Progress 06/01/24 to 10/14/24

Outputs
Target Audience:Since its establishment in 1946, the Society for In Vitro Biology (SIVB) has been committed to fostering the exchange of knowledge of in vitro biology of cells, tissues, and organs from both plants and animals (including humans). The membership of this professional society includes many of the leaders and pioneers of tissue culture and in vitro biology. Participants in the 2024 World Congress on In Vitro Biology were representative of over 27 countries including the USA and featured scientists working in academia, government, and industry; as well as students and postdoctoral fellows whose research bridges all aspects of in vitro biology and biotechnology for the benefit of plant, human, and animal subjects. In an ongoing effort to enhance accessibility, SIVB continued to offer much of the meeting's content in a hybrid online format, enabling scientists who faced financial or travel limitations to participate in the scientific events. SIVB firmly believes that today's students are the future of in vitro biology, and to support this belief the Society actively encourages the continued growth of emerging researchers and scientists. This commitment was reflected in the Society's outreach efforts, which included offering free registration to students worldwide for the World Congress and integrating student meetings and workshops into the scientific program. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?By presenting the latest key advancements in gene and apomixis, attendees and their laboratories will be better equipped to utilize innovative methods to accelerate their breeding programs. This will help address productivity and nutritional challenges associated with the growing global population, changing climate, and limited resources. With access to new and novel trait and delivery technologies for plants, they will gain significant benefits in their agricultural and fundamental plant biology research. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Presentations were delivered live at the meeting and recorded at the same time. The recordings were shared virtually both as part of the On-Demand program (through September 30, 2024) and content of the Society's YouTube channel, allowing global participants to view and re-watch them multiple times. This capability enabled attendees to gain a deeper understanding of the research presented, enhancing their knowledge of plant breeding, and helping addressing challenges in their work. As a result, we were able to educate and support not only the 629 international scientists, researchers and students who attended the meeting in person, but also their faculty, labs, and communities who benefit from this shared knowledge. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The World Congress program provided the latest updates on crop and woody/ornamental plant improvement through genome modification technologies. These advancements were made possible by enhanced gene editing tool delivery, optimized plant transformation processes, and recent progress in understanding synthetic apomixis systems. Speakers from public and private institutions worldwide presented cutting-edge research. 1. The first session entitled "Unlocking the power of synthetic apomixis: a paradigm shift in plant breeding" convened by Todd J. Jones, Corteva Agriscience, and Heqiang Huo, University of Florida, focused on recent advances in developing efficient apomictic systems for agriculture. Apomixis can stabilize and propagate any genotype, including F1 hybrids, offering revolutionary potential for plant breeding. It allows for the creation of self-reproducing hybrids that maintain heterosis across generations, even in non-hybrid crops. In species without natural apomicts, synthetic apomixis--engineering plants to bypass meiosis, repress recombination, and induce parthenogenesis--shows promise. As of this report, the session has 135 views in the On Demand program. The presentations from this session were: Setting the Stage for Synthetic Apomixis Through Discoveries in Natural Systems presented by Peggy Ozias-Akins, University of GA. Dr. Ozias-Akins gave an update on her research about the identification and functional characterization of a gene for parthenogenesis from Pennisetum squamulatum (PsASGR-BBML). Her lab demonstrated that PsASGR-BBML can induce parthenogenesis and the production of haploid offspring in transgenic sexual pearl millet, rice and maize. Seeding the Future: Enabling Hybrid Crop Propagation Through Clonal Seeds presented by Imtiyaz Khanday, University of CA-Davis reported on a projected able to achieve high-frequency (>95% over three generations) synthetic apomixis in hybrid rice by a single step approach inducing MiMe mutations and egg cell expression of BBM1 apomictic plants maintain the phenotype of the F1 hybrid along successive generations. Hy-Gain: Harnessing Apomixis in Self-reproducing Sorghum Hybrids for Smallholder Farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa presented by Marissa Simon, Corteva Agriscience provided an update on the Hy-Gain project, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The goal is to create self-reproducing hybrids in sorghum and cowpea, allowing smallholder farmers to save and grow seeds without losing yield or quality. This project involves multiple academic institutions (University of Queensland, University of GA, University of Zurich, and Langebio, Cinvestav) and Corteva. By combining Mitosis instead of Meiosis (MiMe) and spontaneous, fertilization-independent embryo development, they demonstrated a self-reproducing hybrid line in sorghum. 