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Tian J, Tang Z, Niu R, Zhou Y, Yang D, Chen D, Luo M, Mou R, Yuan M, Xu G. Engineering disease-resistant plants with alternative translation efficiency by switching uORF types through CRISPR. SCIENCE CHINA. LIFE SCIENCES 2024; 67:1715-1726. [PMID: 38679667 DOI: 10.1007/s11427-024-2588-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2024] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 05/01/2024]
Abstract
Engineering disease-resistant plants can be a powerful solution to the issue of food security. However, it requires addressing two fundamental questions: what genes to express and how to control their expressions. To find a solution, we screen CRISPR-edited upstream open reading frame (uORF) variants in rice, aiming to optimize translational control of disease-related genes. By switching uORF types of the 5'-leader from Arabidopsis TBF1, we modulate the ribosome accessibility to the downstream firefly luciferase. We assume that by switching uORF types using CRISPR, we could generate uORF variants with alternative translation efficiency (CRISPR-aTrE-uORF). These variants, capable of boosting translation for resistance-associated genes and dampening it for susceptible ones, can help pinpoint previously unidentified genes with optimal expression levels. To test the assumption, we screened edited uORF variants and found that enhanced translational suppression of the plastic glutamine synthetase 2 can provide broad-spectrum disease resistance in rice with minimal fitness costs. This strategy, which involves modifying uORFs from none to some, or from some to none or different ones, demonstrates how translational agriculture can speed up the development of disease-resistant crops. This is vital for tackling the food security challenges we face due to growing populations and changing climates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingjing Tian
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, National Centre of Plant Gene Research (Wuhan), Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China
| | - Zhijuan Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, Institute for Advanced Studies (IAS), Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430072, China
| | - Ruixia Niu
- State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, Institute for Advanced Studies (IAS), Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430072, China
| | - Yulu Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, Institute for Advanced Studies (IAS), Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430072, China
| | - Dan Yang
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, National Centre of Plant Gene Research (Wuhan), Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China
| | - Dan Chen
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, National Centre of Plant Gene Research (Wuhan), Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China
| | - Ming Luo
- State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, Institute for Advanced Studies (IAS), Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430072, China
| | - Rui Mou
- State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, Institute for Advanced Studies (IAS), Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430072, China
| | - Meng Yuan
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, National Centre of Plant Gene Research (Wuhan), Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
- Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Wuhan, 430070, China.
| | - Guoyong Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, Institute for Advanced Studies (IAS), Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430072, China.
- Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Wuhan, 430070, China.
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Wang B, Liu X, Li Z, Zeng K, Guo J, Xin T, Zhang Z, Li JF, Yang X. A nuclease-dead Cas9-derived tool represses target gene expression. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY 2024; 195:1880-1892. [PMID: 38478589 DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiae149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2023] [Accepted: 02/24/2024] [Indexed: 06/30/2024]
Abstract
Manipulation of gene expression is central to understanding gene function, engineering cell behavior, and altering biological traits according to production demands. Nuclease-dead Cas9 (dCas9), a variant of active Cas9, offers a versatile platform for the precise control of genome function without DNA cleavage. Notably, however, an effective and universal dCas9-based transcriptional repression system remains unavailable in plants. The noncanonical histone acetyltransferase TENDRIL-LESS (CsTEN) is responsible for chromatin loosening and histone modification in cucumber (Cucumis sativus). In this study, we engineered a gene regulation tool by fusing TEN and its truncated proteins with dCas9. The full-length dCas9-TEN protein substantially repressed gene expression, with the N-terminal domain identified as the core repression domain. We subsequently validated the specificity and efficacy of this system through both transient infection and genetic transformation in cucumber and Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). The electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) revealed the ability of the N-terminal domain of TEN to bind to chromatin, which may promote target binding of the dCas9 complex and enhance the transcriptional repression effect. Our tool enriches the arsenal of genetic regulation tools available for precision breeding in crops.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bowen Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetable Biobreeding, Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
- Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen 518120, China
| | - Xiaolin Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetable Biobreeding, Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Zhenxiang Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Kang Zeng
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetable Biobreeding, Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
- College of Horticulture, FAFU-UCR Joint Center for Horticultural Biology and Metabolomics, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China
| | - Jiangyi Guo
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetable Biobreeding, Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
- Engineering Laboratory of Genetic Improvement of Horticultural Crops of Shandong Province, College of Horticulture, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, China
| | - Tongxu Xin
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetable Biobreeding, Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Zhen Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Adaptation and Improvement, College of Agriculture, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
| | - Jian-Feng Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Xueyong Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetable Biobreeding, Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
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Shen R, Yao Q, Tan X, Ren W, Zhong D, Zhang X, Li X, Dong C, Cao X, Tian Y, Zhu JK, Lu Y. In-locus gene silencing in plants using genome editing. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2024. [PMID: 38798233 DOI: 10.1111/nph.19856] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2023] [Accepted: 05/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
Gene silencing is crucial in crop breeding for desired trait development. RNA interference (RNAi) has been used widely but is limited by ectopic expression of transgenes and genetic instability. Introducing an upstream start codon (uATG) into the 5'untranslated region (5'UTR) of a target gene may 'silence' the target gene by inhibiting protein translation from the primary start codon (pATG). Here, we report an efficient gene silencing method by introducing a tailor-designed uATG-containing element (ATGE) into the 5'UTR of genes in plants, occupying the original start site to act as a new pATG. Using base editing to introduce new uATGs failed to silence two of the tested three rice genes, indicating complex regulatory mechanisms. Precisely inserting an ATGE adjacent to pATG achieved significant target protein downregulation. Through extensive optimization, we demonstrated this strategy substantially and consistently downregulated target protein expression. By designing a bidirectional multifunctional ATGE4, we enabled tunable knockdown from 19% to 89% and observed expected phenotypes. Introducing ATGE into Waxy, which regulates starch synthesis, generated grains with lower amylose, revealing the value for crop breeding. Together, we have developed a programmable and robust method to knock down gene expression in plants, with potential for biological mechanism exploration and crop enhancement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rundong Shen
- Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center of Agri-Seeds, Joint Center for Single Cell Biology, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
- Institute of Crop Sciences/National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), and Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Sanya, 572024, China
- Shanghai Center for Plant Stress Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201602, China
| | - Qi Yao
- Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center of Agri-Seeds, Joint Center for Single Cell Biology, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
- Shanghai Center for Plant Stress Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201602, China
| | - Xinhang Tan
- Shanghai Center for Plant Stress Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201602, China
| | - Wendan Ren
- Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center of Agri-Seeds, Joint Center for Single Cell Biology, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Dating Zhong
- Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center of Agri-Seeds, Joint Center for Single Cell Biology, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
- Shanghai Center for Plant Stress Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201602, China
| | - Xuening Zhang
- Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center of Agri-Seeds, Joint Center for Single Cell Biology, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Xinbo Li
- Institute of Crop Sciences/National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), and Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Sanya, 572024, China
| | - Chao Dong
- Institute of Crop Sciences/National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), and Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Sanya, 572024, China
| | - Xuesong Cao
- Institute of Advanced Biotechnology, and School of Life Sciences, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Yifu Tian
- Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center of Agri-Seeds, Joint Center for Single Cell Biology, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
- Institute of Crop Sciences/National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), and Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Sanya, 572024, China
| | - Jian-Kang Zhu
- Institute of Crop Sciences/National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), and Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Sanya, 572024, China
- Institute of Advanced Biotechnology, and School of Life Sciences, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Yuming Lu
- Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center of Agri-Seeds, Joint Center for Single Cell Biology, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
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Berríos KN, Barka A, Gill J, Serrano JC, Bailer PF, Parker JB, Evitt NH, Gajula KS, Shi J, Kohli RM. Cooperativity between Cas9 and hyperactive AID establishes broad and diversifying mutational footprints in base editors. Nucleic Acids Res 2024; 52:2078-2090. [PMID: 38261989 PMCID: PMC10899762 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkae024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 01/04/2024] [Indexed: 01/25/2024] Open
Abstract
The partnership of DNA deaminase enzymes with CRISPR-Cas nucleases is now a well-established method to enable targeted genomic base editing. However, an understanding of how Cas9 and DNA deaminases collaborate to shape base editor (BE) outcomes has been lacking. Here, we support a novel mechanistic model of base editing by deriving a range of hyperactive activation-induced deaminase (AID) base editors (hBEs) and exploiting their characteristic diversifying activity. Our model involves multiple layers of previously underappreciated cooperativity in BE steps including: (i) Cas9 binding can potentially expose both DNA strands for 'capture' by the deaminase, a feature that is enhanced by guide RNA mismatches; (ii) after strand capture, the intrinsic activity of the DNA deaminase can tune window size and base editing efficiency; (iii) Cas9 defines the boundaries of editing on each strand, with deamination blocked by Cas9 binding to either the PAM or the protospacer and (iv) non-canonical edits on the guide RNA bound strand can be further elicited by changing which strand is nicked by Cas9. Leveraging insights from our mechanistic model, we create novel hBEs that can remarkably generate simultaneous C > T and G > A transitions over >65 bp with significant potential for targeted gene diversification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kiara N Berríos
- Graduate Group in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Aleksia Barka
- Graduate Group in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jasleen Gill
- Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Juan C Serrano
- Graduate Group in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Peter F Bailer
- Graduate Group in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jared B Parker
- Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Niklaus H Evitt
- Graduate Group in Cell and Molecular Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Kiran S Gajula
- Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Junwei Shi
- Department of Cancer Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Rahul M Kohli
- Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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5
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Wang G, Wang F, Xu Z, Wang Y, Zhang C, Zhou Y, Hui F, Yang X, Nie X, Zhang X, Jin S. Precise fine-turning of GhTFL1 by base editing tools defines ideal cotton plant architecture. Genome Biol 2024; 25:59. [PMID: 38409014 PMCID: PMC10895741 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-024-03189-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND CRISPR/Cas-derived base editor enables precise editing of target sites and has been widely used for basic research and crop genetic improvement. However, the editing efficiency of base editors at different targets varies greatly. RESULTS Here, we develop a set of highly efficient base editors in cotton plants. GhABE8e, which is fused to conventional nCas9, exhibits 99.9% editing efficiency, compared to GhABE7.10 with 64.9%, and no off-target editing is detected. We further replace nCas9 with dCpf1, which recognizes TTTV PAM sequences, to broaden the range of the target site. To explore the functional divergence of TERMINAL FLOWER 1 (TFL1), we edit the non-coding and coding regions of GhTFL1 with 26 targets to generate a comprehensive allelic population including 300 independent lines in cotton. This allows hidden pleiotropic roles for GhTFL1 to be revealed and allows us to rapidly achieve directed domestication of cotton and create ideotype germplasm with moderate height, shortened fruiting branches, compact plant, and early-flowering. Further, by exploring the molecular mechanism of the GhTFL1L86P and GhTFL1K53G+S78G mutations, we find that the GhTFL1L86P mutation weakens the binding strength of the GhTFL1 to other proteins but does not lead to a complete loss of GhTFL1 function. CONCLUSIONS This strategy provides an important technical platform and genetic information for the study and creation of ideal plant architecture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guanying Wang
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, China
| | - Fuqiu Wang
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, China
| | - Zhongping Xu
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, China
| | - Ying Wang
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, China
| | - Can Zhang
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, China
| | - Yi Zhou
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, China
| | - Fengjiao Hui
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, China
| | - Xiyan Yang
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, China
| | - Xinhui Nie
- Key Laboratory of Oasis Ecology Agricultural of Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, Agricultural College, Shihezi University, Shihezi, Xinjiang, 832003, China.
| | - Xianlong Zhang
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, China.
| | - Shuangxia Jin
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430070, China.
