Project Grant 20216701334258

The Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded $700,000 under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative competitive grants program to the Regents of the University of California at Riverside for a project grant titled "Developing RNA-based strategies to control fungal diseases on pre- and post-harvesting plants." The project aims to identify key fungal virulence genes in economically important pathogens Botrytis cinerea, Aspergillus niger, and Verticillium dahliae that have broad plant host ranges and cause significant crop losses worldwide. Researchers will design RNA molecules to specifically silence fungal disease genes through spray-induced gene silencing, an approach where gene-targeting RNAs are sprayed onto plants and taken up by fungal cells. The funding will support efforts to enhance the stability and uptake efficiency of spray-induced gene silencing RNAs by developing organic and inorganic delivery vehicles, as well as more cost-effective production methods. Researchers also plan to deploy beneficial bacteria and fungi to continuously produce and deliver silencing RNAs to plant rhizospheres as a way to potentially control soil-borne fungal pathogens and manipulate soil microbiome composition for improved crop production.