Functional disruption of cell wall invertase inhibitor by genome editing increases sugar content of tomato fruit...

Area of Science:

• Plant Biotechnology
• Agricultural Science
• Molecular Biology

Background:

• Soluble solid content (SSC) is a key quality trait in tomatoes.
• Cell wall invertase and its inhibitor (INVINH) regulate sucrose unloading in tomato fruits.

Purpose of the Study:

• To enhance tomato sugar content by genome editing the SlINVINH1 gene.
• To evaluate the impact of SlINVINH1 knockout on fruit quality and plant growth.

Main Methods:

• Utilized CRISPR/Cas9 and Target-AID for genome editing of SlINVINH1 in tomato.
• Selected genome-edited lines with higher SSC and comparable fruit weight to the original cultivar.
• Performed whole genome sequencing and non-target metabolome analysis.

Main Results:

• Genome-edited lines exhibited significantly higher SSC, fructose, and glucose content.
• Line 193-3 showed the highest sugar content, with fructose and glucose increases of 29% and 36% respectively.
• No off-target mutations or unexpected metabolites were detected; plant growth remained comparable.

Conclusions:

• Functional disruption of SlINVINH1 via genome editing effectively increases tomato sugar content.
• This approach yields high-sugar tomatoes without compromising fruit weight or plant development.
• SlINVINH1 knockout is a viable strategy for developing improved tomato cultivars.