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Weischedel J, Higgins L, Rogers S, Gramalla-Schmitz A, Wyrzykowska P, Borgoni S, MacCarthy T, Chahwan R. Modular cytosine base editing promotes epigenomic and genomic modifications. Nucleic Acids Res 2024; 52:e8. [PMID: 37994786 PMCID: PMC10810192 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkad1118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2022] [Revised: 10/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 11/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Prokaryotic and eukaryotic adaptive immunity differ considerably. Yet, their fundamental mechanisms of gene editing via Cas9 and activation-induced deaminase (AID), respectively, can be conveniently complimentary. Cas9 is an RNA targeted dual nuclease expressed in several bacterial species. AID is a cytosine deaminase expressed in germinal centre B cells to mediate genomic antibody diversification. AID can also mediate epigenomic reprogramming via active DNA demethylation. It is known that sequence motifs, nucleic acid structures, and associated co-factors affect AID activity. But despite repeated attempts, deciphering AID's intrinsic catalytic activities and harnessing its targeted recruitment to DNA is still intractable. Even recent cytosine base editors are unable to fully recapitulate AID's genomic and epigenomic editing properties. Here, we describe the first instance of a modular AID-based editor that recapitulates the full spectrum of genomic and epigenomic editing activity. Our 'Swiss army knife' toolbox will help better understand AID biology per se as well as improve targeted genomic and epigenomic editing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian Weischedel
- Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - Laurence Higgins
- Living Systems Institute, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4QD, UK
| | - Sally Rogers
- Living Systems Institute, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4QD, UK
| | - Anna Gramalla-Schmitz
- Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - Paulina Wyrzykowska
- Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - Simone Borgoni
- Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - Thomas MacCarthy
- Department of Applied Mathematics & Statistics, Stony Brook University, NY 11794-3600, USA
| | - Richard Chahwan
- Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
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Li X, Xie J, Dong C, Zheng Z, Shen R, Cao X, Chen X, Wang M, Zhu JK, Tian Y. Efficient and heritable A-to-K base editing in rice and tomato. HORTICULTURE RESEARCH 2024; 11:uhad250. [PMID: 38269296 PMCID: PMC10807703 DOI: 10.1093/hr/uhad250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2024]
Abstract
Cytosine and adenosine base editors (CBE and ABE) have been widely used in plants, greatly accelerating gene function research and crop breeding. Current base editors can achieve efficient A-to-G and C-to-T/G/A editing. However, efficient and heritable A-to-Y (A-to-T/C) editing remains to be developed in plants. In this study, a series of A-to-K base editor (AKBE) systems were constructed for monocot and dicot plants. Furthermore, nSpCas9 was replaced with the PAM-less Cas9 variant (nSpRY) to expand the target range of the AKBEs. Analysis of 228 T0 rice plants and 121 T0 tomato plants edited using AKBEs at 18 endogenous loci revealed that, in addition to highly efficient A-to-G substitution (41.0% on average), the plant AKBEs can achieve A-to-T conversion with efficiencies of up to 25.9 and 10.5% in rice and tomato, respectively. Moreover, the rice-optimized AKBE generates A-to-C conversion in rice, with an average efficiency of 1.8%, revealing the significant value of plant-optimized AKBE in creating genetic diversity. Although most of the A-to-T and A-to-C edits were chimeric, desired editing types could be transmitted to the T1 offspring, similar to the edits generated by the traditional ABE8e. Besides, using AKBEs to target tyrosine (Y, TAT) or cysteine (C, TGT) achieved the introduction of an early stop codon (TAG/TAA/TGA) of target genes, demonstrating its potential use in gene disruption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinbo Li
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Institute of Crop Sciences and National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
- Hainan Yazhou Bay Seed Lab, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
| | - Jiyong Xie
- Shanghai Center for Plant Stress Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201602, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Chao Dong
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Institute of Crop Sciences and National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
- Hainan Yazhou Bay Seed Lab, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
| | - Zai Zheng
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Institute of Crop Sciences and National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
- Hainan Yazhou Bay Seed Lab, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
| | - Rundong Shen
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Institute of Crop Sciences and National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
- Hainan Yazhou Bay Seed Lab, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
| | - Xuesong Cao
- Institute of Advanced Biotechnology, and School of Life Sciences, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Xiaoyan Chen
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Institute of Crop Sciences and National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
| | - Mugui Wang
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Institute of Crop Sciences and National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
| | - Jian-Kang Zhu
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Institute of Crop Sciences and National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
- Institute of Advanced Biotechnology, and School of Life Sciences, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Yifu Tian
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Key Laboratory of Gene Editing Technologies (Hainan), Institute of Crop Sciences and National Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
- Hainan Yazhou Bay Seed Lab, Sanya, Hainan 572024, China
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8
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Shelake RM, Pramanik D, Kim JY. CRISPR base editor-based targeted random mutagenesis (BE-TRM) toolbox for directed evolution. BMB Rep 2024; 57:30-39. [PMID: 38053292 PMCID: PMC10828429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2023] [Revised: 07/26/2023] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 12/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Directed evolution (DE) of desired locus by targeted random mutagenesis (TRM) tools is a powerful approach for generating genetic variations with novel or improved functions, particularly in complex genomes. TRM-based DE involves developing a mutant library of targeted DNA sequences and screening the variants for the desired properties. However, DE methods have for a long time been confined to bacteria and yeasts. Lately, CRISPR/Cas and DNA deaminase-based tools that circumvent enduring barriers such as longer life cycle, small library sizes, and low mutation rates have been developed to facilitate DE in native genetic environments of multicellular organisms. Notably, deaminase-based base editing-TRM (BE-TRM) tools have greatly expanded the scope and efficiency of DE schemes by enabling base substitutions and randomization of targeted DNA sequences. BE-TRM tools provide a robust platform for the continuous molecular evolution of desired proteins, metabolic pathway engineering, creation of a mutant library of desired locus to evolve novel functions, and other applications, such as predicting mutants conferring antibiotic resistance. This review provides timely updates on the recent advances in BE-TRM tools for DE, their applications in biology, and future directions for further improvements. [BMB Reports 2024; 57(1): 30-39].
