Efficient and precise genomic deletion in rice using enhanced prime editing

Abstract

Efficient and precise genomic deletion shows promise for investigating the function of proteins in plant research and enhancing agricultural traits. In this study, we tested the PRIME-Del (PDel) strategy using a pair of prime editing guide RNAs (pegRNAs) that targeted opposite DNA strands and achieved an average deletion efficiency of 55.8% for 60 bp fragment deletions at six endogenous targets. Moreover, as high as 84.2% precise deletion efficiency was obtained for a 2000 bp deletion at the OsGS1 site in transgenic rice plants. To add the bases that were unintentionally deleted between the two nicking sequences, we used the PDel/Syn strategy, which introduced multiple synonymous base mutations in the region that had to be patched in the RT template. The PDel/Syn strategy achieved an average of 58.1% deletion efficiency at six endogenous targets, which was higher than the PDel strategy. The strategies presented in this study contribute to achieving more accurate and flexible deletions in transgenic rice plants.