This flattened companion draws the same guide-RNA/Cas9 search-and-edit process as the 3D version on a straight, scrolling DNA ladder instead of a helix: two backbone rails and evenly spaced base-pair rungs, with a marker that slides along the strand at the chosen scan speed and pauses whenever it reaches a highlighted candidate site.
P(on-target edit) = min(1, specificity + 0.15)
P(off-target edit) = (1 - specificity) × 0.8
- Editing mode — Cas9 Cut renders a visible gap in the rung (double-strand break); Base Edit flashes the rung white (single-letter chemical conversion, no break); Prime Edit recolors a short rewritten run of rungs green.
- Guide RNA specificity — probability the complex correctly tells the real target apart from a similar decoy sequence nearby; higher specificity means more on-target edits and fewer off-target ones.
- Scan speed — how fast the marker moves along the strand searching for matches; faster scans finish a pass sooner but don't change the odds at each site.
Real-world application: this exact on-target vs. off-target trade-off is what regulators weigh when judging whether an approved CRISPR therapy — such as one for sickle cell disease — is safe enough for clinical use.