Data Comparison and Software Design for Easy Selection and Application of CRISPR-based Genome Editing Systems in Plants

CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Multiple Knockouts in Abscisic Acid Receptor Genes Reduced the Sensitivity to ABA during Soybean Seed Germination

Abscisic acid (ABA) is an important plant hormone that regulates numerous functions in plant growth, development, and stress responses. Several proteins regulate the ABA signal transduction mechanism in response to environmental stress. Among them, the PYR1/PYL/RCAR family act as ABA receptors. This study used the CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing system with a single gRNA to knock out three soybean PYL genes: GmPYL17, GmPYL18, and GmPYL19. The gRNA may efficiently cause varying degrees of deletion of GmPYL17, GmPYL18, and GmPYL19 gene target sequences, according to the genotyping results of T0 plants. A subset of induced alleles was successfully transferred to progeny. In the T2 generation, we obtained double and triple mutant genotypes. At the seed germination stage, CRISPR/Cas9-created GmPYL gene knockout mutants, particularly gmpyl17/19 double mutants, are less susceptible to ABA than the wild type. RNA-Seq was used to investigate the differentially expressed genes related to the ABA response from germinated seedlings under diverse treatments using three biological replicates. The gmpyl17/19-1 double mutant was less susceptible to ABA during seed germination, and mutant plant height and branch number were higher than the wild type. Under ABA stress, the GO enrichment analysis showed that certain positive germination regulators were activated, which reduced ABA sensitivity and enhanced seed germination. This research gives a theoretical basis for a better understanding of the ABA signaling pathway and the participation of the key component at their molecular level, which helps enhance soybean abiotic stress tolerance. Furthermore, this research will aid breeders in regulating and improving soybean production and quality under various stress conditions.

Genome Editing Technology for Genetic Amelioration of Fruits and Vegetables for Alleviating Post-Harvest Loss

Food security and crop production are challenged worldwide due to overpopulation, changing environmental conditions, crop establishment failure, and various kinds of post-harvest losses. The demand for high-quality foods with improved nutritional quality is also growing day by day. Therefore, production of high-quality produce and reducing post-harvest losses of produce, particularly of perishable fruits and vegetables, are vital. For many decades, attempts have been made to improve the post-harvest quality traits of horticultural crops. Recently, modern genetic tools such as genome editing emerged as a new approach to manage and overcome post-harvest effectively and efficiently. The different genome editing tools including ZFNs, TALENs, and CRISPR/Cas9 system effectively introduce mutations (In Dels) in many horticultural crops to address and resolve the issues associated with post-harvest storage quality. Henceforth, we provide a broad review of genome editing applications in horticulture crops to improve post-harvest stability traits such as shelf life, texture, and resistance to pathogens without compromising nutritional value. Moreover, major roadblocks, challenges, and their possible solutions for employing genome editing tools are also discussed.