Abstract
Virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) has emerged as a fast and efficient reverse and forward genetics tool to study gene function in model plants as well as in agriculturally important plants. In addition, VIGS approach has been successfully used to provide insights into the role of several genes and regulators involved in plant secondary metabolism. Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) is an important Indian medicinal plant that accumulates pharmacologically important triterpenoid steroidal lactones, which are collectively termed as withanolides. W. somnifera being a highly recalcitrant plant for genetic transformation, Tobacco rattle virus (TRV)-mediated VIGS was established by our group to facilitate understanding of withanolides’ pathway. Here, we describe a detailed procedure to carry out VIGS for gene function studies in W. somnifera.
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Acknowledgments
This work was supported by the GAP376 project (SERB funded project EMR/2016/002746) of CSIR-Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants. D.P.B., H.B.S., and S.R.K. are the recipients of the Research Fellowships from the University Grants Commission (UGC), Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), respectively. The institutional communication number for this article is CIMAP/PUB/2019/May/40.
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Bomzan, D.P., Shilpashree, H.B., Anjali, P., Kumar, S.R., Nagegowda, D.A. (2020). Virus-Induced Gene Silencing for Functional Genomics in Withania somnifera, an Important Indian Medicinal Plant. In: Courdavault, V., Besseau, S. (eds) Virus-Induced Gene Silencing in Plants. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 2172. Humana, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0751-0_11
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0751-0_11
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