CRISPR–Cas9 gene editing induced complex on-target outcomes in human cells

CRISPR-Cas9 is a powerful tool for editing the genome and holds great promise for gene therapy applications. Initial concerns of gene engineering focus on off-target effects. However, in addition to short indel mutations (often <50 bp), an increasing number of studies have revealed complex on-target results after double-strand break repair by CRISPR-Cas9, such as large deletions, gene rearrangement, and loss of heterozygosity. These unintended mutations are potential safety concerns in clinical gene editing. Here, in this review, we summarize the significant findings of CRISPR-Cas9-induced on-target deleterious outcomes and discuss putative ways to achieve safe gene therapy.