Establishment of the CRISPR-CAS system for rapid diagnostics and the development of antiviral strategies

We aim to use the CRISPR-Cas system for specific and sensitive detection of west nile virus in infected samples. For this we will use the Cas13a protein, which has a collateral cleavage activity, which will be used for the readout via lateral flow assay. This assay can be read out by pure eye, and by using a camera of a smartphone we could analyse and evaluate the results.

Another goal of the thesis is to perform a genome-scale CRISPR/Cas9 Knockout screen, in order to identify essential genes for an infection with the crimean-congo hemorrhagic fever virus, which is a threat to human health. Afterwards, specific molecules targeting these genes identified in the CRISPR-Cas9 screen could be evaluated on their efficiency in preventing or treating such an infection, thereby offering the chance to discover new drugs to combat this virus.