I develop VALCYRIE, a transgenic approach to mark single cell clones in developing Tribolium embryos.This work allows me to investigate the fates of the cells in the posterior terminal region of the Tribolium blastoderm. Using a clonal labeling approach, I demonstrate that these cells give rise to primordial germ cells and posterior mesoderm. With the same technique, I demonstrate that the hindgut of Tribolium develops from a distinct cell population in the early germband. Using high-resolution time lapse microscopy, I describe the fates of single cells in the Triboliumblastodermand shed new light on the fatemap of gnathal and thoracic segments of the embryo at this stage. Furthermore, Ishow that the amnion of Tribolium expands greatly during early development. Based on imaging data, I review the fate map of the early germ band with regard to the amnion and the embryonic ectoderm

The CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing system gives researchers the ability to manipulate and edit DNA with unprecedented ease and precision. It was discovered in bacteria as part of their adaptive immune system, but has been reengineered to target any double stranded DNA. This burgeoning molecular tool has created great excitement as scientists are rapidly adopting it to study fields including human gene therapy, disease modeling, agriculture, gene drive in mosquitos, and many others. This paper will explore the potential impact of CRISPR-Cas9 in human therapeutics. Specifically, the potential of CRISPR-Cas9 to treat Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy will be examined. In several ways, this debilitating degenerative disease is an ideal candidate for gene-editing with CRISPR-Cas9. Recent progress in the lab has demonstrated the gene editing system’s ability to rescue dystrophin protein levels in vivo. Although CRISPR-Cas9 holds great promise for previously incurable diseases, there are still many limitations that must be overcome before the gene editing system can be used in patients. This paper will discuss these barriers as well as recent advancements to overcome them.

CRISPR-Cas9 är ett effektivt genredigeringsverktyg som har upptäckts på senare år. Verktyget härstammar från ett adaptivt immunförsvar hos prokaryoter. Tekniken används för att modifiera DNA hos växter, djur och människor på ett enkelt och billigt sätt. CRISPR-Cas9 har visat sig ha stor potential vid bekämpning av olika sjukdomar däribland cancer som idag är ett globalt hälsoproblem. Inom cancerforskningen ses CRISPR-Cas9 som ett lovande verktyg vid cancerterapi och läkemedelsutveckling. I denna studie sammanställer vi aktuella metoder och användningsområden med CRISPR-Cas9 inom cancerforskning. Dessutom undersöker vi hur denna form av genteknik kan lyftas upp och tillämpas i biologiundervisningen. / CRISPR-Cas9 has recently emerged as an effective genome editing tool. The tool derives from an adaptive immune system in prokaryotes. The technology is used for modification of DNA in plants, animals and humans in a simple and inexpensive way. CRISPR-Cas9 has shown great potential in fighting different diseases like cancer which today is a global health issue. It is seen as a promising tool for cancer research when it comes to cancer therapy and drug development. Here we summarize current methods and applications of CRISPR-Cas9 for cancer research. Furthermore, we explore the possibilities of introducing and applying this kind of genetic engineering in biology teaching. / <p>Framläggning, opponering och respondering skedde skriftligt till följd av covid19.</p>

