Targeted knockout of the gene OsHOL1 removes methyl iodide emissions from rice plants

Abstract Iodine deficiency represents a public health problem worldwide. To increase the amount of iodine in the diet, biofortification strategies of plants have been tried. They rely on the exogenous administration of iodine to increase its absorption and accumulation. However, iodine is not stable...

Descripción completa

Guardado en:
Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Martina Carlessi, Lorenzo Mariotti, Francesca Giaume, Fabio Fornara, Pierdomenico Perata, Silvia Gonzali
Formato: article
Lenguaje:EN
Publicado: Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:
R
Q
Acceso en línea:https://doaj.org/article/922538e128e049a6abea876169cd2db7
Etiquetas: Agregar Etiqueta
Sin Etiquetas, Sea el primero en etiquetar este registro!
Descripción
Sumario:Abstract Iodine deficiency represents a public health problem worldwide. To increase the amount of iodine in the diet, biofortification strategies of plants have been tried. They rely on the exogenous administration of iodine to increase its absorption and accumulation. However, iodine is not stable in plants and can be volatilized as methyl iodide through the action of specific methyltransferases encoded by the HARMLESS TO OZONE LAYER (HOL) genes. The release of methyl iodide in the atmosphere represents a threat for the environment due to its ozone depletion potential. Rice paddies are among the strongest producers of methyl iodide. Thus, the agronomic approach of iodine biofortification is not appropriate for this crop, leading to further increases of iodine emissions. In this work, we used the genome editing CRISPR/Cas9 technology to knockout the rice HOL genes and investigate their function. OsHOL1 resulted a major player in methyl iodide production, since its knockout abolished the process. Moreover, its overexpression reinforced it. Conversely, knockout of OsHOL2 did not produce effects. Our experiments helped elucidating the function of the rice HOL genes, providing tools to develop new rice varieties with reduced iodine emissions and thus more suitable for biofortification programs without further impacting on the environment.