PulseExploreJournal ClubDebatesTrendingResearchersJournals
Instagram
HomeExploreJournal ClubTrending
Synapse
⌘+K
Synapse
June 1, 2026The Crop Journal0 citationsOpen Access

Engineering the CatI intron creates a broadly applicable cis-element for crop breeding and plant research

View Full Paper
KQKeli QiuRXRui XuJZJiankai Zhou

Key Points

  • The research aims to engineer the CatI intron to function as a cis-element that enhances gene expression in plants.
  • Engineered CatI intron in castor bean through mutagenesis, identifying variant CatI-mu7.
  • Tested gene expression in Nicotiana benthamiana, Arabidopsis, Solanum lycopersicum, and rice.
  • Performed knock-in of CatI-mu7 into HSP101 to assess fertility under heat stress.
  • CatI-mu7 significantly improved fusion-gene expression and splice accuracy across multiple plant species.
  • Knock-in of CatI-mu7 increased male fertility under heat stress in both rice and Arabidopsis compared with wild-type.
  • The findings suggest potential applications for crop improvement in stress-prone environments.

Abstract

Some introns can act as cis -elements to enhance gene expression without altering promoter specificity. Here, we engineered the castor bean catalase 1 first intron ( CatI ) by mutagenesis and identified CatI-mu7 , which exhibited enhanced fusion-gene expression and improved splicing accuracy in Nicotiana benthamiana, Arabidopsis , Solanum lycopersicum , and rice. Knock-in of CatI-mu7 into HSP101 increased male fertility under heat stress in rice and Arabidopsis compared with wild-type and CatI knock-in controls, highlighting its potential applications in crop breeding.

Ask AI
Helpful
Bookmark
Share
View Full Paper

Cite This Study

Qiu et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a1d21e502fbce9130637ba6https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2026.05.003
Ask AI
Helpful
Bookmark
Share
View Full Paper