This strategic plan summarizes the major accomplishments achieved in the last quinquennial by the soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] genetics and genomics research community and outlines key priorities for the next 5 years (2024-2028).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFScreening a transposon-mutagenized soybean population led to the discovery of a recessively inherited chlorotic phenotype. This "y24" phenotype results in smaller stature, weaker stems, and a smaller root system. Genome sequencing identified 15 candidate genes with mutations likely to result in a loss of function.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenetic modification of plants fundamentally relies upon customized vector designs. The ever-increasing complexity of transgenic constructs has led to increased adoption of modular cloning systems for their ease of use, cost effectiveness, and rapid prototyping. GreenGate is a modular cloning system catered specifically to designing bespoke, single transcriptional unit vectors for plant transformation-which is also its greatest flaw.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFYellow mosaic disease (YMD) is one of the major devastating constraints to soybean production in Pakistan. In the present study, we report the identification of resistant soybean germplasm and a novel mutation linked with disease susceptibility. Diverse soybean germplasm were screened to identify YMD-resistant lines under natural field conditions during 2016-2020.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Gene expression is often controlled via cis-regulatory elements (CREs) that modulate the production of transcripts. For multi-gene genetic engineering and synthetic biology, precise control of transcription is crucial, both to insulate the transgenes from unwanted native regulation and to prevent readthrough or cross-regulation of transgenes within a multi-gene cassette. To prevent this activity, insulator-like elements, more properly referred to as transcriptional blockers, could be inserted to separate the transgenes so that they are independently regulated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHumans have been modifying plant traits for thousands of years, first through selection (i.e., domestication) then modern breeding, and in the last 30 years, through biotechnology.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe advent of CRISPR-Cas technology has made it the genome editing tool of choice in all kingdoms of life, including plants, which can have large, highly duplicated genomes. As a result, finding adequate target sequences that meet the specificities of a given Cas nuclease on any gene of interest remains challenging in many cases. To assess target site flexibility, we tested five different Cas9/Cas12a endonucleases (SpCas9, SaCas9, St1Cas9, Mb3Cas12a, and AsCas12a) in embryogenic rice calli from Taipei 309 at 37°C (optimal temperature for most Cas9/Cas12a proteins) and 27°C (optimal temperature for tissue culture) and measured their editing rates under regular tissue culture conditions using Illumina sequencing.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAuxotrophic strains of Agrobacterium tumefaciens can contribute to the development of more efficient transformation systems, especially for crops historically considered recalcitrant. Homologous recombination was used to derive methionine auxotrophs of two common A. tumefaciens strains, LBA4404 and EHA105.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOomycete and fungal pathogens cause billions of dollars of damage to crops worldwide annually. Therefore, there remains a need for broad-spectrum resistance genes, especially ones that target pathogens but do not interfere with colonization by beneficial microbes. Motivated by evidence suggesting that phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate (PI3P) may be involved in the delivery of some oomycete and fungal virulence effector proteins, we created stable transgenic soybean plants that express and secrete two different PI3P-binding proteins, GmPH1 and VAM7, in an effort to interfere with effector delivery and confer resistance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe mutagenic effects of ionizing radiation have been used for decades to create novel variants in experimental populations. Fast neutron (FN) bombardment as a mutagen has been especially widespread in plants, with extensive reports describing the induction of large structural variants, i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFQuantitative trait loci (QTLs) E and M are major soybean alleles that confer resistance to leaf-chewing insects, and are particularly effective in combination. Flavonoids and/or isoflavonoids are classes of plant secondary metabolites that previous studies agree are the causative agents of resistance of these QTLs. However, all previous studies have compared soybean genotypes that are of dissimilar genetic backgrounds, leaving it questionable what metabolites are a result of the QTL rather than the genetic background.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenetically modified (GM) organisms and crops have been a feature of food production for over 30 years. Despite extensive science-based risk assessment, the public and many politicians remain concerned with the genetic manipulation of crops, particularly food crops. Many governments have addressed public concern through biosafety legislation and regulatory frameworks that identify and regulate risks to ensure human health and environmental safety.