Engineering the future of Physalis grisea: A focus on agricultural challenges, model species status, and applied improvements

• Published in: Plants, people, planet Vol. 6; no. 6; pp. 1249 - 1260
• Main Authors: Dale, Savanah Marie, Tomaszewski, Elise, Lippman, Zachary, Van Eck, Joyce
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Lancaster John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.11.2024; Wiley
• Subjects: Ascorbic acid; CRISPR; Domestication; Flowers & plants; fruit abscission; Fruits; genetic engineering; Harvest; insect interaction; Physalis grisea; Seeds; underutilized species; Central America; Mexico; United States > US; North America
• DOI: 10.1002/ppp3.10536
• ISSN: 2572-2611

Societal Impact Statement Groundcherry (Physalis grisea) is a plant species grown for its flavorful fruit. The fruit drops from the plant, hence the common name groundcherry. This makes harvest cumbersome and puts the fruit at risk for carrying soil‐borne pathogens, therefore making them unsellable. Furthermore, insects often damage the plants, reducing yield. Advances in gene editing offer promise for addressing these issues and aiding home gardeners and farmers. Improvement will expand access to this nutritious fruit, rich in potassium, vitamin C, and antioxidants. Additionally, studies of its biology could serve as a model for improving other fruiting plants, particularly underutilized species. Summary P. grisea is an underutilized, semidomesticated fruit crop with rising agronomic value. Several resources have been developed for its use in fundamental biological research, including a plant transformation system and a high‐quality reference genome. Already, P. grisea has been used as a model to investigate biological phenomena including inflated calyx syndrome and gene compensation. P. grisea has also been used to demonstrate the potential of fast‐tracking domestication trait improvement through approaches such as CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing. This work has led to the Physalis Improvement Project, which relies on reverse genetics to understand the mechanisms that underlie fruit abscission and plant–herbivore interactions to guide approaches for improvement of undesirable characteristics. CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing has been used to target P. grisea genes that are suspected to act in fruit abscission, particularly orthologs of those that are reported in tomato abscission zone development. A similar approach is being taken to target P. grisea genes involved in the withanolide biosynthetic pathway to determine the impact of withanolides on plant–herbivore interactions. Results from these research projects will lead to a greater understanding of important biological processes and will also generate knowledge needed to develop cultivars with reduced fruit drop and increased resistance to insect herbivory. Resumen La uchuva (P. grisea) es una especie de planta cultivada por su fruto sabroso. El fruto cae de la planta, causando que la cosecha sea laboriosa y pone al fruto en riesgo de llevar patógenos transmitidos por la tierra, lo que los hace invendibles. Además, los insectos dañan las plantas, reduciendo el rendimiento. Los avances en la edición genética ofrecen esperanza para abordar estos problemas y ayudar a los jardineros domésticos y agricultores. Esta reforma ampliará el acceso a este nutritivo fruto, rico en potasio, vitamina C y antioxidantes. Además, los estudios de su biología podrían servir como modelo para mejorar otras plantas frutales, especialmente las especies subutilizadas. Zusammenfassung Die Erdkirsche (P. grisea) ist eine Pflanzenart, die wegen ihrer geschmackintensiven Früchte angebaut wird. Die Früchte fallen von der Pflanze ab, was den Trivialnamen “Erdkirsche” erklärt. Dies macht die Ernte mühsam und gefährdet die Früchte, bodenbürtige Krankheitserreger aufzunehmen, wodurch sie unverkäuflich werden. Darüber hinaus schädigen Insekten oft die Pflanzen, was den Ertrag mindert. Fortschritte in der Genbearbeitung bieten vielversprechende Lösungen für diese Probleme und können sowohl Hobbygärtnern als auch Landwirten helfen. Verbesserungen werden den Zugang zu dieser nahrhaften Frucht, die reich an Kalium, Vitamin C und Antioxidantien ist, erweitern. Außerdem könnten Studien zu ihrer Biologie als Modell für die Verbesserung anderer Obstpflanzen dienen, insbesondere für untergenutzte Arten. Groundcherry (Physalis grisea) is a plant species grown for its flavorful fruit. The fruit drops from the plant, hence the common name groundcherry. This makes harvest cumbersome and puts the fruit at risk for carrying soil‐borne pathogens, therefore making them unsellable. Furthermore, insects often damage the plants, reducing yield. Advances in gene editing offer promise for addressing these issues and aiding home gardeners and farmers. Improvement will expand access to this nutritious fruit, rich in potassium, vitamin C, and antioxidants. Additionally, studies of its biology could serve as a model for improving other fruiting plants, particularly underutilized species.