CRISPR-Cas9 mediated OsMIR168a knockout reveals its pleiotropy in rice.

ABSTRACT: MicroRNA168 (MIR168) is a key miRNA that targets the main RNA-induced silencing complex component Argonaute 1 (AGO1) to regulate plant growth and environmental stress responses. However, the regulatory functions of MIR168 need to be further elucidated in rice. In this paper, we generated clean OsMIR168a deletion mutants by CRISPR-Cas9 strategy. We then phenotypically and molecularly characterized these mutants. The rice OsMIR168a mutants grew rapidly at the seedling stage, produced more tillers and matured early. Compared to the wild-type plants, the mutants were shorter at maturity and produced smaller spikelets and seeds. Analysis of gene expression showed that the transcription levels of OsMIR168a's target genes such as OsAGO1a, OsAGO1b and OsAGO1d were elevated significantly in the OsM

SUBMITTER: Zhou J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8753357 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature