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Article|11 Apr 2022|OPEN
Editing the CsDMR6 gene in citrus results in resistance to the bacterial disease citrus canker
Saroj Parajuli1 , Heqiang Huo2 , Fred G. Gmitter Jr3 , Yongping Duan4 , Feng Luo5 and Zhanao Deng,1 ,
1Gulf Coast Research and Education Center, University of Florida, IFAS, 14625 County Road 672, Wimauma, FL 33598, USA
2Mid-Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, IFAS, 2725 S. Binion Road, Apopka, FL 32703, USA
3Citrus Research and Education Center, University of Florida, IFAS, 700 Experiment Station Road, Lake Alfred, FL 33850, USA
4USDA-ARS, U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory, 2001 South Rock Road, Fort Pierce, FL 34945, USA
5Clemson University, School of Computing, 100 McAdams Hall, Clemson, SC 29643, USA
*Corresponding author. E-mail: zdeng@ufl.edu

Horticulture Research 9,
Article number: uhac082 (2022)
doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/hr/uhac082
Views: 444

Received: 06 Feb 2022
Accepted: 21 Mar 2022
Published online: 11 Apr 2022

Abstract

Dear Editor,

Citrus (Citrus L.) is one of the most important fruit crops in the world. Sweet oranges (C. × sinensis), grapefruit (C. × paradisi), pummelos (Citrus maxima), lemons (C. × limon), limes (Citrus aurantifolia), mandarins (Citrus reticulata), and tangerines (Citrus reticulata) are the major cultivated types of Citrus. Production worldwide faces challenges from devastating bacterial diseases, including citrus canker, citrus greening (Huanglongbing, HLB), and citrus variegated chlorosis [2]. Citrus canker is caused by Xanthomonas citri ssp. citri (Xcc); most citrus species and cultivars are susceptible to citrus canker. Improving resistance to citrus canker has been an important citrus breeding objective. Recent studies have shown that disabling disease susceptibility genes including the DOWNY MILDEW RESISTANCE 6 (DMR6) gene can be a promising approach to engineering resistance to diseases [1, 3, 5, 6].