CRISPR- CAS MEDIATED GENOME EDITING IN CROP PLANTS

Abstract

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is an important crop for the world population, but it is particularly vulnerable to salinity stress (high salt concentration), this stress is predominantly observed during the early stages and reproductive stages of the plant. This can impair plant growth causing water imbalance and buildup of toxin ions, which ultimately leads to yield loss. To overcome this, traditional breeding methods are used, but they are often very slow and imprecise due to the complexity involved in salt stress response traits. Although RNAi technology is used in knockdown of OsSIDP301 gene for reducing its expression and for limiting salt stress, Studies reveal that using CRISPR-Cas9 based knockout provides better tolerance and high yield as compared to knockdown using RNAi. Through CRISPR/Cas9 system the world is exposed to new possibilities in crop improvement. One promising target is OsSIDP301, A gene which codes for DUF1644-domain protein. Activated due to salt stress and ABA, reducing OsSIDP301 expression enhances salt tolerance and promotes increased grain size, which is likely due to modulation of sodium uptake and direct influence of stress-related genes such as OsHKT1;1 and ABI5. Furthermore, improvements are being achieved by knocking out the other regulatory genes such as OsRR22 and OsDST. These findings show us the potential of CRISPR-based genomic editing for improved rice varieties that are not only salt tolerant but high yielding too. This is an important step towards growing rice in salt-affected areas and sustainable agriculture.