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DOE OSTI · 2574783

Synthetic feed-forward loop circuit boosts transgene expression in sugarcane

Zhang, Zhihai [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)]·Anwar, Sultana [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)]·Yafuso, Erin J. [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)]·Zuniga Soto, Evelyn Tatiana [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)]·Li, Changwei [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)]·Luo, Guangbin [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)]·Moose, Stephen P. [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)]·Swaminathan, Kankshita [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States); HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Huntsville, AL (United States)]·Altpeter, Fredy [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)]·Hudson, Matthew E. [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)]
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Abstract

Bio-based products derived from natural plant-derived materials offer a promising alternative to petroleum-based products, which are essential for achieving global sustainability (Gupta et al. 2022). Sugarcane provides 40% of the world’s biofuel (Brant et al. 2025). Recently, metabolic engineering of sugarcane for hyperaccumulation of biomass oil is emerging as a strategy to elevate the crop’s energy content (Cao et al. 2023; Maitra et al. 2024). Synthetic transcription factors offer a powerful tool for modulating entire metabolic pathways by enabling fine-tuned activation or repression of specific genes (Liu and Stewart 2016; Hooghvorst and Altpeter 2023). However, the application of these technologies faces challenges, including the availability of well-characterized genetic building blocks for precise manipulation of gene expression, and the inherently challenging properties of gene expression in highly polyploid crops like sugarcane (Liu and Stewart 2016).

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60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCESAgricultural BiotechnologyGenetic Circuit EngineeringGenetic TransductionMetabolic EngineeringPlant BiotechnologyReporter genes

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Zhang, Zhihai [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)], Anwar, Sultana [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)], Yafuso, Erin J. [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)], Zuniga Soto, Evelyn Tatiana [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)], Li, Changwei [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)], Luo, Guangbin [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)], Moose, Stephen P. [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)], Swaminathan, Kankshita [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States); HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Huntsville, AL (United States)], Altpeter, Fredy [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)], Hudson, Matthew E. [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)]. 2025-07-08. Synthetic feed-forward loop circuit boosts transgene expression in sugarcane. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-025-03561-3

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