CRISPR-Mediated Depletion of Ribosomal RNA-Derived DNA from RNA-Seq NGS Libraries.

Although messenger RNA (mRNA) is the focus of much RNA research, it constitutes a relatively small fraction of total RNA in a cell. Most cellular RNA is ribosomal RNA (rRNA) and removal of this RNA is is desirable in many RNA-Seq studies in order to maximize capacity of the sequencing instrument and reduce costs. We have employed the CRISPR Cas9 double-stranded DNA endonuclease to develop a different method of rRNA removal for RNA-Seq studies. Here we show data from the CRISPR treatment of rRNA sequences from RNA-Seq libraries prepared from three different bacteria and Homo sapiens.