By Leigh Thomas
Associate Professor Nathan Hancock, a plant biologist at the University of South Carolina Aiken, has coauthored a paper published in Nature titled “Transposase-assisted target site integration for efficient plant genome engineering.” Nature is one of the oldest and most prestigious scientific journals publishing the world’s most impactful scientific research.
“It’s the pinnacle as far as scientific publications go,” Hancock says.
The paper is a summation of research in collaboration with Keith Slotkin of the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Two USCA undergraduate students, Kaili Renkin and Megan Collins, are also coauthors.
Slotkin is using transposable element technology developed in Hancock’s lab for his genome editing tool, which inserts pieces of DNA into specified sites in plant genomes to yield novel genetic variants. Their work is part of an effort to improve agriculture sustainability by making crops more disease resistant and less reliant on fertilizer and pesticides. Slotkin’s genome editing process, with Hancock’s transposable element technology, will allow plant breeders to alter a plant’s DNA in a targeted way, reducing the time and cost involved in bringing a new and improved crop to the marketplace.
Hancock has been studying the mPing transposable element since 2005, longer than any other researcher in his field. These “jumping genes” are DNA sequences that naturally move from one location in a genome to another.
“Over the last few years, we’ve been able to significantly increase the jumping efficiency of these elements,” Hancock says. “One of the things that’s cool about this is it is a natural way to cause mutations in plants. This breakthrough allows us to make targeted mutations.”
Prior to this development, the integration of foreign DNA into plant genomes was error prone, resulting in slower and costlier introduction of improved crops.
Hancock explains, “Currently what happens is DNA is randomly put into the plant’s genome. The problem is that this can disrupt other genes, causing unintended consequences. The transposable element-based technology allows us to put regulatory sequences that control nearby genes into a specific place. The result is that only the target gene is edited, potentially resulting in better crops and more food.”
Slotkin paired the transposable elements with CRISPR technology to create a “cut-and-paste” system for plant genomics. The genome is cut at a specific location, and the desired genetic material is inserted using the natural molecular “glue” of the transposable elements, allowing for greater integration of custom DNA into the plant genome. The result is a superior plant with increased virus resistance, elevated nutrient levels, a higher yield of fruit or seeds, and improved taste.
Research for the transposable element technology and genome editing tool was funded by separate grants from the National Science Foundation. Slotkin has secured a patent on the genome editing process, which will be licensed to seed companies for plant breeding.
“This is a breakthrough in plant genome editing that we will continue to improve and apply,” Hancock says.
Source : usca.edu