CRISPR/Cas9-Based Knock-Out of the Gene Reduces Susceptibility to Late Blight in Two Tomato Cultivars.

, the causal agent of late blight (LB) in tomato ( L.), is a devastating disease and a serious concern for plant productivity. The presence of susceptibility (S) genes in plants facilitates pathogen proliferation; thus, disabling these genes may help provide a broad-spectrum and durable type of tolerance/resistance.

In-Depth Characterization of Tomato Mutants Obtained by CRISPR/Cas9 Editing: A Case Study With Implications for Breeding and Regulation.

Gene editing has already proved itself as an invaluable tool for the generation of mutants for crop breeding, yet its ultimate impact on agriculture will depend on how crops generated by gene editing technologies are regulated, and on our ability to characterize the impact of mutations on plant phenotype. A starting operational strategy for evaluating gene editing-based approaches to plant breeding might consist of assessing the effect of the induced mutations in a crop- and locus-specific manner: this involves the analysis of editing efficiency in different cultivars of a crop, the assessment of potential off-target mutations, and a phenotypic evaluation of edited lines carrying different mutated alleles. Here, we targeted the () locus in two tomato cultivars ('MoneyMaker' and 'San Marzano') and evaluated the efficiency, specificity and mutation patterns associated with CRISPR/Cas9 activity for this gene.

Grafting vigour is associated with DNA de-methylation in eggplant.

In horticulture, grafting is a popular technique used to combine positive traits from two different plants. This is achieved by joining the plant top part (scion) onto a rootstock which contains the stem and roots. Rootstocks can provide resistance to stress and increase plant production, but despite their wide use, the biological mechanisms driving rootstock-induced alterations of the scion phenotype remain largely unknown.

Simultaneous CRISPR/Cas9 Editing of Three PPO Genes Reduces Fruit Flesh Browning in L.

Polyphenol oxidases (PPOs) catalyze the oxidization of polyphenols, which in turn causes the browning of the eggplant berry flesh after cutting. This has a negative impact on fruit quality for both industrial transformation and fresh consumption. Ten genes (named -) were identified in eggplant thanks to the recent availability of a high-quality genome sequence.

"Mind the Gap": Hi-C Technology Boosts Contiguity of the Globe Artichoke Genome in Low-Recombination Regions.

Globe artichoke ( var. ; 2n2x=34) is cropped largely in the Mediterranean region, being Italy the leading world producer; however, over time, its cultivation has spread to the Americas and China. In 2016, we released the first (v1.

Whole genome resequencing of four Italian sweet pepper landraces provides insights on sequence variation in genes of agronomic value.

Sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is a high value crop and one of the most widely grown vegetables belonging to the Solanaceae family. In addition to commercial varieties and F hybrids, a multitude of landraces are grown, whose genetic combination is the result of hundreds of years of random, environmental, and farmer selection.

Identification of DNA methyltransferases and demethylases in Solanum melongena L., and their transcription dynamics during fruit development and after salt and drought stresses.

DNA methylation through the activity of cytosine-5-methyltransferases (C5-MTases) and DNA demethylases plays important roles in genome protection as well as in regulating gene expression during plant development and plant response to environmental stresses. In this study, we report on a genome-wide identification of six C5-MTases (SmelMET1, SmelCMT2, SmelCMT3a, SmelCMT3b, SmelDRM2, SmelDRM3) and five demethylases (SmelDemethylase_1, SmelDemethylase_2, SmelDemethylase_3, SmelDemethylase_4, SmelDemethylase_5) in eggplant. Gene structural characteristics, chromosomal localization and phylogenetic analyses are also described.

Genome reconstruction in Cynara cardunculus taxa gains access to chromosome-scale DNA variation.

The genome sequence of globe artichoke (Cynara cardunculus L. var. scolymus, 2n = 2x = 34) is now available for use.

The Legitimate Name of a Fungal Plant Pathogen and the Ethics of Publication in the Era of Traceability.

When more scientists describe independently the same species under different valid Latin names, a case of synonymy occurs. In such a case, the international nomenclature rules stipulate that the first name to appear on a peer-reviewed publication has priority over the others. Based on a recent episode involving priority determination between two competing names of the same fungal plant pathogen, this letter wishes to open a discussion on the ethics of scientific publications and points out the necessity of a correct management of the information provided through personal communications, whose traceability would prevent their fraudulent or accidental manipulation.

Do pathogen-specific defense mechanisms contribute to wound-induced resistance in tomato?

A network of shared intermediates/components and/or common molecular outputs in biotic and abiotic stress signaling has long been known, but the possibility of effective influence between differently triggered stresses (co-protection) is less studied. Recent observations show that wounding induces transient protection in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) to four pathogens with a range of lifestyles, locally and systemically.

Wounding induces resistance to pathogens with different lifestyles in tomato: role of ethylene in cross-protection.

Many reports point to the existence of a network of regulatory signalling occurring in plants during the interaction with micro-organisms (biotic stress) and abiotic stresses such as wounding. However, the focus is on shared intermediates/components and/or common molecular outputs in differently triggered signalling pathways, and not on the degree and modes of effective influence between abiotic and biotic stresses nor the range of true plant-pathogen interactions open to such influence. We report on local and systemic wound-induced protection in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.