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenome editing in agriculture and food is leading to new, improved crops and other products. Depending on the regulatory approach taken in each country or region, commercialization of these crops and products may or may not require approval from the respective regulatory authorities. This paper describes the regulatory landscape governing genome edited agriculture and food products in a selection of countries and regions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenome editing using CRISPR/Cas9 has been highlighted as a powerful tool for crop improvement. Nevertheless, its efficiency can be improved, especially for crops with a complex genome, such as soybean. In this work, using the CRISPR/Cas9 technology we evaluated two CRISPR systems, a one-component vs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFType I Diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT1) catalyzes the final step of the biosynthesis process of triacylglycerol (TAG), the major storage lipids in plant seeds, through the esterification of diacylglycerol (DAG). To characterize the function of DGAT1 genes on the accumulation of oil and other seed composition traits in soybean, transgenic lines were generated via trans-acting siRNA technology, in which three DGAT1 genes (Glyma.13G106100, Glyma.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFModern plant breeding increasingly relies on genomic information to guide crop improvement. Although some genes are characterized, additional tools are needed to effectively identify and characterize genes associated with crop traits. To address this need, the element from rice was modified to serve as an activation tag to induce expression of nearby genes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn plants, the phenylpropanoid pathway is responsible for the synthesis of a diverse array of secondary metabolites that include lignin monomers, flavonoids, and coumarins, many of which are essential for plant structure, biomass recalcitrance, stress defense, and nutritional quality. Our previous studies have demonstrated that PtrEPSP-TF, an isoform of 5-enolpyruvylshikimate 3-phosphate (EPSP) synthase, has transcriptional activity and regulates phenylpropanoid biosynthesis in . In this study, we report the identification of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of that defines its functionality.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Switchgrass ( L.), a North American prairie grassland species, is a potential lignocellulosic biofuel feedstock owing to its wide adaptability and biomass production. Production and genetic manipulation of switchgrass should be useful to improve its biomass composition and production for bioenergy applications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDevelopments in genomic and genome editing technologies have facilitated the mapping, cloning, and validation of genetic variants underlying trait variation. This study combined bulked-segregant analysis, array comparative genomic hybridization, and CRISPR/Cas9 methodologies to identify a CPR5 ortholog essential for proper trichome growth in soybean (Glycine max). A fast neutron mutant line exhibited short trichomes with smaller trichome nuclei compared to its parent line.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSomatic embryogenesis is an important tissue culture technique that sometimes leads to phenotypic variation via genetic and/or epigenetic changes. To understand the genomic and epigenomic impacts of somatic embryogenesis, we characterized soybean () epigenomes sampled from embryos at 10 different stages ranging from 6 weeks to 13 years of continuous culture. We identified genome-wide increases in DNA methylation from cultured samples, especially at CHH sites.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiolistic transformation delivers nucleic acids into plant cells by bombarding the cells with microprojectiles, which are micron-scale, typically gold particles. Despite the wide use of this technique, little is known about its effect on the cell's genome. We biolistically transformed linear 48-kb phage lambda and two different circular plasmids into rice () and maize () and analyzed the results by whole genome sequencing and optical mapping.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Adherence to adjuvant endocrine therapy (AET) in breast cancer survivors is suboptimal. Using the theory of planned behavior (TPB), this study aimed to identify the strongest predictors from the TPB of AET intentions and past behavior and assessed whether ambivalence and anticipatory emotions increased the predictive capacity of TPB.
Methods: Two hundred eighty women diagnosed with hormone positive (HR+) breast cancer who filled at least one prescription of AET responded to a survey measuring TPB constructs, attitudinal ambivalence, and anticipatory emotions.
Genome editing describes a variety of molecular biology applications enabling targeted and precise alterations of the genomes of plants, animals and microorganisms. These rapidly developing techniques are likely to revolutionize the breeding of new crop varieties. Since genome editing can lead to the development of plants that could also have come into existence naturally or by conventional breeding techniques, there are strong arguments that these cases should not be classified as genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and be regulated no differently from conventionally bred crops.
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