Recent achievements in plant microRNA (miRNA), a large class of small and non-coding RNAs, are very exciting. A wide array of techniques involving forward genetic, molecular cloning, bioinformatic analysis, and the latest technology, deep sequencing have greatly advanced miRNA discovery. A tiny miRNA sequence has the ability to target single/multiple mRNA targets. Most of the miRNA targets are transcription factors (TFs) which have paramount importance in regulating the plant growth and development. Various families of TFs, which have regulated a range of regulatory networks, may assist plants to grow under normal and stress environmental conditions. This present review focuses on the regulatory relationships between miRNAs and different families of TFs like; NF-Y, MYB, AP2, TCP, WRKY, NAC, GRF and SPL. For instance NF-Y play important role during drought tolerance and flower development, MYB are involved in signal transduction and biosynthesis of secondary metabolites, AP2 regulate the floral development and nodule formation, TCP direct leaf development and growth hormones signalling. WRKY have known roles in multiple stress tolerances, NAC regulate lateral root formation, GRF are involved in root growth, flower, and seed development, and SPL regulate plant transition from juvenile to adult. We also studied the relation between miRNAs and TFs by consolidating the research findings from different plant species which will help plant scientists in understanding the mechanism of action and interaction between these regulators in the plant growth and development under normal and stress environmental conditions.

/pdf/microrna-and-transcription-factor-key-players-in-plant-5grahska8f.pdf

MicroRNA and Transcription Factor: Key Players in Plant Regulatory Network.

For millennia, humans have modified plant genes in order to develop crops best suited for food, fiber, feed, and energy production. The earliest efforts, far predating Gregor Mendel’s 19th-century discoveries on trait inheritance, involved the selective breeding of plants with desirable characteristics, but the recombination of DNA in offspring was random. Consequently, plant breeding often took decades and frequently yielded crop varieties with unforeseen and undesirable properties. Today, conventional plant breeding remains inherently random and slow, constrained by the availability of desirable traits in closely related plant species. In contrast, agricultural biotechnology employs the modern tools of genetic engineering to reduce uncertainty and breeding time and to transfer traits from more distantly related plants. Arguments in support of and in opposition to the use of genetically engineered seeds have changed little since the technology emerged in the 1980s. On one side, critics express concerns that the technology imposes negative environmental effects and jeopardizes the health of those who consume the “frankenfoods.” On the other side, supporters emphasize potential gains from boosting output and lowering food prices for consumers. They argue that such gains are achieved contemporaneous with the adoption of farming practices that lower agrochemical use and lessen soil

https://pubs.aeaweb.org/doi/pdfplus/10.1257/jep.28.1.99

Agricultural Biotechnology: The Promise and Prospects of Genetically Modified Crops

Sugarcane is a unique crop with the ability to accumulate high levels of sugar and is a commercially viable source of biomass for bioelectricity and second-generation bioethanol. Water deficit is the single largest abiotic stress affecting sugarcane productivity and the development of water use efficient and drought tolerant cultivars is an imperative for all major sugarcane producing countries.. This review summarizes the physiological and molecular studies on water deficit stress in sugarcane, with the aim to help formulate more effective research strategies for advancing our knowledge on genes and mechanisms underpinning plant response to water stress. We also overview transgenic studies in sugarcane, with an emphasis on the potential strategies to develop superior sugarcane varieties that improve crop productivity in drought-prone environments.

/pdf/sugarcane-water-stress-tolerance-mechanisms-and-its-rnxtqrv6ma.pdf

Sugarcane Water Stress Tolerance Mechanisms and Its Implications on Developing Biotechnology Solutions.

Flavonoids represent a large family of specialized metabolites involved in plant growth, development, and adaptation. Chalcone synthase (CHS) catalyzes the first step of flavonoid biosynthesis by directing carbon flux from general phenylpropanoid metabolism to flavonoid pathway. Despite extensive characterization of its function and transcriptional regulation, the molecular basis governing its posttranslational modification is enigmatic. Here, we report the discovery of a proteolytic regulator of CHS, namely, KFBCHS, a Kelch domain-containing F-box protein in Arabidopsis thaliana KFBCHS physically interacts with CHS and specifically mediates its ubiquitination and degradation. KFBCHS exhibits developmental expression patterns in Arabidopsis leaves, stems, and siliques and strongly responds to the dark-to-light (or the light-to-dark) switch, the blue, red, and far-red light signals, and UV-B irradiation. Alteration of KFBCHS expression negatively correlates to the cellular concentration of CHS and the production of flavonoids. Our study suggests that KFBCHS serves as a crucial negative regulator, via mediating CHS degradation, coordinately controlling flavonoid biosynthesis in response to the developmental cues and environmental stimuli.

A Proteolytic Regulator Controlling Chalcone Synthase Stability and Flavonoid Biosynthesis in Arabidopsis.

The improvement of woody fruit species by traditional plant breeding techniques has several limitations mainly caused by their high degree of heterozygosity, the length of their juvenile phase and auto-incompatibility. The development of new biotechnological tools (NBTs), such as RNA interference (RNAi), trans-grafting, cisgenesis/intragenesis and genome editing tools, like zinc-finger and CRISPR/Cas9, has introduced the possibility of more precise and faster genetic modifications of plants. This aspect is of particular importance for the introduction or modification of specific traits in woody fruit species while maintaining unchanged the general characteristics of a selected cultivar. Moreover, some of these new tools give the possibility to obtain transgene-free modified fruit tree genomes, which should increase consumer’s acceptance. Over the decades biotechnological tools have undergone rapid development and there is a continuous addition of new and valuable techniques for plant breeders. This makes it possible to create desirable woody fruit varieties in a fast and more efficient way to meet the demand for sustainable agricultural productivity. Although NBTs have a common goal i.e. precise, fast and efficient crop improvement, individually they are markedly different in approach and characteristics from each other. In this review we describe in detail their mechanisms and applications for the improvement of fruit trees and consider the relationship between these biotechnological tools and the EU biosafety regulations applied to the plants and products obtained through these techniques.

