At PlantBeams1, we are working on improving crop genetic modification to make various crops more resistant to emerging challenges posed by climate change. Genetic modification as a method is the fastest approach to perform the modification compared to traditional crossbreeding techniques. However, a few challenges exist in the easy and versatile implementation of the genetic modification methods in the real world.
First, existing methods for genetic modification, for example GeneGun2-6, as developed back in the 80s and even with the recent optimizations7-8, are not easy to implement and are not high-throughput methods. Moreover, the resulting from GeneGun approach, the cell transformation yield is quite low.
We are developing a completely new approach to genetically modify crops. We use liquid jets as a delivery system for crop modification. Our technology allows for high-speed jetting, which is easy to automate, making it high-throughput and insertable in existing industrial processes.
Assignment(s)
We use complex liquid systems consisting of multiple components, and we need to investigate and understand the effects of each one of them on the final system function.
1. For example, we need to investigate the strategies of making the plant sample tissue more susceptible to the jets impact. In particular, we would like to look into some enzymatic/chemical treatment for plant cell wall penetration.
2. Various jet characteristics are of great interest, importance and potential for our final application. These include investigation of the effects of particles, their type, size and concentration on the jet delivery.
3. Jetting at an angle – a possible way to get inside a plant cell
4. Jet through the liquid – possible effect of the jet penetration
5. Soft carriers a possible strategy to deliver genetic material in plan cells
If you are curious about how we are developing a completely new method of crop genetic modification and eager to work in the lab and acquire new skills, this assignment is for you. You will be working on an interdisciplinary project, involving you to work in both biology and laser lab, enabling to acquire the skills in both technology development and optimization and biology cell work fields.
We prioritize students for a master assignment; however, shorter bachelor projects can be negotiable.
References
1. https://www.biotechbooster.nl/projects/plant-beams/
2. Klein RM, Wolf ED, Wu R, Sanford JC. High-velocity microprojectiles for delivering nucleic acids into living cells. 1987. Biotechnology. 1992; 24:384-6.
3. Sanford, J.C., The biolistic process. Trends in biotechnology, 1988, 6(12), pp.299-302.
4. Taylor NJ, Fauquet CM. Microparticle bombardment as a tool in plant science and agricultural biotechnology. DNA Cell Biol. 2002 Dec;21(12):963-77. DOI/ 10.1089/104454902762053891
5. Helenius, E., Boije, M., Niklander-Teeri, V. et al. Gene delivery into intact plants using the HeliosTM gene gun. Plant Mol Biol Rep 18, 287–288 (2000). DOI/10.1007/BF02824002
6. McCabe, D., Swain, W., Martinell, B. et al. Stable Transformation of Soybean (Glycine Max) by Particle Acceleration. Nat Biotechnol 6, 923–926 (1988). DOI/10.1038/nbt0888-923.
7. Thorpe, C., Luo, W., Ji, Q. et al. Enhancing biolistic plant transformation and genome editing with a flow guiding barrel. Nat Commun 16, 5624 (2025). DOI/10.1038/s41467-025-60761-x
8. Ma, M.; Su, H.; Nie, H.; Fang, X.; Rauf, S.; Batool, S.; Htwe, Y.M.; Zhang, D.; Shi, P.; Li, Z.; et al. Optimization of Gene Gun-Mediated Transient Transformation and Explant Suitability in Coconut. Plants 2026, 15, 150. DOI/10.3390/plants15010150
Contact information
For contact and all the details & questions, please reach out to Dr. Daria Bugakova at Carre C1407 or send an email to d.bugakova@utwente.nl