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Affiliation(s)
- Rahul Mahadev Shelake
- Division of Applied Life Science (BK21 Four Program), Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Research Center, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 52828, Korea
| | - Dibyajyoti Pramanik
- Division of Applied Life Science (BK21 Four Program), Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Research Center, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 52828, Korea
| | - Jae-Yean Kim
- Division of Applied Life Science (BK21 Four Program), Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Research Center, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 52828, Korea
- Division of Life Science, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 52828, Korea
- R&D Center, Nulla Bio Inc., Jinju 52828, Korea
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9
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Bhuyan SJ, Kumar M, Ramrao Devde P, Rai AC, Mishra AK, Singh PK, Siddique KHM. Progress in gene editing tools, implications and success in plants: a review. Front Genome Ed 2023; 5:1272678. [PMID: 38144710 PMCID: PMC10744593 DOI: 10.3389/fgeed.2023.1272678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2023] [Accepted: 11/13/2023] [Indexed: 12/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Genetic modifications are made through diverse mutagenesis techniques for crop improvement programs. Among these mutagenesis tools, the traditional methods involve chemical and radiation-induced mutagenesis, resulting in off-target and unintended mutations in the genome. However, recent advances have introduced site-directed nucleases (SDNs) for gene editing, significantly reducing off-target changes in the genome compared to induced mutagenesis and naturally occurring mutations in breeding populations. SDNs have revolutionized genetic engineering, enabling precise gene editing in recent decades. One widely used method, homology-directed repair (HDR), has been effective for accurate base substitution and gene alterations in some plant species. However, its application has been limited due to the inefficiency of HDR in plant cells and the prevalence of the error-prone repair pathway known as non-homologous end joining (NHEJ). The discovery of CRISPR-Cas has been a game-changer in this field. This system induces mutations by creating double-strand breaks (DSBs) in the genome and repairing them through associated repair pathways like NHEJ. As a result, the CRISPR-Cas system has been extensively used to transform plants for gene function analysis and to enhance desirable traits. Researchers have made significant progress in genetic engineering in recent years, particularly in understanding the CRISPR-Cas mechanism. This has led to various CRISPR-Cas variants, including CRISPR-Cas13, CRISPR interference, CRISPR activation, base editors, primes editors, and CRASPASE, a new CRISPR-Cas system for genetic engineering that cleaves proteins. Moreover, gene editing technologies like the prime editor and base editor approaches offer excellent opportunities for plant genome engineering. These cutting-edge tools have opened up new avenues for rapidly manipulating plant genomes. This review article provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of plant genetic engineering, focusing on recently developed tools for gene alteration and their potential applications in plant research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suman Jyoti Bhuyan
- Department of Biotechnology, Mizoram University (A Central University), Pachhunga University College Campus, Aizawl, Mizoram, India
| | - Manoj Kumar
- Institute of Plant Sciences, Agricultural Research Organization, Volcani Center, Rishon LeZion, Israel
| | - Pandurang Ramrao Devde
- Department of Biotechnology, Mizoram University (A Central University), Pachhunga University College Campus, Aizawl, Mizoram, India
| | - Avinash Chandra Rai
- Institute of Plant Sciences, Agricultural Research Organization, Volcani Center, Rishon LeZion, Israel
| | | | - Prashant Kumar Singh
- Department of Biotechnology, Mizoram University (A Central University), Pachhunga University College Campus, Aizawl, Mizoram, India
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Tan J, Shen M, Chai N, Liu Q, Liu YG, Zhu Q. Genome editing for plant synthetic metabolic engineering and developmental regulation. JOURNAL OF PLANT PHYSIOLOGY 2023; 291:154141. [PMID: 38016350 DOI: 10.1016/j.jplph.2023.154141] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2023] [Revised: 10/31/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023]
Abstract
Plant metabolism and development are a reflection of the orderly expression of genetic information intertwined with the environment interactions. Genome editing is the cornerstone for scientists to modify endogenous genes or introduce exogenous functional genes and metabolic pathways, holding immense potential applications in molecular breeding and biosynthesis. Over the course of nearly a decade of development, genome editing has advanced significantly beyond the simple cutting of double-stranded DNA, now enabling precise base and fragment replacements, regulation of gene expression and translation, as well as epigenetic modifications. However, the utilization of genome editing in plant synthetic metabolic engineering and developmental regulation remains exploratory. Here, we provide an introduction and a comprehensive overview of the editing attributes associated with various CRISPR/Cas tools, along with diverse strategies for the meticulous control of plant metabolic pathways and developments. Furthermore, we discuss the limitations of current approaches and future prospects for genome editing-driven plant breeding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiantao Tan
- Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Key Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding of High-Quality Rice in Southern China (Co-construction by Ministry and Province), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Guangdong Key Laboratory of New Technology in Rice Breeding, Guangdong Rice Engineering Laboratory, Guangzhou, 510640, China.
| | - Mengyuan Shen
- Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Key Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding of High-Quality Rice in Southern China (Co-construction by Ministry and Province), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Guangdong Key Laboratory of New Technology in Rice Breeding, Guangdong Rice Engineering Laboratory, Guangzhou, 510640, China
| | - Nan Chai
- State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro-Bioresources, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, College of Life Sciences, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Qi Liu
- Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Key Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding of High-Quality Rice in Southern China (Co-construction by Ministry and Province), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Guangdong Key Laboratory of New Technology in Rice Breeding, Guangdong Rice Engineering Laboratory, Guangzhou, 510640, China
| | - Yao-Guang Liu
- State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro-Bioresources, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, College of Life Sciences, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Qinlong Zhu
- State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro-Bioresources, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, College of Life Sciences, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China.
