Barley stripe mosaic virus-induced gene silencing for functional validation of abiotic stress in barley

Abstract

The barley stripe mosaic virus (BSMV) uses its genomic RNA components (alpha, beta, and gamma) as an efficient method for studying gene functions. It is a newly developed method that utilizes gene transcript suppression to determine the role of plant genes. BSMV derived from virus induced gene silencing (VIGS) is capable of infecting various key farming crops like barley, wheat, rice, corn, and oats. Nevertheless, the growing acceptance and enhancement of BSMV-VIGS will benefit all kinds of plants. Abiotic stresses such as drought and salt are highly affecting plant growth, development, and production. BSMV-induced temporal gene knockdown is performed during particular stressful situations to determine their specific function. The quick physiological and biochemical changes aid in confirming the role of the target genes. VIGS has a significant role to improve crop genetics and breeding, despite having certain restrictions. Thus, exploring the possible solution and addressing these difficulties will enhance the technology in the continuous advancement of plant manufacturing. BSMV-mediated VIGS has become popular in functional genomics; gene function can be determined without permanent transformation. In general, BSMV-mediated VIGS will be very helpful in the ongoing effort to develop resilient crops.

Keywords: BSMV; Abiotic stress; Functional genomics; Gene knockdown; VIGS.