/pdf/new-biotechnological-tools-for-the-genetic-improvement-of-3c4h9y6rro.pdf

New Biotechnological Tools for the Genetic Improvement of Major Woody Fruit Species

Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum Schum.) is a well-established perennial fodder crop of African origin which recently has also drawn attention for its potential as biofuel feedstock. The absence of genome information in Napier grass limits the development of sequence-specific markers which often involves a high developmental cost. This study aimed to determine cross-species transferability of microsatellite markers between pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) and Napier grass and to assess the genetic diversity of Napier grass accessions. A total of 107 pearl millet microsatellite markers were tested of which 71 markers (66 %) showed successful cross-amplification. Only 29 markers were selected to study the genetic diversity of Napier grass accessions maintained at the US Department of Agriculture-Agriculture Research Service (USDA-ARS) Tifton, GA. A total of 108 alleles were identified among 99 accessions, a pearl millet line, and a sugarcane hybrid. The average polymorphic information content (PIC) value was 0.212 per marker, while Dice coefficient of similarity ranged from 0.50 to 1.0, indicating high genetic variability among accessions. The accessions with the lowest Dice coefficient of similarity values could be useful in breeding programs. The similarity coefficient of accessions equal to 1.00 is likely an indication of a single genotype being represented by two accessions with different names. This study provides an expanded set of microsatellite markers transferable from pearl millet to Napier grass that can be used to evaluate genetic diversity in Napier grass accessions.

Assessment of Genetic Diversity in Napier Grass (Pennisetum purpureum Schum.) using Microsatellite, Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism and Insertion-Deletion Markers from Pearl Millet (Pennisetum glaucum [L.] R. Br.)

Papaya ( Carica papaya L.) is an important tropical fruit crop. The fruit is consumed fresh and used in the pharmaceutical, rayon and food industries. Papaya improvement for stress tolerance and qualitative traits using conventional breeding has been difficult due to the narrow germplasm pool in the Carica genus and sexual incompatibility problems encountered during intergeneric hybridization with other genera in the Caricaceae family. Genetic engineering is an important tool in papaya improvement for modifying one or more traits in elite cultivars without altering existing characteristics. Advances in genetic engineering have been facilitated by concerted efforts for genome sequencing of papaya, development of papaya regeneration systems and efficient gene insertion techniques for transfer of desirable traits. Papaya regeneration via organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis has been refined during the past 3 decades. Early efforts to optimize gene insertion protocols utilized a number of reporter and selectable marker genes, viral- and bacterial-derived regulatory sequences and functional genes for biotic and abiotic stress tolerance. Transgenic plants were routinely produced with several cultivars. One of the best success stories in the commercialization of a genetically modified fruit crop has involved the development of transgenic papaya ring spot virus (PRSV) resistant Rainbow and SunUp cultivars, which saved the Hawaiian papaya industry. Additionally, genetically modified papayas with traits for disease resistance and extended shelf life have been extensively screened in field tests. The papaya genome sequence was published in 2008 and has opened new avenues for papaya improvement by precision breeding, which involves the use of regulatory and functional gene sequences from related genera of the Caricaceae family, and is a logical extension of conventional breeding and genetic transformation. The application of precision breeding technology for papaya can pave the way for the development of consumer and eco-friendly cultivars that would be developed in ways similar to conventional breeding while causing fewer GMO-related concerns.

Advances in papaya biotechnology

A grapevine-derived VvMybA1 transcription factor was evaluated for its efficiency as a reporter gene by comparing it with existing reporter genes, the green fluorescent protein (GFP) and β-glucuronidase (GUS). Embryogenic cultures of Vitis cultivars Thompson Seedless and Bronx Seedless were initiated from leaves of in vitro grown micropropagation cultures and somatic embryos were used as explants for Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Transient and stable expression of the MybA1 gene was characterized by intense red pigmentation in co-cultivated explants, callus tissues and secondary embryos lines compared to GFP and GUS that exhibited green fluorescence and blue coloration following a substrate assay. No differences were observed in transient gene expression frequencies between the MybA1 gene and GUS among the two compared reporter genes. Visual levels of stable gene expression were higher in GFP and GUS expressing cultures compared to MybA1 expressing cultures. The presence of the inserted genes and their expression in regenerated plant lines was confirmed by PCR and RT-PCR. Embryo and plant lines expressing the MybA1 gene accumulated varying levels of anthocyanin pigment in plant tissues and organs, and were characterized by slower growth compared to plant lines expressing GFP and GUS. Scanning electron microscopy analyses revealed a significant change in abaxial and adaxial leaf epidermal cells of MybA1-expressing plant lines compared to those expressing GFP and GUS, and non-transformed control plants. The study demonstrated the utility of the VvMybA1 transcription factor as a reliable reporter gene for identification of gene insertion events in cell culture and regeneration of modified plants.

Evaluation of a grapevine-derived reporter gene system for precision breeding of Vitis

Evaluation of plant-based reporter systems for improvement of cold-hardy grape cultivars.

Development of novel plant phenotypes using plant pigment-associated genes©

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