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Xiong X, Liu K, Li Z, Xia FN, Ruan XM, He X, Li JF. Split complementation of base editors to minimize off-target edits. NATURE PLANTS 2023; 9:1832-1847. [PMID: 37845337 DOI: 10.1038/s41477-023-01540-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2023] [Accepted: 09/12/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023]
Abstract
Base editors (BEs) empower the efficient installation of beneficial or corrective point mutations in crop and human genomes. However, conventional BEs can induce unpredictable guide RNA (gRNA)-independent off-target edits in the genome and transcriptome due to spurious activities of BE-enclosing deaminases, and current improvements mostly rely on deaminase-specific mutagenesis or exogenous regulators. Here we developed a split deaminase for safe editing (SAFE) system applicable to BEs containing distinct cytidine or adenosine deaminases, with no need of external regulators. In SAFE, a BE was properly split at a deaminase domain embedded inside a Cas9 nickase, simultaneously fragmenting and deactivating both the deaminase and the Cas9 nickase. The gRNA-conditioned BE reassembly conferred robust on-target editing in plant, human and yeast cells, while minimizing both gRNA-independent and gRNA-dependent off-target DNA/RNA edits. SAFE also substantially increased product purity by eliminating indels. Altogether, SAFE provides a generalizable solution for BEs to suppress off-target editing and improve on-target performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiangyu Xiong
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources, MOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Kehui Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources, MOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
| | - Zhenxiang Li
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources, MOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Fan-Nv Xia
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources, MOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xue-Ming Ruan
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources, MOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xionglei He
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources, MOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jian-Feng Li
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources, MOE Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Regulation, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
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Westberg I, Carlsen FM, Johansen IE, Petersen BL. Cytosine base editors optimized for genome editing in potato protoplasts. Front Genome Ed 2023; 5:1247702. [PMID: 37719877 PMCID: PMC10502308 DOI: 10.3389/fgeed.2023.1247702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2023] [Accepted: 08/03/2023] [Indexed: 09/19/2023] Open
Abstract
In this study, we generated and compared three cytidine base editors (CBEs) tailor-made for potato (Solanum tuberosum), which conferred up to 43% C-to-T conversion of all alleles in the protoplast pool. Earlier, gene-edited potato plants were successfully generated by polyethylene glycol-mediated CRISPR/Cas9 transformation of protoplasts followed by explant regeneration. In one study, a 3-4-fold increase in editing efficiency was obtained by replacing the standard Arabidopsis thaliana AtU6-1 promotor with endogenous potato StU6 promotors driving the expression of the gRNA. Here, we used this optimized construct (SpCas9/StU6-1::gRNA1, target gRNA sequence GGTC4C5TTGGAGC12AAAAC17TGG) for the generation of CBEs tailor-made for potato and tested for C-to-T base editing in the granule-bound starch synthase 1 gene in the cultivar Desiree. First, the Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 was converted into a (D10A) nickase (nCas9). Next, one of three cytosine deaminases from human hAPOBEC3A (A3A), rat (evo_rAPOBEC1) (rA1), or sea lamprey (evo_PmCDA1) (CDA1) was C-terminally fused to nCas9 and a uracil-DNA glycosylase inhibitor, with each module interspaced with flexible linkers. The CBEs were overall highly efficient, with A3A having the best overall base editing activity, with an average 34.5%, 34.5%, and 27% C-to-T conversion at C4, C5, and C12, respectively, whereas CDA1 showed an average base editing activity of 34.5%, 34%, and 14.25% C-to-T conversion at C4, C5, and C12, respectively. rA1 exhibited an average base editing activity of 18.75% and 19% at C4 and C5 and was the only base editor to show no C-to-T conversion at C12.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Bent Larsen Petersen
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, The University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Denmark
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Shi L, Su J, Cho MJ, Song H, Dong X, Liang Y, Zhang Z. Promoter editing for the genetic improvement of crops. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2023; 74:4349-4366. [PMID: 37204916 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erad175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/06/2023] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
Gene expression plays a fundamental role in the regulation of agronomically important traits in crop plants. The genetic manipulation of plant promoters through genome editing has emerged as an effective strategy to create favorable traits in crops by altering the expression pattern of the pertinent genes. Promoter editing can be applied in a directed manner, where nucleotide sequences associated with favorable traits are precisely generated. Alternatively, promoter editing can also be exploited as a random mutagenic approach to generate novel genetic variations within a designated promoter, from which elite alleles are selected based on their phenotypic effects. Pioneering studies have demonstrated the potential of promoter editing in engineering agronomically important traits as well as in mining novel promoter alleles valuable for plant breeding. In this review, we provide an update on the application of promoter editing in crops for increased yield, enhanced tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses, and improved quality. We also discuss several remaining technical bottlenecks and how this strategy may be better employed for the genetic improvement of crops in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lu Shi
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Food Quality and Safety-State Key Laboratory Cultivation Base, Ministry of Science and Technology, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanjing 210014, China
| | - Jing Su
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics & Germplasm Enhancement and Utilization, Province and Ministry Co-sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Crop Production, Jiangsu Engineering Research Center for Plant Genome Editing, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
| | - Myeong-Je Cho
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94704, USA
| | - Hao Song
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics & Germplasm Enhancement and Utilization, Province and Ministry Co-sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Crop Production, Jiangsu Engineering Research Center for Plant Genome Editing, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
| | - Xiaoou Dong
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics & Germplasm Enhancement and Utilization, Province and Ministry Co-sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Crop Production, Jiangsu Engineering Research Center for Plant Genome Editing, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