L'intérêt de l’utilisation des vecteurs viraux comme le Adeno-Associated Virus recombinant (rAAV) dans la recherche pour le traitement des maladies génétiques a conduit à une évolution rapide des méthodes de production d'AAV au cours des deux dernières décennies (Ayuso et al., 2010). Leur large biodisponibilité in vivo et leur efficacité à long terme dans les tissus postmitotiques en font de bons candidats pour de nombreuses applications de transfert de gènes. En plus, la spécificité du traitement peut être augmentée lorsque le sérotype correct est choisi pour cibler un tissu spécifique. Parmi les méthodes de production actuellement utilisées, la tri-transfection de cellules embryonnaires humaines rénales 293 (HEK293) reste la plus populaire pour l'échelle de recherche; Et la production de rAAV médiée par des baculovirus pour des échelles plus importantes. L'importance croissante des vecteurs viraux dans l'application pratique de la thérapie génique exige l'amélioration des processus de production, en particulier en ce qui concerne les rendements et la pureté du produit final. Mon travail au cours de ces quatre années a été axé sur deux points principaux: (1) améliorer les processus biotechnologiques employés dans la production de rAAV pour la recherche et les échelles d'étude préclinique et (2) tester in vitro et in vivo les applications pour le rAAV dans le l’édition de genome. L'édition de gènes médiée par des nucléases spécialement conçues offre de nouveaux espoirs pour le traitement de plusieurs maladies héréditaires monogéniques. Récemment découvert, le système CRISPR Cas9 (Clustered Regular Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) fournit des outils importants nécessaires pour corriger les mutations par homologie. Notre modèle canonique est la souris mdx, un modèle animal naturel de la dystrophie musculaire de Duchenne (DMD). Les mutations DMD, qui conduisent à l'absence de protéine dystrophine, entraînent une myopathie progressive et fatale. Plusieurs stratégies, allant des stratégies pharmacologiques aux stratégies de saut-d’éxon, ont tenté de renverser le phénotype et ralentisser la progression de la maladie, mais les résultats ne sont pas encore satisfaisants. Ce nouvel et puissant outil d'édition de génome peut être vectorisé par rAAV. Les résultats de la première partie ont été publiés en 2015 et 2016 et seront présentés sous la forme d'articles et pour la deuxième partie, je présenterai les résultats préliminaires et les perspectives du travail qui se poursuivra dans le laboratoire. / The interest of recombinant Adeno-Associated Virus (rAAV) vectors for research and clinical purposes in the treatment of genetic diseases have led to the rapid evolution of methods for AAV production in the last two decades (Ayuso et al., 2010). Their broad in vivo biodistribution and long-term efficacy in postmitotic tissues make them good candidates for numerous gene transfer applications. In addition, the specificity of the treatment can be increased when the right serotype is chosen to target a specific tissue. Among the production methods currently in use, tri-transfection of human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293) cells remains the most popular for research scale; and rAAV production mediated by baculoviruses for larger scales. The increasing importance of viral vectors in the practical application of gene therapy demands the improvement of production processes, especially when it concerns the yields and purity of the final product. My work during these four years was focused in two main points: (1) improve biotechnological processes employed in rAAV production for research and pre-clinical study scales and (2) test in vitro and in vivo the applications for rAAV in the field of genome editing. Gene-editing mediated by engineered nucleases offers new hopes for the treatment of several monogenic inherited diseases. Recently discovered, the CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) Cas9 system provides important tools needed to correct by homology-directed repair mutations. Our canonical model is the mdx mouse, a naturally occurring animal model of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). DMD mutations, which lead to the absence of the protein dystrophin, results in a progressive and fatal myopathy. Several strategies, from pharmacological to exon-skipping strategies, have attempt to revert the phenotype and slow down the disease progress, however results are not yet satisfactory. This new and powerful genome editing tool can be vectorized by rAAV. Results for the first part were published in 2015 and 2016 and will be presented in the form of articles and for the second part I will present preliminary results and perspectives for the work that will be continued in the lab.

