Poster Presentation 46th Lorne Genome Conference 2025

Feeling the heat: development of a high-throughput CRISPR screening strategy to identify factors mediating cytosolic Ca2+ flux (#251)

Matthew A Waller 1 , Lipin Loo 1 , Marc Parisien 2 , Sahel Jahangiri Esfahani 2 , Calvin Surbey 2 , Luda Diatchenko 2 , Greg Neely 1
  1. Dr. John and Anne Chong Lab for Functional Genomics, Charles Perkins Centre and School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
  2. Faculty of Dental Medicine and Oral Health Services, Department of Anesthesia, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Alan Edwards Centre for Research on Pain, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada

Whole-genome genetic screening, enabled by CRISPR-Cas systems, serves as a powerful tool for the identification of host genetic factors mediating biological processes. We have developed a platform for high-throughput whole-genome CRISPR screening of intracellular calcium signalling via FACS, allowing us to identify novel machinery used to transduce painful stimuli from virtually any chemical or biological agent. Here, we report the development of this assay and its application in a proof-of-concept genetic screen to identify novel mediators of capsaicin responses. This screen nominated three transmembrane proteins which are associated with various pain states in both humans and rodents and whose function is currently undergoing characterisation. Our platform can be readily adapted to investigate effectively any process involving calcium signalling events and is currently being used in elucidating the mechanism of action of a range of noxious agonists, including various venoms.