Yes! A new genetically altered rice crop is shown to be capable of fending off pathogens in defence.
It is a common tradition to spray crops with pesticides and insecticides to keep away both insects and diseases. But we all know this does more bad than good- both to the plant itself and to its consumers.
Plants identify an impending microbial invasion using receptors on their cells surfaces, and respond by releasing antimicrobial components. Therefore, by identifying genes that cause such a response, we can produce disease-resistant plants. For many years now, researches have been focused on the NPR1 gene from a model plant called Arabidopsis thaliana, in order to boost the immune systems of a variety of crops. However, like all things beneficial, even this gene has its not so useful properties, one among them being the negative effects it has on agricultural crops by loading up its immune system at all times.
Now, to set this right researchers were in pursuit of a better gene that would activate the immune response only when the crop is under attack. Recently, a segment of DNA called the TBF1 from the Arabidopsis genome was tested by copy-pasting it alongside the NPR1
gene in rice crops, which yielded a strain of rice that could fend off attacking pathogens without causing other side-effects like stunted growth usually seen in engineered crops.To further analyze their find, researchers inoculated crop leaves with bacterial pathogens as well as fungus. It was found that whereas infections were quickly spread among unaltered crops, the engineered ones with the gene resisted and confined the infection to a small part.
The researchers believe this innovation could be of great use to farmers with no access to fungicide resulting in the loss of their entire crops to various diseases.