FOXL2 constitue un gène majeur de la différenciation et de la fonction ovarienne. Chez l’Homme, l’haploinsuffisance de ce gène induit des malformations palpébrales qui peuvent être associées ou non à une insuffisance ovarienne prématurée (BPES de type I ou II). Dans certains cas, des anomalies de l’expression de FOXL2 sont liées à des délétions de régions situées très en amont du gène, témoignant de la présence d’activateurs distaux. L’existence de cette régulation à longue distance a aussi été mise en évidence dans l’espèce caprine par notre équipe. La mutation naturelle PIS (Polled Intersex Syndrome) induit à l’état homozygote l’absence d’expression du gène FOXL2 dans les gonades XX, conduisant au développement de testicules à la place d’ovaires. Ainsi, au cours de mon doctorat j’ai été amenée à travailler sur deux aspects différents : (i) l’analyse des cibles/voies activées par FOXL2 dans la gonade, et (ii) l’étude de la régulation à distance de l’expression de FOXL2.En ce qui concerne le premier point, l’analyse du rôle d’un gène candidat, Dmxl2, chez la souris a nécessité la mise en place d’une invalidation conditionnelle de ce gène (Knock-out ou KO) dans les gonades (le KO total étant létal à la naissance). Chez les mâles, une diminution de 60% de la production de spermatozoïdes a été observée à la puberté pendant la première vague de spermatogénèse.En ce qui concerne le second point, l’étude d’une région régulatrice potentielle de l’expression de FOXL2 a permis de définir des éléments très conservés présentant un profil épigénétique caractéristique de régions de type « enhancers ». J’ai ensuite établi un modèle in vitro « d’édition de l’épigénome » du locus FOXL2, en utilisant la technologie CRISPR/dCas9-p300 pour modifier la marque épigénétique H3K27ac et activer l’expression de ce gène. A long terme, ces travaux pourraient aboutir à la création de « médicaments épigénétiques » pour soutenir l’expression de FOXL2 et rétablir la fertilité des patientes atteintes d’une mutation de ce gène. / FOXL2 is a major gene for ovarian differentiation and functions. In humans, FOXL2 haploinsufficiency induces eyelid malformations with or without premature ovarian failure (BPES type I or II). In some cases, abnormalities of FOXL2 expression are related to deletions of regions located far upstream of this gene, indicating the presence of distal activators. The existence of this long-range regulation has also been demonstrated in the goat species by our laboratory. The natural mutation PIS (Polled Intersex Syndrome) when homozygous induces the silencing of FOXL2 expression in XX gonads, leading to the development of testes instead of ovaries. Thus, during my PhD, I worked on two different aspects: (i) the analysis of FOXL2-activated targets/pathways in the gonad, and (ii) the study of the long-range regulation of FOXL2 expression.Regarding the first point, gene function analysis of the candidate gene Dmx12 required the establishment of a conditional knock-out in the mouse gonad (Dmxl2 total KO is lethal at birth). In males, a 60% decrease in sperm production was observed at puberty during the first wave of spermatogenesis.Regarding the second point, the study of a putative regulatory region of FOXL2 expression allowed to define highly conserved elements harbouring typical enhancer epigenetic profile. Then, I established an in vitro model of FOXL2 locus “epigenome editing”, using the CRISPR/dCas9-p300 technology to modify the epigenetic mark H3K27ac. In the long term, this work may lead to the development of "epigenetic drugs" to support the expression of FOXL2 and restore the fertility of patients with a mutation of this gene.

The outbreak of infectious diseases across the world results in huge disasters for public health. Rapid and effective diagnostic methods are crucial for disease identification and transmission control. Since first identified in late 2019, the pandemic of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus resulted in unprecedented catastrophe globally. To control the further spread of COVID-19, there is an urgent need for rapid, accurate, cost-effective, and efficient diagnostics. Recently, many CRISPR-based diagnostics have been developed by coupling isothermal amplification methods with Cas proteinmediated nucleic acid detection. Compared with conventional methods like RT-qPCR, CRISPR-based assays are more cost-effective and efficient without sacrificing sensitivity and specificity. Here, I developed a Cas13-based assay for SARS-CoV-2 detection with a novel compact Cas13b protein. In this assay, the Cas13 detection is combined with RT-LAMP, achieving the detection of viral RNA as low as 4 copies/μl. By utilizing a simple LED-based visualizer (P51™) instead of a plate reader, the detection result can be visualized directly without using sophisticated instruments. The compact Cas13b-mediated viral detection together with P51™-based visualization enable rapid, sensitive, and portable diagnostics for SARS-CoV-2, showing great potential in application to point-of-care testing.

