Applications of Gene Editing in Mitochondrial Diseases

Mitochondria, as energy factories of cells, play an important role in maintaining cell energy metabolism and human life activities. The mutations of mitochondrial genome have led to a series of mitochondrial diseases, which seriously threaten human life and health. The development of gene editing methods targeting mitochondria is of great significance for the treatment of mitochondrial diseases. In recent years, a series of gene editing methods inclu- ding restriction nuclease, zinc finger nuclease, transcriptional activator like effector nuclease, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats(CRISPR) and mitochondrial base editor have been developed. This article reviewed the recent progresses, deficiencies and prospects of the applications of gene editing tools for mitochondria gene editing. We hope it could provide reference for the development of mitochondrial disease treatment.