This review provides a comprehensive overview of current and emerging delivery systems for genome editing, highlighting key innovations, unresolved challenges, and interdisciplinary strategies poised to unlock broader therapeutic potential.
Abstract
Therapeutic genome editing has advanced rapidly with the development of diverse programmable nucleases, from zinc‐finger nucleases and transcription activator‐like effector nucleases to clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)‐based systems such as base and prime editors. Despite these breakthroughs, clinical translation remains constrained by the challenge of achieving safe, efficient, and tissue‐specific delivery. Viral vectors, particularly adeno‐associated viruses, have enabled durable editing in selected organs but are limited by their restricted cargo capacity, immunogenicity, and complex manufacturing. Nonviral platforms, most notably ionizable lipid nanoparticles, have demonstrated remarkable efficacy for hepatic targets, with clinical trials reporting up to 93% protein knockdown after a single dose. An expanding set of emerging modalities, including virus‐mimicking nanosystems, cell‐derived extracellular vesicles, cell‐penetrating peptides, and intelligent‐responsive multifunctional scaffolds, further enriches the delivery toolbox by supporting transient expression and programmable targeting across diverse editors and tissues. Parallel advances in high‐throughput barcoded screening and machine learning are accelerating vector optimization, while rational chemical modification of payloads improves in vivo stability and specificity. This review provides a comprehensive overview of current and emerging delivery systems for genome editing, highlighting key innovations, unresolved challenges, and interdisciplinary strategies poised to unlock broader therapeutic potential.
The continued convergence of nanotechnology and genome engineering may support the development of personalized medicine strategies that adapt genetic engineering tools for patient-specific applications, thereby improving the safety and reliability of gene-editing therapies.
Raheem Mais, Ayush Kumar, Armand Ahmetaj et al.· International Journal of Mol...· 0 citations
A comprehensive review of delivery modalities of CRISPR systems solely in vivo that underpin their therapeutic translation and outlines the remaining barriers to durable, tissue-selective, and broadly deployable CRISPR therapeutics is provided.
L. Martin, Jure Bohinc, Alessandra Recchia et al.· International Journal on Bio...· 0 citations
A major focus of this review is the inclusion of recent hybrid systems (VLPs, SORT-LNPs) and the recognition that chemical modification of guide RNAs is a critical parameter for therapeutic success and that hybrid systems and stimuli-responsive nanoparticles are poised to dominate the next 5 years of clinical development.
M. Rezaee, F. Izadi, Saeed Nobaharian et al.· Beni-Suef University Journal...· 0 citations
This article aims to provide a working framework for verifying the potency, genomic integrity, and clinical safety of vector-based gene therapies—one intended to be useful both to laboratories developing these products and to those responsible for regulating them.
Yusra A. Radeef, Z. Abdullah, Eman Fadhel Abbas Awadh· International Journal of Mul...· 0 citations
Genomic manipulation has advanced from stochastic nuclease‐mediated disruption toward programmable, deterministic precision. Early clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) strategies enabled targeted mutagenesis through double‐strand breaks; however, their therapeutic application is limited by genotoxicity, chromosomal instability, and dependence on endogenous repair pathways that are difficult to predict. In this review, we examined the transition from gene editing to genome writing, an approach that decouples genomic modification from host repair pathways to better balance efficiency, precision, and payload delivery. We also discussed the principles of precision technologies, including base and prime editors, and described emerging large‐scale writers, such as CRISPR‐associated transposases and recombinase‐based bridge RNAs, which enable the integration of multi‐kilobase synthetic modules. Beyond enzymatic mechanisms, we further considered the combined use of generative artificial intelligence, structural biology, and novel delivery architectures as potential strategies to overcome current biological limitations. Taken together, these developments point toward Generative Biology, in which computational design and high‐throughput screening transform the genome from a static substrate into a more dynamic model for complex, synthetic functional design.
CRISPR has emerged as a next-generation gene-editing tool with the potential to target the molecular pathways associated with ageing and related disorders. It functions through RNA-guided Cas nucleases, directing DNA cleavage and utilizing the native DNA repair machinery for genetic manipulations. Advances in CRISPR technology have significantly enhanced the precision and flexibility of techniques for genome editing. The enzyme Cas9's ability to cut DNA at exact site has revolutionized genome editing by enabling accurate modifications within living eukaryotic cells. This review critically examines recent developments in CRISPR-based technologies, including Cas9, Cas12, base editing, prime editing, and CRISPR-mediated gene regulation. It highlights their rising applications in ageing research, with more emphasis on neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. The review also discusses the major pharmacological and translational challenges that currently limit clinical applications, including inefficient tissue-specific delivery, off-target genome editing, immunogenicity, manufacturing complexity, and long-term safety concerns. Also, recent progress in both, viral and non-viral delivery methods are critically evaluated, including adeno-associated viruses, lentivirus vectors, lipid nanoparticles, gold nanoparticles, exosomes, electroporation, and microinjection, is thoroughly discussed to highlight their therapeutic potential and translational limitations. Current studies indicate that CRISPR-based approaches have preclinical potential for targeting important hallmarks of ageing, particularly genomic instability, telomere attrition, and mitochondrial dysfunction. Other hallmarks of ageing, such as stem cell exhaustion, epigenetic modifications, and microbiome changes, are at earlier stages of development. Overall, this review describes future strategies for developing safe, precise, and clinically translatable CRISPR-based treatments to promote healthy ageing.
Sakshi Rathore, Akash Gupta, Kamal Shah et al.· Ageing Research Reviews· 0 citations