- Hainan Yazhou Bay Seed Laboratory, Sanya 572025, China
- Zhongshan Biological Breeding Laboratory, No. 50 Zhongling Street, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210014, China
| | - Ying Liang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Food Quality and Safety-State Key Laboratory Cultivation Base, Ministry of Science and Technology, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanjing 210014, China
| | - Zhiyong Zhang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Food Quality and Safety-State Key Laboratory Cultivation Base, Ministry of Science and Technology, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanjing 210014, China
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Karunarathne S, Walker E, Sharma D, Li C, Han Y. Genetic resources and precise gene editing for targeted improvement of barley abiotic stress tolerance. J Zhejiang Univ Sci B 2023; 24:1069-1092. [PMID: 38057266 PMCID: PMC10710907 DOI: 10.1631/jzus.b2200552] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Accepted: 01/17/2023] [Indexed: 07/11/2023]
Abstract
Abiotic stresses, predominately drought, heat, salinity, cold, and waterlogging, adversely affect cereal crops. They limit barley production worldwide and cause huge economic losses. In barley, functional genes under various stresses have been identified over the years and genetic improvement to stress tolerance has taken a new turn with the introduction of modern gene-editing platforms. In particular, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9) is a robust and versatile tool for precise mutation creation and trait improvement. In this review, we highlight the stress-affected regions and the corresponding economic losses among the main barley producers. We collate about 150 key genes associated with stress tolerance and combine them into a single physical map for potential breeding practices. We also overview the applications of precise base editing, prime editing, and multiplexing technologies for targeted trait modification, and discuss current challenges including high-throughput mutant genotyping and genotype dependency in genetic transformation to promote commercial breeding. The listed genes counteract key stresses such as drought, salinity, and nutrient deficiency, and the potential application of the respective gene-editing technologies will provide insight into barley improvement for climate resilience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sakura Karunarathne
- Western Crop Genetics Alliance, College of Science, Health, Engineering and Education, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia
| | - Esther Walker
- Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, South Perth, WA 6151, Australia
| | - Darshan Sharma
- Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, South Perth, WA 6151, Australia
| | - Chengdao Li
- Western Crop Genetics Alliance, College of Science, Health, Engineering and Education, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia.
- Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, South Perth, WA 6151, Australia.
| | - Yong Han
- Western Crop Genetics Alliance, College of Science, Health, Engineering and Education, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia.
- Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, South Perth, WA 6151, Australia.
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Zhou L, Yao S. Recent advances in therapeutic CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing: mechanisms and applications. MOLECULAR BIOMEDICINE 2023; 4:10. [PMID: 37027099 PMCID: PMC10080534 DOI: 10.1186/s43556-023-00115-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2022] [Accepted: 01/04/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Recently, clustered regularly interspaced palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-Cas9 derived editing tools had significantly improved our ability to make desired changes in the genome. Wild-type Cas9 protein recognizes the target genomic loci and induced local double strand breaks (DSBs) in the guidance of small RNA molecule. In mammalian cells, the DSBs are mainly repaired by endogenous non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) pathway, which is error prone and results in the formation of indels. The indels can be harnessed to interrupt gene coding sequences or regulation elements. The DSBs can also be fixed by homology directed repair (HDR) pathway to introduce desired changes, such as base substitution and fragment insertion, when proper donor templates are provided, albeit in a less efficient manner. Besides making DSBs, Cas9 protein can be mutated to serve as a DNA binding platform to recruit functional modulators to the target loci, performing local transcriptional regulation, epigenetic remolding, base editing or prime editing. These Cas9 derived editing tools, especially base editors and prime editors, can introduce precise changes into the target loci at a single-base resolution and in an efficient and irreversible manner. Such features make these editing tools very promising for therapeutic applications. This review focuses on the evolution and mechanisms of CRISPR-Cas9 derived editing tools and their applications in the field of gene therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lifang Zhou
- Laboratory of Biotherapy, National Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Renmin Nanlu 17, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China
| | - Shaohua Yao
- Laboratory of Biotherapy, National Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Renmin Nanlu 17, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China.
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Improved Dual Base Editor Systems (iACBEs) for Simultaneous Conversion of Adenine and Cytosine in the Bacterium Escherichia coli. mBio 2023; 14:e0229622. [PMID: 36625577 PMCID: PMC9973308 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.02296-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Genome-editing (GE) techniques like base editing are ideal for introducing novel gain-of-function mutations and in situ protein evolution. Features of base editors (BEs) such as higher efficacy, relaxed protospacer adjacent motif (PAM), and a broader editing window enables diversification of user-defined targeted locus. Cytosine (CBE) or adenine (ABE) BEs alone can only alter C-to-T or A-to-G in target sites. In contrast, dual BEs (ACBEs) can concurrently generate C-to-T and A-to-G modifications. Although BE tools have recently been applied in microbes, there is no report of ACBE for microbial GE. In this study, we engineered four improved ACBEs (iACBEs) tethering highly active CBE and ABE variants that can introduce synchronized C-to-T and A-to-G mutations in targeted loci. iACBE4 generated by evoCDA1-ABE9e fusion demonstrated a broader editing window (positions -6 to 15) and is also compatible with the multiplex editing approach in Escherichia coli. We further show that the iACBE4-NG containing PAM-relaxed nCas9-NG expands the targeting scope beyond NGG (N-A/G/C/T) PAM. As a proof-of-concept, iACBE was effectively utilized to identify previously unknown mutations in the rpoB gene, conferring gain-of-function, i.e., rifampicin resistance. The iACBE tool would expand the CRISPR-GE toolkit for microbial genome engineering and synthetic biology. IMPORTANCE Dual base editors are DSB-free CRISPR tools applied in eukaryotes but not yet in bacteria. We developed an improved ACBE toolset for bacteria, combining highly processive deaminases. We believe that the bacterial optimized iACBE toolset is a significant advancement in CRISPR-based E. coli genome editing and adaptable to other microbes.