Clustered, regularly interspaced, short palindromic repeats and CRISPR-associated proteins (CRISPR-Cas) constitute a bacterial and archaeal adaptive immune system. The ongoing arms race between prokaryotic hosts and their invaders such as phages led to the emergence of anti-CRISPR proteins as countermeasures against the potent antiviral defense. Since the first examples of anti-CRISPRs were shown in a subset of CRISPR-Cas systems, we endeavored to uncover these naturally-occurring inhibitors that inactivate different types of CRISPR-Cas systems. In the first part of my thesis, we have identified and characterized Type II anti-CRISPR proteins that inactivate several Cas9 orthologs. We share mechanistic insights into anti-CRISPR inhibition and show evidence of its potential utility as an off-switch for Cas9-mediated mammalian genome editing. Although the RNA programmability of Cas9 enables facile genetic manipulation with great potential for biotechnology and therapeutics, limitations and safety issues remain. The advent of anti-CRISPR proteins presents opportunities to exploit the inhibitors to exert temporal, conditional, or spatial control over CRISPR. In the second part of my thesis, we demonstrate that anti-CRISPR proteins can serve as useful tools for Cas9 genome editing. In particular, we have demonstrated that anti-CRISPRs are effective as genome editing off-switches in the tissues of adult mammals, and we further engineered anti-CRISPR proteins to achieve tissue-specific editing in vivo. Taken together, my thesis research aimed to mine for natural anti-CRISPR protein inhibitors and repurpose these proteins to complement current Cas9 technologies in basic and clinical research.

La microcéphalie est une maladie neurologique du nouveau-né qui se traduit par une circonférence réduite de la tête, une déficience intellectuelle et des défauts anatomiques du cerveau. La microcéphalie peut être la conséquence d’une infection, de stress environnementaux ou de mutations génétiques.Le cerveau commence à se former dès la cinquième semaine de grossesse et est majoritairement constitué de cellules souches neuronales, cellules qui conservent une capacité a se reproduire a l’identique sans se spécialiser. Cette première phase de prolifération est importante pour générer suffisamment de cellules. Suit une phase de différenciation, durant laquelle les cellules préalablement formées se différencient en deux groupes : les neurones, qui permettent de partager l’information grâce à des influx électriques, et les cellules gliales, qui soutiennent activement les fonctions des cellules neuronales.Je m’intéresse à un gène en particulier, KNL1, muté chez certains patients microcéphales. Grace aux nouvelles techniques d’édition du génome, j’ai reproduit la mutation retrouvée chez les patients dans des cellules souches pluripotentes humaines. En utilisant un modèle tridimensionnel (mini-cerveaux en culture), à partir de cellules souches neuronales, j’ai analysé de manière quantitative les étapes-clés de développement: les phases de prolifération et de différenciation.Mes travaux de recherche ont montré que les cellules souches neuronales portant la même mutation que les patients prolifèrent moins, réduisant le nombre de cellules initiales nécessaires au développement cérébral normal. Par ailleurs, les cellules souches neuronales se différencient prématurément en neurones et cellules gliales, ce qui réduit davantage le nombre le nombre final de cellules. Cette hypothèse a été confirmée par l’utilisation du modèle tridimensionnel, ou les mini-cerveaux sont plus petits que la normale.Cette étude est essentielle non seulement pour comprendre le développement de la maladie, mais également pour comprendre les étapes clés du développement du cerveau humain, et ne pourrait pas être mener à bien sur des modèles animaux. En outre, l’utilisation de cellules souches induites nous permet de ne pas utiliser de cellules embryonnaires, si nécessaire pour raisons d’éthique. / Microcephaly is a neurological condition, resulting in patients having a small head circumference, intellectual impairment and brain anatomical defects. A pre-requisite for achieving a better understanding of the cellular events that contribute to the striking expansion of the human cerebral cortex is to elucidate cell-division mechanisms, which likely go awry in microcephaly. Most of the mutated genes identified in microcephaly patient encode centrosomal protein, KNL1 is the only gene that encodes a kinetochore protein, it plays a central role in kinetochore assembly and function during mitosis. While the involvement of centrosome functions is well established in the etiology of microcephaly, little is known about the contribution of KNL1.In an attempt to assess the role of KNL1 in brain development and its involvement in microcephaly, we generated isogenic human embryonic stem cell (hESC) lines bearing KNL1 patient mutations using CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene targeting. We demonstrated that the point mutation leads to KNL1 reduction in neural progenitors. Moreover, mutant neural progenitors present aneuploidy, an increase in cell death and an abrogated spindle assembly checkpoint. Mutant fibroblasts, derived from hESC, do not have a reduced expression of KNL1 and do not present any defect in cell growth or karyotype, which highlight a brain-specific phenotype.The subsequent differentiation of mutant neural progenitors into two-dimensional neural culture leads to the depletion of neural progenitors in the favor of premature differentiation. We developed a three-dimensional neural spheroids model from neural progenitors and reported a reduced size of mutant neural spheroids, compare to control. Lastly, using knockdown and rescue assays, we proved that protein level of KNL1 is responsible of the premature differentiation and the reduced size.These data suggest that KNL1 has a brain-specific function during the development. Changes in its expression might contribute to the brain phenotypic divergence that appeared during human evolution.

