BRAZIL BY THE NUMBERS: AN EVALUATION OF CRISPR/CAS HEALTH RELATED PUBLICATIONS

Abstract

<h3>Background</h3> CRISPR/Cas is being increasingly used for various applications, from drug screening to functional genomics, in addition to therapeutic option. However, new technologies are introduced at different pace and purpose in different countries. In Brazil, CRISPR/Cas system is being used for various health related aims, from cancer treatment to studying parasites such as Trypanosoma cruzi. In this study we perform a literature review on the progress of research using the CRISPR/Cas system in Brazil, focusing on health related applications. <h3>Methods</h3> The PubMed database (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov) was used to identify relevant articles with the keywords "CRISPR", "CRISPR Cas", "CRISPR/Cas", "CRISPR-Cas", "Gene editing", "Genome editing", AND "Brazil", published from January 2010 to January 2021. The search was carried out on January 31, 2021. These publications were pre-evaluated by reading their abstracts. Articles that used other gene editing techniques were not considered, as well as articles that only mentioned the technique. Articles were classified in four groups, according to the subject of study. The "Health" group included articles on treatment and prevention of human diseases, which were read in full and further characterized. Data on authorship, international collaboration, type of experiment and disease target were collected. <h3>Results</h3> A total of 321 relevant and not duplicated articles were obtained from PubMed. Of these, 221 articles were selected after excluding articles that only mentioned the technique or used techniques other than CRISPR/Cas. These 221 articles were divided according to subject into four groups: Plants (n=16), Animals (n=16), Microorganisms (n=95) and Health (n=91). Of these, most have authors based in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande do Sul. For 41 out of 91 articles less than 50% of the authors were from Brazil and the article was classified as international collaboration. Only 25 out of the 91 were review. Of the remaining 66 experimental articles, 46 were in vitro, 12 in vivo, and 6 were both or others (n=2). As for disease target, articles focused more on cancer, metabolic and neurological diseases. <h3>Conclusion</h3> Brazil, a developing country, is increasing its progress in CRISPR/Cas research for treatment and prevention of human diseases. Although many groups have international collaborations, much work is produced locally by groups formed by Brazilian researchers only.