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Bai S, Han X, Feng D. Shoot-root signal circuit: Phytoremediation of heavy metal contaminated soil. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2023; 14:1139744. [PMID: 36890896 PMCID: PMC9987563 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1139744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2023] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
High concentrations of heavy metals in the environment will cause serious harm to ecosystems and human health. It is urgent to develop effective methods to control soil heavy metal pollution. Phytoremediation has advantages and potential for soil heavy metal pollution control. However, the current hyperaccumulators have the disadvantages of poor environmental adaptability, single enrichment species and small biomass. Based on the concept of modularity, synthetic biology makes it possible to design a wide range of organisms. In this paper, a comprehensive strategy of "microbial biosensor detection - phytoremediation - heavy metal recovery" for soil heavy metal pollution control was proposed, and the required steps were modified by using synthetic biology methods. This paper summarizes the new experimental methods that promote the discovery of synthetic biological elements and the construction of circuits, and combs the methods of producing transgenic plants to facilitate the transformation of constructed synthetic biological vectors. Finally, the problems that should be paid more attention to in the remediation of soil heavy metal pollution based on synthetic biology were discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiyan Bai
- College of Biological Science and Engineering, Fuzhou University, Fujian, China
| | - Xiao Han
- College of Biological Science and Engineering, Fuzhou University, Fujian, China
| | - Dan Feng
- Biotechnology Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
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18
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Getting better all the time - recent progress in the development of CRISPR/Cas-based tools for plant genome engineering. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2023; 79:102854. [PMID: 36455451 DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2022.102854] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Since their first adaptation for plant genome editing, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR-associated system nucleases and tools have revolutionized the field. While early approaches focused on targeted mutagenesis that relies on mutagenic repair of induced double-strand breaks, newly developed tools now enable the precise induction of predefined modifications. Constant efforts to optimize these tools have led to the generation of more efficient base editors with enlarged editing windows and have enabled previously unachievable C-G transversions. Prime editors were also optimized for the application in plants and now allow to accurately induce substitutions, insertions, and deletions. Recently, great progress was made through precise restructuring of chromosomes, which enables not only the breakage or formation of genetic linkages but also the swapping of promoters.
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Gaillochet C, Peña Fernández A, Goossens V, D’Halluin K, Drozdzecki A, Shafie M, Van Duyse J, Van Isterdael G, Gonzalez C, Vermeersch M, De Saeger J, Develtere W, Audenaert D, De Vleesschauwer D, Meulewaeter F, Jacobs TB. Systematic optimization of Cas12a base editors in wheat and maize using the ITER platform. Genome Biol 2023; 24:6. [PMID: 36639800 PMCID: PMC9838060 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-022-02836-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Testing an ever-increasing number of CRISPR components is challenging when developing new genome engineering tools. Plant biotechnology has few high-throughput options to perform iterative design-build-test-learn cycles of gene-editing reagents. To bridge this gap, we develop ITER (Iterative Testing of Editing Reagents) based on 96-well arrayed protoplast transfections and high-content imaging. RESULTS We validate ITER in wheat and maize protoplasts using Cas9 cytosine and adenine base editors (ABEs), allowing one optimization cycle - from design to results - within 3 weeks. Given that previous LbCas12a-ABEs have low or no activity in plants, we use ITER to develop an optimized LbCas12a-ABE. We show that sequential improvement of five components - NLS, crRNA, LbCas12a, adenine deaminase, and linker - leads to a remarkable increase in activity from almost undetectable levels to 40% on an extrachromosomal GFP reporter. We confirm the activity of LbCas12a-ABE at endogenous targets in protoplasts and obtain base-edited plants in up to 55% of stable wheat transformants and the edits are transmitted to T1 progeny. We leverage these improvements to develop a highly mutagenic LbCas12a nuclease and a LbCas12a-CBE demonstrating that the optimizations can be broadly applied to the Cas12a toolbox. CONCLUSION Our data show that ITER is a sensitive, versatile, and high-throughput platform that can be harnessed to accelerate the development of genome editing technologies in plants. We use ITER to create an efficient Cas12a-ABE by iteratively testing a large panel of vector components. ITER will likely be useful to create and optimize genome editing reagents in a wide range of plant species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christophe Gaillochet
- grid.5342.00000 0001 2069 7798Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Ghent University, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium ,grid.511033.5VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Alexandra Peña Fernández
- grid.5342.00000 0001 2069 7798Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Ghent University, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium ,grid.511033.5VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Vera Goossens
- grid.11486.3a0000000104788040Screening Core, VIB, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium ,grid.5342.00000 0001 2069 7798Centre for Bioassay Development and Screening (C-BIOS), Ghent University, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Katelijn D’Halluin
- BASF Belgium Coordination Center CommV, Innovation Center Gent, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 101, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Andrzej Drozdzecki
- grid.11486.3a0000000104788040Screening Core, VIB, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium ,grid.5342.00000 0001 2069 7798Centre for Bioassay Development and Screening (C-BIOS), Ghent University, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Myriam Shafie
- BASF Belgium Coordination Center CommV, Innovation Center Gent, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 101, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Julie Van Duyse
- grid.11486.3a0000000104788040VIB Flow Core, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Gert Van Isterdael
- grid.11486.3a0000000104788040VIB Flow Core, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Camila Gonzalez
- grid.5342.00000 0001 2069 7798Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Ghent University, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium ,grid.511033.5VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Mattias Vermeersch
- grid.5342.00000 0001 2069 7798Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Ghent University, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium ,grid.511033.5VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Jonas De Saeger
- grid.5342.00000 0001 2069 7798Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Ghent University, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium ,grid.511033.5VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Ward Develtere
- grid.5342.00000 0001 2069 7798Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Ghent University, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium ,grid.511033.5VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Dominique Audenaert
