Utilizing cutting-edge technologies for crop trait improvement

Research funded by U.S. Department of Agriculture-National Institute of Food and Agriculture Hatch Act; Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research, Texas A&M AgriLife Research

Project Description

The goal is to utilize novel bioengineering and CRISPR-based genome editing technologies for crop improvement. To enable this, we have established plant tissue culture and transformation pipelines for several crops such as citrus, potato, tomato, sugarcane, and energy cane. A few examples of crops and traits currently being studied by CRISPR, or bioengineering tools include the development of disease-resistant citrus and potato, multi-stress (drought, salinity, cold) resilient sugarcane, as well as engineering plants as bio-factories for producing high-value therapeutics and bioproducts.

At AgriLife-Weslaco center, Mandadi lab has six sterile transfer hoods routinely used for micro-propagation, tissue culture, and crop transformation experiments. We also have several insect-proof BSL1-certified greenhouses with automated mist and sprinkler irrigation systems for propagating plants and several hundreds of acres of onsite cropland for field trials of the new or improved cultivars.