Viruses to improve crops: a proposal by IBMCP (CSIC-UPV)

A team of researchers from the Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology of Plants (IBMCP) and the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV) has published an article in the scientific journal 'Nature Reviews Bioengineering' in which they advocate the use of attenuated viruses to improve plant health. It highlights the paradox that the use of vaccines and gene therapies is widespread for human and animal health but, in contrast, their agricultural use is still not authorized, not even in highly confined environments.

Attenuated viruses for crop improvement

In their article, this international research group led by the Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology of Plants (IBMCP), a joint centre of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), and the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV), outlines the path that can be followed to take advantage of the benefits of this technology in the field of plant and crop health.

The team believes that applying attenuated viruses to improve crop qualities, making them more resistant to extreme and changing climatic conditions, or producing dietary supplements to improve human nutrition could be a more efficient and sustainable alternative to the use of agrochemicals, and faster than the use of traditional breeding methods.

Genes that could reduce the use of agrochemicals

The authors suggest that viral vectors, derived from attenuated viruses that do not harm plants, could be used to insert specific genes into crops to improve their agronomic characteristics. For example, inducing flowering in plants and accelerating harvests; developing improved crop varieties; modifying plant structure to facilitate their adaptation to mechanization; increasing drought tolerance; or producing metabolites beneficial to human health, among other applications.

Scientific reference:

Pasin, F., Uranga, M., Charudattan, R., Kwon CT Engineering good viruses to improve crop performance. Nat Rev Bioeng (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44222-024-00197-y

Article available in open access: https://rdcu.be/dH1Jw