- grid.11486.3a0000000104788040Screening Core, VIB, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium ,grid.5342.00000 0001 2069 7798Centre for Bioassay Development and Screening (C-BIOS), Ghent University, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - David De Vleesschauwer
- BASF Belgium Coordination Center CommV, Innovation Center Gent, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 101, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Frank Meulewaeter
- BASF Belgium Coordination Center CommV, Innovation Center Gent, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 101, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Thomas B. Jacobs
- grid.5342.00000 0001 2069 7798Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Ghent University, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium ,grid.511033.5VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
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Liu Q, Peng X, Shen M, Qian Q, Xing J, Li C, Gregory R. Ribo-uORF: a comprehensive data resource of upstream open reading frames (uORFs) based on ribosome profiling. Nucleic Acids Res 2023; 51:D248-D261. [PMID: 36440758 PMCID: PMC9825487 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkac1094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2022] [Revised: 10/27/2022] [Accepted: 11/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Upstream open reading frames (uORFs) are typically defined as translation sites located within the 5' untranslated region upstream of the main protein coding sequence (CDS) of messenger RNAs (mRNAs). Although uORFs are prevalent in eukaryotic mRNAs and modulate the translation of downstream CDSs, a comprehensive resource for uORFs is currently lacking. We developed Ribo-uORF (http://rnainformatics.org.cn/RiboUORF) to serve as a comprehensive functional resource for uORF analysis based on ribosome profiling (Ribo-seq) data. Ribo-uORF currently supports six species: human, mouse, rat, zebrafish, fruit fly, and worm. Ribo-uORF includes 501 554 actively translated uORFs and 107 914 upstream translation initiation sites (uTIS), which were identified from 1495 Ribo-seq and 77 quantitative translation initiation sequencing (QTI-seq) datasets, respectively. We also developed mRNAbrowse to visualize items such as uORFs, cis-regulatory elements, genetic variations, eQTLs, GWAS-based associations, RNA modifications, and RNA editing. Ribo-uORF provides a very intuitive web interface for conveniently browsing, searching, and visualizing uORF data. Finally, uORFscan and UTR5var were developed in Ribo-uORF to precisely identify uORFs and analyze the influence of genetic mutations on uORFs using user-uploaded datasets. Ribo-uORF should greatly facilitate studies of uORFs and their roles in mRNA translation and posttranscriptional control of gene expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Liu
- Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of New Technology in Rice Breeding, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Rice Engineering Laboratory, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Key Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding of High Quality Rice in Southern China (Co-construction by Ministry and Province), Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Xin Peng
- Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of New Technology in Rice Breeding, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Rice Engineering Laboratory, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Key Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding of High Quality Rice in Southern China (Co-construction by Ministry and Province), Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Mengyuan Shen
- Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of New Technology in Rice Breeding, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Rice Engineering Laboratory, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Key Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding of High Quality Rice in Southern China (Co-construction by Ministry and Province), Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Qian Qian
- Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of New Technology in Rice Breeding, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Rice Engineering Laboratory, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Key Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding of High Quality Rice in Southern China (Co-construction by Ministry and Province), Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Junlian Xing
- Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of New Technology in Rice Breeding, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Rice Engineering Laboratory, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Key Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding of High Quality Rice in Southern China (Co-construction by Ministry and Province), Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Chen Li
- Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of New Technology in Rice Breeding, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Guangdong Rice Engineering Laboratory, Guangzhou 510640, China
- Key Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding of High Quality Rice in Southern China (Co-construction by Ministry and Province), Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Richard I Gregory
- Stem Cell Program, Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Harvard Initiative for RNA Medicine, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
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Liang Z, Yuan L, Xiong X, Hao Y, Song X, Zhu T, Yu Y, Fu W, Lei Y, Xu J, Liu J, Li JF, Li C. The transcriptional repressors VAL1 and VAL2 mediate genome-wide recruitment of the CHD3 chromatin remodeler PICKLE in Arabidopsis. THE PLANT CELL 2022; 34:3915-3935. [PMID: 35866997 PMCID: PMC9516181 DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koac217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2022] [Accepted: 07/19/2022] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
PICKLE (PKL) is a chromodomain helicase DNA-binding domain 3 (CHD3) chromatin remodeler that plays essential roles in controlling the gene expression patterns that determine developmental identity in plants, but the molecular mechanisms through which PKL is recruited to its target genes remain elusive. Here, we define a cis-motif and trans-acting factors mechanism that governs the genomic occupancy profile of PKL in Arabidopsis thaliana. We show that two homologous trans-factors VIVIPAROUS1/ABI3-LIKE1 (VAL1) and VAL2 physically interact with PKL in vivo, localize extensively to PKL-occupied regions in the genome, and promote efficient PKL recruitment at thousands of target genes, including those involved in seed maturation. Transcriptome analysis and genetic interaction studies reveal a close cooperation of VAL1/VAL2 and PKL in regulating gene expression and developmental fate. We demonstrate that this recruitment operates at two master regulatory genes, ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3 and AGAMOUS-LIKE 15, to repress the seed maturation program and ensure the seed-to-seedling transition. Together, our work unveils a general rule through which the CHD3 chromatin remodeler PKL binds to its target chromatin in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenwei Liang
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Liangbing Yuan
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China
| | - Xiangyu Xiong
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Yuanhao Hao
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Xin Song
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Tao Zhu
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Yaoguang Yu
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Wei Fu
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Yawen Lei
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Jianqu Xu
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Jun Liu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Crop Germplasm Resources Preservation and Utilization, Agro-biological Gene Research Center, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Jian-Feng Li
- School of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
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