RNA Silencing-Mediated Resistance to a Crinivirus in Sweet Potato
October 17, 2008| |
Sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus (SPCSV) is one of the most destructive pathogens of sweet potato. The virus belongs to the genus Crinivirus, which also includes the lettuce infectious yellow virus. SPCSV can reduce sweet potato yields by 50 percent. It can also cause various synergistic disease complexes when co-infecting with other viruses, including sweet potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV). Scientists from the International Potato Center, University of Helsinki and Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences developed genetically modified sweet potato varieties with increased resistance to SPCSV.
The transgenic lines were generated by inserting an intron-spliced hairpin construct targeting the replicase encoding sequences of SPCSV and SPFMV. Replicase is an enzyme necessary for the replication of the virus’ genome. Several transgenic lines exhibited mild or no symptoms following viral infection, with significant reduction in SPCSV accumulation. However, the high levels of resistance to accumulation of SPCSV could not prevent the development of synergistic sweet potato virus disease in those transgenic plants also infected with SPFMV.
The paper published by the journal Molecular Plant Pathology is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1364-3703.2008.00480.x
| |
Biotech Updates is a weekly newsletter of ISAAA, a not-for-profit organization. It is distributed for free to over 22,000 subscribers worldwide to inform them about the key developments in biosciences, especially in biotechnology. Your support will help us in our mission to feed the world with knowledge. You can help by donating as little as $10.
-
See more articles:
-
News from Around the World
- Biotech's 'Luminous Protein' Bags Nobel Prize for Chemistry
- Political, Financial Push Urged to End Hunger
- FAO-Wageningen University Agreement on Science for Development
- Several Countries Still with Alarming Levels of Hunger
- IFAD Grant to Benefit Republic of Congo’s Rural Poor
- Scientists: GM Grape could Revitalize Midwest Wine Industry
- Diatoms are Transgenic by Nature, says Study
- Retooled Approach To Bio-based Butanol Production
- A Seed Bank to Document Plant Evolution
- China’s GM Rice Push, Is it necessary?
- Limited Release of GM Clover in Australia
- Asian Scientists Cooperate in Biofuel Development
- Indonesia "Needs to Enter Era of Biotech" Says Government Savants
- Aussie Farmer Receives Trade and Technology Promotion Award
- Do European Consumers Buy GM Foods?
- New Safety Research Projects on GM Crops
- Impact Report on "Not Yet EU-authorized' GMs
- Dow AgroSciences Acquires German Hybrid Seed Company
-
Research Highlights
- Calcium-Biofortified Lettuce
- RNA Silencing-Mediated Resistance to a Crinivirus in Sweet Potato
-
Announcements
- Second IAALD Africa Conference
- 2009 International Conference on Horticulture
- Request for Proposals: Grand Challenges in Global Health
-
Read the latest: - Biotech Updates (April 30, 2025)
- Gene Editing Supplement (April 30, 2025)
- Gene Drive Supplement (February 22, 2023)
-
Subscribe to BU: - Share
- Tweet