Crop Biotech Update

CRISPR Improves Yield of Soybean in Temperate Regions

March 27, 2024

Researchers from China used CRISPR on soybeans to boost yield in temperate regions. Their strategy may also be used to introduce essential traits like disease tolerance in crops.

Soybean needs a long period of darkness and is restricted to a narrow range of latitudes to grow. When it is planted in temperate regions, the soybean's flowering and maturity are delayed, which severely affects harvest time.

To help with this problem, scientists from Syngenta Biotechnology (China) Co., Ltd and Syngenta Seed Technology China Co., Ltd used CRISPR-LbCas1 to modify a North American subtropical soybean cultivar. The team designed a single gRNA to modify the nuclear localization signal (NLS) regions of E1 and E1Lb. They produced new germplasms with shorter flowering and maturity times and identified the ideal latitudinal zone for cultivation. The gene-edited crops displayed good agronomic traits and improved yields in temperate areas.

Read the article on Plant Biotechnology Journal for more information.


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