2. The Second session entitled "Advances in plant transformation methods to accelerate crop improvement," was convened by Raj Deepika Chauhan, Pairwise, Heqiang Huo, University of FL, Yurong Chen, Bayer US - Crop Science, and Peizhen Yang, Bayer US - Crop Science and covered recent advances in plant transformation method developments, including Agrobacterium engineering, simultaneous delivery to multiple germplasms, and recovery of transgene free gene edited plants. As of report submission, this session has received a total of 125 views in the On Demand program. The presentations from this session were: Engineering Agrobacterium to Improve Plant Transformation and Regeneration presented by Kiran Mysore, OK State University. Dr. Mysore gave an update on his strategy to increase Agrobacterium mediated transformation in wheat, alfalfa and switchgrass by engineering A. tumefaciens with a type III secretion system (T3SS) from Pseudomonas syringae to deliver proteins that suppress plant defense. Simultaneous Transformation and Editing of Multiple Lines in Soybean and Maize presented by Michelle Valentine, Bayer US - Crop Science. Dr, Valentine reported on simultaneous transformation and editing of many genotypes followed by re-identification through genotyping after plant regeneration. The system called TREDMIL (Transformation and Editing of Mixed Lines) produced transformed individuals representing 97% mixed elite genotypes in soybean; and 55% mixed maize female and male elite inbred genotypes. Non-integrating Wuschel2-assited Transformation and Gene Editing of Recalcitrant Maize B73 presented by Keunsub Lee, IA State University. Dr. Lee shared about his lab non-integrating Wus2 (NIW) T-DNA vector-assisted transformation method that uses two Agrobacterium strains: one carrying a gene-of-interest (GOI) construct and the other providing an NIW construct at a 9:1 ratio. The system was successfully deployed for both B104 and B73 to produce transgene-free gene-edited plants. 3. The third and final session entitled "Integrating new breeding technologies and traditional approaches for advancing ornamental crops" convened by Jon Mahoney, Ball Horticultural Company, and Eva Konecna, Ball Horticultural Company and showcased both traditional and new breeding technologies useful to improve ornamental species. As report submission, this session has received a total of 70 views in the On Demand program. The presentations from this session were: Bioengineering and Molecular Breeding of Native Woody Ornamentals presented by H. Dayton Wilde, University of GA. His presentation focused on Rhododendron canescens, a native azalea, aiming to develop a compact form for urban landscapes. He collected DNA from 290 R. canescens plants in Georgia, using genotyping-by-sequencing to identify genetic variation and created DNA libraries for exon capture and sequencing of genes related to plant architecture, revealing 40 high-quality SNPs to breed more compact R. canescens phenotypes. Head Start: Building New Genetic Model Systems in the Sunflower Family presented by Daniel Jones, Auburn University. Dr. Jones highlighted the need for genetic model systems to study gene functions across diverse species, including the sunflower family (Asteraceae), which has around 30,000 species. This family's success is linked to the evolution of the capitulum, a compact inflorescence. His presentation focused on how changes in developmental programs, especially stem cell maintenance, have influenced floral evolution in Asteraceae. Using comparative genomics and developmental transcriptomics, his team aims to identify and test regulatory networks involved in capitulum development. They use models like lettuce, marigold, and Bidens to study traits affecting reproductive success. Characterization of Transposon-induced Snapdragon Mutants with Improved Anthocyanin Biosynthesis and Stress Tolerance presented by Heqiang Huo, University of FL. Dr. Huo presented a study using a temperature-dependent transposon-induced mutagenesis system to create two snapdragon mutant lines with enhanced anthocyanin accumulation. One mutant had strong red pigmentation on leaves and stems, while the other had red pigmentation mainly on leaf surfaces. Genetic analysis revealed both mutants are dominant. Cytogenetics: Old-fashioned Technologies for Ornamental Crop Improvement presented by Hsuan Chen, NCSU. Dr. Chen's presentation was about Cytogenetics, a traditional breeding approach that remains important in ornamental crop improvement. It involves methods like ploidy manipulation, aneuploidization, and haploid induction to facilitate interspecific hybridization and overcome related barriers. He presented examples, including using ploidy manipulation inArachisto integrate beneficial genes from wild species. Dr. Chen presented another case involving using unreduced gametes from an interspecificHibiscushybrid to produce a polyploid aneuploid population for breeding purposes. These strategies help introduce new traits and enhance genetic diversity, making them valuable for developing improved cultivars in ornamental horticulture.

Publications

• Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2024 Citation: In Vitro Cellular and Developmental Biology - Animal, Volume 60, Issue Proceedings, Fall 2024