Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Engineered Expression of the Vip3A in Green Tissues as a Feasible approach for Control of Insect Pests in Maize

Guangsheng Yuan
* ORCID logo ,
Cheng Zeng
,
Haoya Shi
,
Yong Yang
,
Juan Du
,
Chaoying Zou
,
Langlang Ma
,
Guangtang Pan
,
Yaou Shen
*
Version 1 : Received: 25 August 2023 / Approved: 28 August 2023 / Online: 28 August 2023 (08:48:49 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Yuan, G.; Zeng, C.; Shi, H.; Yang, Y.; Du, J.; Zou, C.; Ma, L.; Pan, G.; Shen, Y. Engineered Expression of Vip3A in Green Tissues as a Feasible Approach for the Control of Insect Pests in Maize. Insects 2023, 14, 803. Yuan, G.; Zeng, C.; Shi, H.; Yang, Y.; Du, J.; Zou, C.; Ma, L.; Pan, G.; Shen, Y. Engineered Expression of Vip3A in Green Tissues as a Feasible Approach for the Control of Insect Pests in Maize. Insects 2023, 14, 803.

Abstract

Genetic engineering technology offers opportunities to improve many important agronomic traits in crops, including insect-resistance. However, genetically modified (GM) exogenous proteins in edible tissues of transgenic crops has become an issue of intense public concern. To advance the application of GM techniques in maize, a Cre/loxP-based strategy was developed for manipulating the transgenes in green tissues while locking it in non-green tissues. In the strategy, the site-specific excision can be used to switch on or off the expression of transgenes at specific tissues. In this work, two basic transgenic maize named KEY carrying the Cre gene and LOCK containing the Vip3A gene with a blocked element, were obtained based on their separate fusion gene cassettes. The expression level and concentration of Vip3A were observed with high specific accumulation in green tissues (leaf and stem), and only a small amount in root and kernel tissues in the KEY × LOCK hybrids. The insect-resistance of transgenic maize against two common lepidopteran pests, Ostrinia furnacalis and Spodoptera frugiperda, was assessed in the laboratory and field. The results indicated that the hybrids possessed high resistance levels against the two pests, with mortality rates above 73.6% and damage scales below 2.4 compared with the control group. Our results suggested that the Cre/loxP-mediated genetic engineering approach has a competitive advantage in GM maize. Overall, findings from this study are significant for providing a feasible strategy for transgenes avoiding expression in edible parts and exploring novel techniques toward the biosafety of GM plants.

Keywords

genetically modified; Cre/loxP; site-specific excision; transgenic maize; insect-resistance

Subject

Engineering, Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Download PDF Download Supplementary

Comments (0)

We encourage comments and feedback from a broad range of readers. See criteria for comments and our Diversity statement.

Leave a public comment
Send a private comment to the author(s)
* All users must log in before leaving a comment
Views 0
Downloads 0
Comments 0
Metrics 0
Get PDF Supplementary Files Cite Share 0
Bookmark BibSonomy Mendeley Reddit Delicious
×
Alerts
Notify me about updates to this article or when a peer-reviewed version is published.
We use cookies on our website to ensure you get the best experience.
Read more about our cookies here.