Projects in Dr. Taheri Lab
Detection of pathogenic agents using CRISPR system
Foodborne diseases are becoming a major public health concern worldwide over the last decades. Most common foodborne pathogens are Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella enterica, and Listeria monocytogenes. Detecting these pathogens in a timely manner helps in preventing their spread and outbreak at early stages. Conventional methods for detecting these bacteria are based on culturing on selective media and following standard biochemical identification, which are time consuming and laborious procedures. Viable-but-not-culturable (VNCB) pathogens can also lead to false negative results in using these standard methods. Rapid detection methods have been developed to overcome the limitations in using conventional methods. However, there is still a need to develop new detection methods with higher sensitivity and speed that can readily be modified based on new pathogenic agents or variants. Here we are nucleic acid-based approach (CRISPR) along with novel sensors to develop detection systems with superior sensitivity and speed over current detection methods.
CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing in plants
Genetic manipulation and development of new transgenic plants rely on the insertion of DNA fragments into plant cells using either Agrobacterium transformation or particle bombardment. Presence of multiple coding regions in these plasmid DNAs such as selectable markers, reporter genes, and necessary promoters for driving their expression, results in an increase in plasmid size, which drastically limits the efficiency of transformation success. The CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing tool relies on the expression of Cas9 and guide RNA that is specifically designed for each targeted gene. We are using CRISPR-Cas9 as a tool in functional genomics research and crop improvement in soybean.
Screening soybean accessions for nodulation and Root system architecture
Nitrogen is one of the most essential plant nutrients and one of the major factors limiting crop productivity. Developing crops with better root system architecture can lead to resilient crops capable of sustaining their productivity in both optimum and stress environments. The soybean germplasm collection at the USDA is a valuable resource in discovering novel allelic variations. We are screening a diverse pool of the USDA soybean collection for nodules and root system architecture traits.
Germplasm enhancement in soybean via mutation breeding
Functional characterization of predicted genes in a given species relies heavily on reverse genetic tools such as mutant populations and analyzing the phenotypic effects of modified gene sequences. Genetic variation is also one of the necessities in plant breeding. A number of soybean mutant cultivars has been released with improved agronomic traits, including yield and resistance to diseases. Marker-assisted selection (MAS) can also be applied for mapping and functional characterization of genes and traits in such population and further enhance our understanding of plant development.
Soybean line JTN-5203 for maturity group V has been developed at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (ARS – Jackson, TN) and was released in 2015. A mutant population from this germplasm has been developed and we are using this population for functional genomics analysis of the mutant soybean population. Following is the seed composition data for the 4397 M2 individual mutants. The data in this table can be can be sorted by clicking on specific seed trait.
Soybean line JTN-5203 for maturity group V has been developed at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (ARS – Jackson, TN) and was released in 2015. A mutant population from this germplasm has been developed and we are using this population for functional genomics analysis of the mutant soybean population. Following is the seed composition data for the 4397 M2 individual mutants. The data in this table can be can be sorted by clicking on specific seed trait.
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