Figure 4.

Precise editing of the OsCPK18 T₅₀₅‐P₅₀₆ or OsCPK4 S₅₁₂‐P₅₁₃ phosphorylation motif increases yield and disease resistance. (a) Schematics showing CRISPR/Cas9‐mediated editing of the MAPK phosphorylation motifs in OsCPK18 and OsCPK4. The 20 bp targeting sequences (blue letter) and corresponding protein sequences are shown on the top. Alignments of the WT sequence and gene‐edited alleles of OsCPK18 and OsCPK4 are shown at the bottom. Red letters indicate the amino acid sequences generated by frameshift mutations in gene‐edited alleles. *, stop codon; −, deletions. (b, c) Morphology of the OsCPK18‐GE, OsCPK4‐GE, and WT (cv ZH11) plants at the grain filling stage. (d) Photos representing the rice blast symptoms of OsCPK18‐GE, OsCPK4‐GE, and WT. Photos were taken 7 days after M. oryzae inoculation. (e–n) Yield‐related traits and disease resistance of OsCPK18‐GE, OsCPK4‐GE, and WT plants. The plant height (e, j), 1000‐grain weight (f, k), and yield per plant (g, l) were measured. The lesion number (h, m) and relative fungal amount (i, n) were measured at 7 days postinoculation of M. oryzae spores. The data are presented as the mean ± s.d. n = 20 for e–h and j–m; n = 3 technical replicates for i and n. The P values (Student's t‐test) are shown in the plots. ***, Statistically significant difference with P < 0.001.