Genome Editing Enables Rice to Resist Bacterial Blight

CRISPR systems have been engineered into potent biotechnological tools for both basic and applied research. Bacterial blight (BB) of rice is one of devastating diseases to cause yield loss in Asia and Africa. The causal agent Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo) uses secreted TAL effectors to condition a state of disease susceptibility. On the other hand, host plants evolve various ways to counteract the virulence strategies for resistance. We used CRISPR to engineer rice lines to confer high and broad-spectrum resistant to BB. Our results demonstrate a few routes to realize the promising potential of genome editing in agriculture.