grafting-biotech
Grafting-biotech is the application of modern biotechnological methods to enhance and optimize the ancient horticultural practice of physically joining two plant tissues so they grow as a single organism. This field investigates the molecular and genetic mechanisms underlying graft compatibility, vascular reconnection, and long-distance signaling across graft junctions. Understanding these processes opens new avenues for engineering disease resistance, improving rootstock-scion interactions, and accelerating crop improvement without genetic transformation.
open_in_new WikipediaPubMed · 2026-05-04
Grafting — joining one plant's shoot onto another's root system — turns out to be a two-way molecular conversation. This review shows how engineering only the rootstock can make the fruit-bearing top of the plant more resistant to disease and climate stress, without altering its own DNA.
mRNAs, small RNAs, proteins, and peptides physically cross the graft junction through the phloem, enabling direct molecular communication between rootstock and scion.
Small RNAs and regulatory peptides are the key stress-resistance messengers, activating systemic defence responses in the scion by modulating its gene expression.
CRISPR-Cas9-engineered rootstocks successfully deliver protective mobile molecules to unmodified scions, enhancing tolerance to pathogens, pests, and abiotic stresses without altering the scion genome.
