PubMed · 2026-04-02
Scientists knocked out a gene in tomato plants that normally suppresses pest defenses, producing plants that resist the devastating tomato leaf miner moth without any loss in growth or fruit yield.
Knocking out SlRaptor1A with CRISPR-Cas9 conferred enhanced resistance to Tuta absoluta (tomato leaf miner) with no reduction in plant growth or yield.
Mutant plants showed elevated levels of jasmonic acid, salicylic acid, and defensive secondary metabolites including alkaloids and phenylpropanoids during insect infestation.
Multi-omics analysis (transcriptomics + metabolomics) confirmed coordinated upregulation of defense genes and metabolite accumulation, identifying SlRaptor1A as a negative regulator of the plant's immune response.
