CRISPR Rice Exhibits Broad-Spectrum Herbicide Resistance

Researchers from Hainan Bolian Biotechnology Co. in China successfully generated broad-spectrum resistance to herbicides in rice using CRISPR-Cas9. Their findings are published in the journal Rice.

Weed resistance and crop rotation issues are some of the challenges in modern agriculture; thus, there is a need for herbicide-resistant genetic resources. This led the researchers to use CRISPR-Cas9-mediated non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) together with whole-stage selection to develop herbicide-resistant indica rice by mutating the acetolactate synthase (ALS) gene. Through this technique, they detected mutations, including the triple mutation that conferred broad-spectrum resistance to multiple classes of herbicides, showing an impressive 1153-fold increase in resistance to imazethapyr (IMT) compared to wild-type rice. Furthermore, field trials showed that the resistant mutant exhibited normal agronomic characteristics without affecting the yield after IMT application.

The study demonstrated that the ALS mutations could serve as an effective and reliable transgenic selection marker for laboratory research, showcasing a powerful method for generating valuable herbicide-resistant germplasm and novel resistant mutations via CRISPR-mediated NHEJ.

Read more findings from the open-access article in Rice.