Mr. Ashish Sharma is currently working as a CSIR-Senior Research Fellow at CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. He completed his PhD under the supervision of Dr. Prabodh Kumar Trivedi, Director, CSIR-Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Lucknow, and is awaiting his thesis defense. Mr. Sharma is the first author of the paper titled “Primary transcript of miR858 encodes regulatory peptide and controls flavonoid biosynthesis and development in Arabidopsis”, published in Nature Plants (2020).
Author Interview
How would you explain your paper’s key results to the non-scientific community?
Our research identified and functionally characterized a microRNA-encoded peptide, miPEP858a, in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. We also demonstrated how CRISPR/Cas9 technology can be used innovatively to study specific members of miRNA families in plants.
Flavonoids—important plant compounds—have multiple health benefits like anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, and anti-viral effects and are an essential part of our diet. Our study showed that miPEP858a regulates the biosynthesis of flavonoids.
We used CRISPR/Cas9 to generate mutant plants deficient in miPEP858a and members of the miR858 family. Disrupting miPEP858a increased genes related to flavonoid production while reducing lignin synthesis. On the other hand, overexpressing miPEP858a promoted plant growth, linked to the plant hormone auxin.
Synthetic miPEP858a was externally applied to mutant plants, which restored normal growth, confirming the peptide’s role in regulating miRNA expression. This study unveils a novel regulatory mechanism and highlights the functional potential of miRNA-encoded peptides (miPEPs) in plant growth and development.
What are the possible consequences of these findings for your research area?
Until now, scientists typically studied miRNA function by overexpressing or blocking them, often leading to unintended effects. Our work shows that miPEPs can regulate specific miRNA family members precisely, avoiding non-specific results.
Using synthetic miPEPs externally is a promising, non-transgenic approach for studying plant miRNAs and can be implemented easily. This paves the way for modulating growth and metabolic traits in crops like rice, wheat, maize, and tomato, without genetic modifications.
What was the exciting moment (eureka moment) during your research?
One unforgettable moment was the successful use of CRISPR/Cas9 to edit the AtPDS gene, which caused an albino phenotype—clear visual proof of gene editing success. Another exciting moment was when edited plants deficient in miPEP858a developed vibrant purple hues due to anthocyanin accumulation—an indication of enhanced flavonoid biosynthesis.
What do you hope to do next?
This research proved that some non-coding RNAs can actually produce functional peptides with powerful biological roles related to growth and metabolism. Our next step is to uncover how miPEPs interact with other regulatory molecules. We aim to identify new miPEPs and other small peptides with agronomic value to further improve crop performance.
Where do you seek scientific inspiration?
My journey into CRISPR and miPEPs has been full of motivation. The discovery of small peptides with major roles in plants inspired me deeply. The support and guidance of my supervisor, Dr. Prabodh Kumar Trivedi, have also been a continuous source of inspiration. He taught me that imagination, persistence, and patience are crucial for successful research.
How do you intend to help Indian science improve?
miPEPs are hidden gems in the genome—peptides encoded by regions once thought to be non-coding. Their discovery opens up new possibilities for improving plant traits, particularly in agriculture.
Using synthetic miPEPs could enhance crop traits without needing genetic modification. Though application costs might be high, the benefits—especially for plants hard to transform—could revolutionize agricultural biotechnology.
Reference
Sharma A, Badola PK, Bhatia C, Sharma D, Trivedi PK. Primary transcript of miR858 encodes regulatory peptide and controls flavonoid biosynthesis and development in Arabidopsis. Nature Plants (2020).
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