A Medium‐Throughput Single Cell CRISPR/Cas9 Assay to Assess Gene Essentiality

Target selection for oncology and other indications is a crucial step in the successful development of therapeutics, however it remains one of the most challenging areas of drug discovery. Indeed, up to two‐thirds of oncology relevant targets reported in literature have not been confirmed after publication, indicating that target validation in oncology is especially challenging. CRISPR‐Cas9 gene editing of specific loci offers an alternative method to RNA interference and small molecule inhibitors for determining whether or not a cell line is dependent on a specific gene product for proliferation and/or survival.