A resistant grapevine reduces chemical input costs and crop loss.
A team of researchers from Stellenbosch University and the Agricultural Research Council has successfully edited the DNA of a grapevine, marking the first time CRISPR technology has been applied to a woody crop plant in Africa.
The scientists “switched off” a single gene called VvDMR6.1, which is linked to how plants respond to disease, making the plants less vulnerable to downy mildew and improving their ability to conserve water during droughts.
“By editing a gene that makes grapevines more vulnerable to disease, we were able to reduce this vulnerability while also influencing how the plants respond to water shortages,” said lead researcher Dr Manuela Campa from Stellenbosch University.
“Our research shows how modern gene or genome editing technology can be used to improve grapevines, so they are better able to cope with disease and droughts.”
For the viticulture industry, this breakthrough offers significant economic benefits. Downy mildew is a major disease affecting vineyards globally, causing yield losses and requiring intensive fungicide applications.
A resistant grapevine reduces chemical input costs and crop loss. Additionally, improved drought tolerance directly addresses climate change pressures, as vineyards in South Africa and across the Mediterranean face increasingly dry conditions.
Campa noted that genome-editing techniques such as CRISPR have been increasingly used globally to modify genes and enhance plant resistance to disease.
However, their application to woody perennial species has remained limited due to complex regeneration systems and long breeding cycles. “This represents a step toward integrating modern genome editing approaches into African crop improvement programs, particularly for high-value horticultural crops such as grapevine.”
The edited plants responded better to dry conditions. “They were able to conserve water more effectively, suggesting they may be better suited to increasingly dry conditions linked to climate change,” Campa said. “This is an exciting step forward because it indicates that we can make precise changes to plants that improve more than one important trait at the same time.”
Further studies are needed to evaluate the edited plants under field conditions. However, the research demonstrates that genome editing can be applied to perennial crops in Africa, opening the door to similar improvements in other high-value horticultural crops such as citrus, apples, and stone fruits.
For the fresh produce sector, this breakthrough offers a pathway to disease-resistant, climate-adapted varieties that maintain yield and quality under increasing environmental pressure.
Source - https://www.foodbusinessmea.com
