Agriculture (Dec 2022)

RNA-Interference-Mediated Aphid Control in Crop Plants: A Review

  • Jiahui Zhang,
  • Huiyuan Li,
  • Xue Zhong,
  • Jinfu Tian,
  • Arnaud Segers,
  • Lanqin Xia,
  • Frédéric Francis

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture12122108
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 12, no. 12
p. 2108

Abstract

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Crop plants suffer severe yield losses due to the significant damages caused by aphids. RNA interference (RNAi) technology is a versatile and environmentally friendly method for pest management in crop protection. Transgenic plants expressing siRNA/dsRNA and non-transformative methods such as spraying, microinjection, feeding, and a nanocarrier-delivery-mediated RNAi approach have been successfully applied for agricultural insect pest management. In this review, we summarize the application of host-induced gene silencing (HIGS)-mediated RNAi, spray-induced gene silencing (SIGS)-mediated RNAi, and other delivery-method-mediated RNAi methods for aphid control. We further discuss the challenges in RNAi application and propose potential solutions to enhance RNAi efficiency.

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