Researchers from Lorestan University and partners found that the knockout of
the StNRL1 gene in potatoes enhances resistance to late blight and
susceptibility to early blight in the leaves of potatoes. The findings of
this study provide significant insights into the genetic approaches to
control late blight disease in potatoes.



Potato late blight, a disease caused by Phytophthora infestans, and early
blight, a disease caused by Alternaria alternata, have long been the common
causes of severe yield loss to potato farmers. Farmers have been utilizing
chemical fungicides to manage and reduce losses in potato yield. Hence, the
researchers knocked out StNRL1 gene using CRISPR-Cas technology to improve
the resistance and susceptibility of potatoes to late blight and early
blight.



The results of the study show that the sizes of lesions in StNRL1 mutant
lines were reduced, showing resistance to Phytophthora infestans. Similarly,
this study also revealed that the StNRL1-56 and StNRL1-22 mutant lines are
more susceptible to Alternaria alternata, a fungus that causes early blight
in potatoes. This research accelerates the current efforts to develop potato
varieties with increased resistance to various diseases.



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