Plant Breeding and Gene Editing Grow Together in a New Way
Development regulators are genes that regulate plant development and growth. UF/IFAS scientists have discovered that one such gene (PLT5) can help deliver DNA into a plant to promote shoot growth form either a stem of a whole plant or young leaves cultured in a petri dish.
Results from the study show that injection of a plant developmental regulator known as PLT5 into the stem helps some snapdragon and tomatoes grow into new shoots. In addition, scientists found that the PLT5 can help young leaves or petioles of cabbages grow into a whole plant after culturing them.
“Generally, it is extremely difficult for cells from some plants to grow into whole plants from a tissue culture,” said Alfred Huo, an Assistant Professor of horticultural sciences at the UF/IFAS Mid-Florida Research and Education Center. “By applying PLT5, scientists can more effectively deliver genes or DNA fragments into plant cells, which means plants can grow from the cellular level to adulthood more efficiently.”
This research can help scientists address some questions in basic plant breeding, including how to get certain genes into plants, Huo adds.
For more, continue reading at blogs.ifas.ufl.edu.
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