Precision genome engineering through adenine base editing in plants

Nat Plants. 2018 Jul;4(7):427-431. doi: 10.1038/s41477-018-0178-x. Epub 2018 Jun 4.

Abstract

The recent development of adenine base editors (ABEs) has enabled efficient and precise A-to-G base conversions in higher eukaryotic cells. Here, we show that plant-compatible ABE systems can be successfully applied to protoplasts of Arabidopsis thaliana and Brassica napus through transient transfection, and to individual plants through Agrobacterium-mediated transformation to obtain organisms with desired phenotypes. Targeted, precise A-to-G substitutions generated a single amino acid change in the FT protein or mis-splicing of the PDS3 RNA transcript, and we could thereby obtain transgenic plants with late-flowering and albino phenotypes, respectively. Our results provide 'proof of concept' for in planta ABE applications that can lead to induced neo-functionalization or altered mRNA splicing, opening up new avenues for plant genome engineering and biotechnology.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adenine*
  • Arabidopsis / genetics
  • Brassica napus / genetics
  • CRISPR-Associated Protein 9
  • CRISPR-Cas Systems
  • Gene Editing / methods*
  • Genetic Engineering / methods*
  • Genome, Plant / genetics*
  • Plants, Genetically Modified
  • Protoplasts

Substances

  • CRISPR-Associated Protein 9
  • Adenine