GE-COIL potato lines were generated by editing the coilin gene in tetraploid plants of Solanum tuberosum cultivar Chicago using the CRISPR/Cas9 technology.
Coilin is the main structural protein that controls the formation, composition, and activity of subnuclear Cajal bodies (CBs), which are associated with nucleoli. CBs are expected to be involved in cellular functions such as RNA metabolism and response to stress factors.
For the coilin gene editing, an immobilized complex consisting of the Cas9 endonuclease and a short guide RNA was delivered into apical meristem cells by bioballistics or vacuum infiltration method.
Regenerated mutant lines showed deletions longer than 60 nucleotides of the C-terminal domain of
the coilin gene.
The editing of at least one allele of the coilin gene increased resistance of the edited lines to infection with the potato virus Y and their tolerance to salt and osmotic stress.
Source: Makarov et al., (2019), Functional Analysis of Coilin in Virus Resistance and Stress Tolerance of Potato Solanum tuberosum using CRISPR-Cas9 Editing. Doklady Biochemistry and Biophysics 484:88-91.
