SWEET Promoter Editing Produces Rice Lines Resistant to Bacterial Blight

TAL (transcription activator-like) effector proteins, translocated to host cells by the bacterial pathogen Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae, transcriptionally activate host SWEET genes to induce a state susceptibility in bacterial blight of rice. Several members of TAL effector family recognize in a sequence specific manner the cognate SWEET gene promoters, so called effector binding elements (EBEs). We deployed genome editing technologies, e.g., TALEN and CRISPR/Cas9, to precisely mutagenize several EBEs in three SWEET genes that are targeted by five naturally occurring TAL effectors. The promoter-mutations abolish the inducibility of SWEET genes by corresponding TAL effectors and concomitantly confer disease resistance to those otherwise virulent pathogen strains. My presentation will include the strategies, results and implication of the genetic modifications based on understanding of disease biology and depend on the most advanced genome editing technologies.