PART I: CRYSTAL STRUCTURE OF A DIMERIZATIO DOMAIN OF DROSOPHILA CAPRIN Drosophila Melanogaster Caprin (dCaprin) shares conversed HR1 domain with Caprin protein family members, which are RNA binding proteins that play critical roles in many important biological processes, such as synaptic plasticity, stress response, innate immune response and cellular proliferation. One of the Caprin protein family members, Caprin-1, is involved in the pathway of several human diseases, including breast cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, osteosarcoma, hearing loss, and viral infection. The functions of Caprin protein relies on their molecular interactions. Several direct interactions have been established between Caprin-1 and the Fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP), Ras-GAP SH3 domain-binding protein 1 (G3BP1), and the Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) core protein. We have determined the crystal structures of a fragment (residues 187-309) of Drosophila Melanogaster Caprin (dCaprin), which mediates homodimerization through a substantial interface created by a mainly alpha-helical fold. A larger hollow surface is created by homodimerization suggesting a protein binding groove. The FMRP binding should not affect dCaprin homodimerization for an integral alpha-helix in the dimeric dCaprein which formed by the FMRP interacting sequence motif. PART II: CHARACTERIZATION OF TWO TYPE VI-B CRESPR SYSTEMS: PGI5CAS1B AND PGI8CAS13B WHICH EFFECTOR PROTEINS ARE CAPABLE OF PROCESSING PRE-CRRNA INTO MATURE CRRNA CRISPR-Cas adaptive immune system protects microorganism from foreign nucleic acids invasion through endonucleases activity guided by RNA, which system has turned to a powerful genome editing tool applied to a multifold species, ranging from bacteria to human. Pgi5Cas13b and Pgi8Cas13b are identified by a computational sequence database mining approach, the CRISPR arrays lack of Cas1 and Cas2 encoding genes but contain a large candidate effector protein around 1,200 amino acids. They can be potentially classified as subtype VI-B CRISPR-Cas systems. We characterized the mature crRNA for Pgi5Cas13b and Pgi8Cas13b via Northern blot and small RNA sequencing. By EMSA (Electrophoretic mobility shift assay) experiments, we identified the binding constant between Pgi5Cas1b/Pgi8Cas13b and their corresponding crRNAs. The CRISPR loci of two of the Cas13b systems were cloned in pACYC vector and expressed in E. coli cells. Small RNAs were extracted and characterized by Northern Blotting and NGS (small RNA-seq) methods. The NGS results revealed the exact sequences of the crRNAs, which show a few new features not previously observed in other systems, including the longest spacer-derived sequences (32 and 31 nt), spacer-derived sequences flanking both ends of the full DR-derived sequence. The results also indicate different rules of pre-crRNA processing by the Pgi5Cas13b and Pgi8Cas13b systems. The characterization of these CRISPR systems extends the application of CRISPR based genome editing tools and promotes the development of single transcript manipulation tools.