Team:Stony Brook
Planti-Virus
Stony Brook University
The Problem
Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) is an RNA virus that causes necrosis, mosaic mottling, and stunted growth of plant tissues. It is highly infectious and attacks species of the Solanaceae family, which includes tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant and tobacco. TMV is spread by insects, so the current method for eradicating TMV from plants is pesticides. While pesticides protect plants by killing pests, they are not environmentally friendly, polluting the air, water and soil.
The Problem
Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) is an RNA virus that causes necrosis, mosaic mottling, and stunted growth of plant tissues. It is highly infectious and attacks species of the Solanaceae family, which includes tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant and tobacco. TMV is spread by insects, so the current method for eradicating TMV from plants is pesticides. While pesticides protect plants by killing pests, they are not environmentally friendly, polluting the air, water and soil.
The Solution
Our goal is to introduce a new defense mechanism centered around XRN1p, a protein found in eukaryotes which degrades the RNA backbone of improper mRNA and tRNA. We expect that XRN1p will recognize TMV and degrade it inside our plant of choice, N. benthamiana. The plant genome will be altered through agroinfiltration, which is using Agrobacterium to transfer the XRN1 gene into our plants. This solution will give plants the ability to defend themselves against TMV again while also validating the dream of a zero-pesticide future through synthetic biology.
The Solution
Our goal is to introduce a new defense mechanism centered around XRN1p, a protein found in eukaryotes which degrades the RNA backbone of improper mRNA and tRNA. We expect that XRN1p will recognize TMV and degrade it inside our plant of choice, N. benthamiana. The plant genome will be altered through agroinfiltration, which is using Agrobacterium to transfer the XRN1 gene into our plants. This solution will give plants the ability to defend themselves against TMV again while also validating the dream of a zero-pesticide future through synthetic biology.
Future of Synthetic Biology Research in Plants
Through our plant-focused research, we found an underwhelming amount of iGEM teams that were also pursuing synthetic biology in the same field. This is even more surprising when you consider that there is an iGEM award specific to synthetic biology in plants. Through our research, we hope to encourage future teams to continue making a difference in the plant biology world by solving the countless problems that plants face today due to disease and climate change.
Future of Synthetic Biology Research in Plants
Through our plant-focused research, we found an underwhelming amount of iGEM teams that were also pursuing synthetic biology in the same field. This is even more surprising when you consider that there is an iGEM award specific to synthetic biology in plants. Through our research, we hope to encourage future teams to continue making a difference in the plant biology world by solving the countless problems that plants face today due to disease and climate change.
