Characterization and engineering of highly efficient Cas12j genome editors

This study identifies and engineers compact Cas12j genome editors from viral metagenomes. By enhancing their activity through exonuclease fusion and enabling precise base editing via deaminase coupling in mammalian cells, these advances expand the CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) toolbox and support the development of genome-editing strategies suited for delivery-constrained therapeutic applications.