In Speculative Evolution, we envisioned how species could be further developed to increase their resilience based on scientific publications on synthetic biology, genetic engineering and robotics, and formulated text prompts to create AI-generated images using DALL-E. As a result, each speculative species in the environment has a backstory rooted in real-life scenarios.

Sesame | |
2022 | CRISPR/Cas9 used as an effective tool for assessing gene functions for mutagenesis Laboratory research by You et al., 2022 |
2054 | 1 |
Lineage of the 12 species from a total of 19
Samsung G955F, Android 9, Zurich, Switzerland (53-1)
Samsung G955F, Android 9, Stuttgart, Germany (53-1-1)
Samsung A127F, Android 13, Imsida, Malta (53-1-1-1)
, Android 12, Portland, United States (53-1-2)
, Android 11, , United States (53-2)
Samsung G955F, Android 9, Lucerne, Switzerland (53-2-1)
Samsung A127F, Android 13, Imsida, Malta (53-3)
Samsung G955U, Android 9, Basel, Switzerland (53-3-1)
Samsung G955F, Android 9, Berlin, Germany (53-4)
Samsung G950F, Android 9, São Paulo, Brazil (53-4-1)
Samsung G955U, Android 9, , China (53-8)
Samsung G955U, Android 9, , China (53-8-1)
CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Efficient Targeted Mutagenesis in Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.)
You J, Li D, Yang L, Dossou SSK, Zhou R, Zhang Y, Wang L. Front Plant Sci. 2022 Jul 11;13:935825. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.935825. PMID: 35898225; PMCID: PMC9309882.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35898225/
Abstract
The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9) system has been widely utilized for targeted genome modification in a wide range of species. It is a powerful genome editing technology, providing significant benefits for gene functional research and molecular breeding. However, to date, no study has applied this genome editing tool to sesame (Sesamum indicum L.), one of the most ancient and important oil crops used widely in diverse industries such as food and medicine. Herein, the CRISPR/Cas9 system along with hairy root transformation was used to induce targeted mutagenesis in sesame. Two single guide RNAs (sgRNAs) were designed to target two sesame cytochrome P450 genes (CYP81Q1 and CYP92B14), which are the key biosynthetic gene of sesamin and sesamolin, respectively. Sequencing data illustrated the expected InDel mutations at the target sites, with 90.63 and 93.33% mutation frequency in CYP81Q1 and CYP92B14, respectively. The most common editing event was single nucleotide deletion and insertion. Sequencing of potential off-target sites of CYP92B14-sgRNA showed no off-target events in cases of three mismatches. High-performance liquid chromatography analysis showed that sesamin and sesamolin biosynthesis was effectively disrupted in the mutated hairy roots, confirming the crucial role of CYP81Q1 and CYP92B14 in sesame lignan biosynthesis. These results demonstrated that targeted mutagenesis was efficiently created by the CRISPR/Cas9 system, and CRISPR/Cas9 coupled with hairy root transformation is an effective tool for assessing gene functions in sesame.
The lignans biosynthetic pathway in Sesamum indicum. Figure was drawn based on Ono et al. (2006) and Murata et al. (2017). DIR, dirigent protein; Ox, oxidant.
CRISPR/Cas9 sgRNA design and CRISPR/Cas9 binary vector. (A) Diagram illustrating CYP81Q1 and CYP92B14 gene structure and the selected target sequences. Green boxes denote exons, while black lines denote introns. The red boxes denote each gene target site, and sgRNA target sequence and PAM sequences are highlighted in light blue and pink, respectively. (B) The binary vector that was created for the CRISPR/Cas9 system is shown. RB and LB, right and left borders; zCas9, Zea mays codon-optimized Cas9; NLS, nuclear localization sequence; NPTII, neomycin phosphotransferase II gene.
Development and characterization of positive transgenic hairy roots. (A) Aseptic sesame seedlings cultivated on MS medium. (B) Transgenic hairy roots from cotyledon explants harboring the CRISPR/Cas9 vector. (C) Kanamycin-selected positive transgenic hairy roots. (D) Positive hairy roots were cultured for 2 weeks. (E) Characterization of positive transgenic hairy root lines. Each hairy root line genomic DNA was isolated and utilized as a template for PCR employing particular primers for the rolB genes along with the sgRNA expression cassette. The CYP81Q1-gR and CYP92B14-gR plasmids were utilized as a positive control (P), and genomic DNA from wild-type normal roots was utilized as negative control (N).