Development and application of CRISPR/Cas in grapevine

The research examines how two characteristic cultivations of a territory like the vine and the hazelnut shape the identity of a unique terroir: Langhe (North West italy).

The use of elicitors to promote the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites in grapes has been tackled in several reports, however its study linked to nanotechnology is less developed.

Context and purpose of the study. Climate change is a major challenge in wine production. It results in erratic weather conditions which may lead to a reduction in grape yield and the subsequent grape and wine quality.

Many wine styles require moderate or extended ageing to ensure optimal consumer experience. However, few consumers have the interest or ability to age wine themselves, and holding wine in optimal conditions for extended periods is expensive for producers. A study was conducted on the use of ul-trasound energy on wine, with particular reference to its impact on sensory and chemical profiles. The OIV has authorised the use of ultrasound for processing crushed grapes (must) in Resolution OENO 616-2019, but not yet for finished wine1,2.

The appearance of the Phylloxera pest in the 19th century in Europe caused dramatical damages in grapevine diversity. To mitigate these losses, grapevine growers resorted to using crosses of different Vitis species, such as 110 Richter (110R) (V. berlandieri x V. rupestris), which has been invaluable for studying adaptations to stress responses in vineyards. Recently, a high quality chromosome scale assembly of 110R was released, but the available gene models were predicted without using as evidence transcriptional sequences obtained from roots, that are crucial organs in rootstock, and they may express certain genes exclusively. Therefore, we employed RNA sequencing reads of 110R roots under different stress conditions to predict new gene models in each haplotype of 110R under different stresses.