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The Future of Food

—CRISPR Crops That
Capture Carbon
English Presented By Date of
Report 2023 Huyen Tram the Report: 16/03/2023
Content: PART 1 Introduction to CRISPR

PART 2 Next-generation agriculture

Championing carbon flow

PART 3
1. Photosynthesis
2. Root depth
3. Soil microbiome

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Report 2023
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Introduction to CRISPR

The gene-editing technique CRISPR has enabled rapid

scientific advancements in many areas, including human
health, and it now shows that crop research can also benefit
from this exciting technology.

With the help of CRISPR , scientists are making gene edited

plant varieties that are better at storing carbon and don’t have
the traits of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) that are
made with transgenes.

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Report 2023
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Next-generation agriculture

FIGURE 1: A program organized by the IGI is exploring how CRISPR genome editing can be used to help agriculture adapt to climate change and improve carbon sequestration.
The program encompasses three working groups, each of which is focused on a different stage of the journey of carbon from the atmosphere into the soil: (1) sequestration of
atmospheric carbon; (2) flow of carbon to plant roots and root exudates (secretions); and (3) retention of carbon in the soil.
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FIGURES 2: Carbon Cycle diagram showing the flow of carbon, its sources and paths. 05
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1.Photosynthesis
The first step is to use genetic engineering or
CRISPR to change the process of photosynthesis.

Scientits hope to increase the yields, but that all

starts with photosynthesis.

Scientits has devised a high-throughput screening

platform that gets down to protoplasts—plant cells
without cell walls that are totipotent, sensitive, and
versatile.

FIGURES 3: At the IGI, projects to improve rice plants include those focusing on carbon capture,
as well as those focusing on greater disease resistance and drought tolerance. To make it possible
to confirm the transformation of rice callus tissue, IGI researchers inserted a gene for a red
fluorescence marker. Expression of the marker helps them select tissue for growing seedlings
with the desired genome edit.
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2.Root depth
The IGI is focusing on how to enhance the depth of
the roots because the deeper you pump carbon into
the ground, the greater the likelihood the carbon
will stay in the soil.

If the carbon gets into the roots below, there’s a

much higher probability of the carbon staying there
for longer periods of time

FIGURES 4: A sketch of natural and managed soil structure characteristics.

Explain figure: the layer in figure a) looks like darker and more fertile than figure b),c)
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3.Microbiome
reconstruct the genomes of
microorganisms that actively
absorb carbon released from plant

Zhizospheric microbiome
These microbial communities have
beneficial effects:
- Plant growth
- Essential nutrient acquisition
- Pathogens tolerance
- Increased abiotic as well as
FIGURES 5: Illustrating our four primary objectives, which explore how microbial ecophysiology,
biotic stress tolerance population dynamics, and mineral-microbe interactions regulate cellular carbon persistence under changing
moisture regimes.

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 References:
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/can-we-hack-plant-dna-to-suck-up-more-carbon-emissions
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/07/engineered-crops-can-fight-climate-change/
https://microbewiki.kenyon.edu/index.php/Carbon_cycle#Reducing_Carbon_Losses
Kumawat, K. C., Razdan, N., & Saharan, K. (2022). Rhizospheric microbiome: Bio-based emerging strategies for sustainable
agriculture development and future perspectives. Microbiological research, 254, 126901.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micres.2021.126901
Or, Dani, Thomas Keller and William Schlesinger. 2021. "Natural and Managed Soil Structure: On the Fragile Scaffolding for Soil
Functioning." Soil and Tillage Research 208:104912. doi: 10.1016/j.still.2020.104912.

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Members
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Huynh Khoi MInh Uyen- 21126572
Trần Châu Anh - 21126900
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Thank you for listening. Nguyễn Đinh Bảo Trân - 21126547