University of Missouri researchers have created rice plants that resist bacterial blight, a devastating disease that threatens one of the world's most important food crops.
The breakthrough could help farmers in parts of Asia and Africa, where the disease can destroy harvests and threaten livelihoods.
Led by Bing Yang, a Curators' Distinguished Professor in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources , the work opens new possibilities for developing stronger crops that can withstand other agricultural challenges.
"Bacterial blight can wreak havoc on rice crops, reducing both yield and quality, which creates serious challenges for farmers who depend on the staple grain," Yang said. "Our lab investigates how bacterial blight interacts with rice at the genetic level — knowledge that helps us identify ways to strengthen the plant's natural defenses."
Building stronger crops
Before farmers can reap the benefits of this work, the Mizzou team must first transfer its findings from a laboratory line into rice varieties grown commercially. Researchers also need to conduct additional testing, navigate regulatory requirements and find industry partners to help commercialize any resulting varieties.
While it may be several years before farmers can grow the rice plants developed at Mizzou, Yang sees opportunities to apply the same approach to other crops, including corn and soybeans.
"Our recent breakthrough paves the way to explore genetic solutions to a range of challenges that farmers face across Missouri and nationwide, from devastating plant diseases to drought and extreme temperatures," Yang, an investigator in the Bond Life Sciences Center , said. "By developing crops that are better equipped to withstand these stresses, we can help farmers protect yields, strengthen agricultural resilience and prepare for an increasingly challenging growing environment."
An AI-powered tool opens new possibilities
At the heart of Mizzou's breakthrough is OpenCRISPR-1, a gene-editing tool designed using artificial intelligence.
Gene editing allows researchers to make targeted changes to an organism's DNA, such as altering genes that make plants vulnerable to disease. Originally developed by the California biotechnology company Profluent, OpenCRISPR-1 had previously been demonstrated in animal cells. Yang's team adapted the system for use in rice.
"Unlike proprietary gene-editing tools that may require licensing agreements for commercial use, OpenCRISPR-1 is open source and free for research and commercialization of crop genome editing," Yang said. "That accessibility gives researchers and companies greater flexibility to explore new genetic solutions and develop crop varieties with valuable agricultural traits."
"AI-designed OpenCRISPR-1 enables efficient targeted mutagenesis and prime editing in rice" was published in aBIOTECH.
