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Table 1 Comparison of ZFN, TALEN and CRISPR approaches

From: Functional genetics for all: engineered nucleases, CRISPR and the gene editing revolution

 

ZFN

TALEN

CRISPR

Mode of action

DNA break targeted by protein-DNA recognition

DNA break targeted by protein-DNA recognition

DNA break targeted by RNA-DNA base complementarity

Nuclease design and assembly

Difficult (commercial services expensive)

Feasible in most labs but labor intensive

Easy (see Table 2)

Success rate of nuclease design a

Low

High

High

Targeting efficiency

Variable

High with most nucleases

High with most guide RNAs

Target range

Limited by range and context-dependence of ZF modules

Unlimited

Limited by PAM sequence (potentially unlimited)

Potential off-target effects

Yes

Yes

Yes

Sensitivity to DNA methylation

Not known

Sensitive to CpG methylation

Not sensitive to CpG methylation

High throughput targeting

No

Limited

Yes

  1. asee [71, 103]. PAM, protospacer adjacent motif; TALEN, TAL effector nuclease; ZFN, zinc-finger nuclease.