ICAR Scientists Develop World’s First AI-Based Plant Genome Editing Platform

Scientists at the Central Rice Research Institute (CRRI) of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) in Cuttack, Odisha, developed and validated the world's first artificial intelligence (AI)-based genome-editing platform for plants, Plant-OpenCRISPR1 (POC1), using rice as a model crop.

The research was led by Dr. Qutubuddin Ali Molla. This new platform, named 'Plant-OpenCRISPR1' (POC1), is based on 'OpenCRISPR-1' (OC1), an AI-engineered nuclease for human cells.

Scientists say this advancement is significant because, until now, genome editing has relied on a few bacterial enzymes, such as Cas9 and Cas12a, but these enzymes often face challenges in plant systems.

This platform enables advanced gene knockout, base editing, and prime editing in rice crops using AI-designed enzymes, beyond traditional Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) techniques.

Features of Plant-OpenCRISPR1

This platform aims to develop climate-resilient, disease-resistant, high-yielding, and nutrient-rich crop varieties by enabling precise genome editing without the introduction of foreign genes.

POC1 uses AI-designed enzymes instead of the naturally occurring microbial proteins used in traditional CRISPR systems.

It is based on OpenCRISPR-1 (OC1), an AI-generated nuclease originally designed for human cells in the United States.

It uses large language models trained on vast protein databases to engineer advanced enzymes, accelerating next-generation genome editing and customized biotechnology solutions.

This research has been accepted for publication in the international journal, 'New Phytologist.'

CRISPR Technology

CRISPR Cas-9 technology (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats and 'CRISPR-associated protein 9') is a gene editing technology.

It is also known as "Molecular Scissors" in scientific terms.

It was discovered in 2012. Genome editing or gene editing technology allows genetic material to be added, deleted, or replaced at targeted locations in the genome.

In CRISPR technology, specially designed molecules called Cas-9 genes, or genetic scissors, locate the defective DNA strand and, using enzymes, cut the targeted DNA strand.

Thus, by cutting out the gene that causes a genetically inherited disease, disease can be cured.

The specific portion of the DNA strand that is cut or removed has a tendency to naturally rebuild, repair, or regenerate.

Emmanuelle Charpentier discovered an unknown molecule, trans-activating CRISPR RNA (TracrRNA), which was published in 2011. This 'TracrRNA' was part of CRISPR-Cas9, an ancient bacterial immune system that deactivates viruses by degrading their DNA.