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Review
. 2021 Jul 19;22(14):7687.
doi: 10.3390/ijms22147687.

Tuning Beforehand: A Foresight on RNA Interference (RNAi) and In Vitro-Derived dsRNAs to Enhance Crop Resilience to Biotic and Abiotic Stresses

Eltayb Abdellatef  1   2   3 , Nasrein Mohamed Kamal  2   4 , Hisashi Tsujimoto  2
Affiliations
Review

Tuning Beforehand: A Foresight on RNA Interference (RNAi) and In Vitro-Derived dsRNAs to Enhance Crop Resilience to Biotic and Abiotic Stresses

Eltayb Abdellatef et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Crop yield is severely affected by biotic and abiotic stresses. Plants adapt to these stresses mainly through gene expression reprogramming at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. Recently, the exogenous application of double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) and RNA interference (RNAi) technology has emerged as a sustainable and publicly acceptable alternative to genetic transformation, hence, small RNAs (micro-RNAs and small interfering RNAs) have an important role in combating biotic and abiotic stresses in plants. RNAi limits the transcript level by either suppressing transcription (transcriptional gene silencing) or activating sequence-specific RNA degradation (post-transcriptional gene silencing). Using RNAi tools and their respective targets in abiotic stress responses in many crops is well documented. Many miRNAs families are reported in plant tolerance response or adaptation to drought, salinity, and temperature stresses. In biotic stress, the spray-induced gene silencing (SIGS) provides an intelligent method of using dsRNA as a trigger to silence target genes in pests and pathogens without producing side effects such as those caused by chemical pesticides. In this review, we focus on the potential of SIGS as the most recent application of RNAi in agriculture and point out the trends, challenges, and risks of production technologies. Additionally, we provide insights into the potential applications of exogenous RNAi against biotic stresses. We also review the current status of RNAi/miRNA tools and their respective targets on abiotic stress and the most common responsive miRNA families triggered by stress conditions in different crop species.

Keywords: RNAi; drought; dsRNA; environmental risks; gene silencing; heat; insects; miRNA; risk; salinity; siRNA; spray-induced gene silencing (SIGS).

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Illustration of the general RNAi pathway overview. Steps (1, 2) refer to dicing, (3, 4 and 5) refer to loading, (6) refer to slicing. (Adapted from [5,25]).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Predictable effect of dsRNA spraying on the long-term-insect transcriptome and soil living organisms’ behavior. The invasive insects take up the dsRNA directly or the plant-derived long dsRNA by sucking or chewing. In the insects’ cells, dsRNA process into 21 nt long siRNAs by the dicer (RNAse III enzyme). Produced siRNAs bind the RNAi-inducing silencing complex (RISC). The guide strand of siRNAs helps RISC to target the corresponding mRNA, leading to gene silencing and no protein expression. The siRNA silencing signals can remain for several generations.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Predictable model illustrating effect of dsRNA spraying on seed genomic modifications. After foliar application of dsRNA, plants accumulate the Ex-dsRNA, and the dsRNA/siRNA signals in plants can spread systemically through the vascular tissue system. Accumulation of siRNA due to different applicable dsRNAs may lead to phenotypic variation in plants from generation to other generations. The expansion of siRNA could produce preferable mutations or modify the gene’s functions as the epigenetic modifications in plants can be directed and mediated by sRNAs.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Pathway showing the steps involves in post transcriptional regulation mediated by abiotic stress-responsive miRNA genes in plants. Adapted from [4].
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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