P-218 - Tomato LOPP gene confers disease resistance and increases yield

Plant pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) are essential for plant immunity, recognizing pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) from pathogens and activating immune responses. Enhancing PRR activity is an effective strategy to improve plant resistance to diseases. In Arabidopsis, the phosphatase AtLOPP dephosphorylates AtLORE, reverting it from an active state induced by PAMPs to a resting state. This mechanism indicates that knocking out the LOPP gene enhances resistance to bacterial wilt disease in Arabidopsis.In our study, we identified the homolog of LOPP (Solyc04g064500) in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). To investigate its function, we used CRISPR/Cas9 technology to create sllopp mutants in the MicroTom background. We found a significant reduction in SlLOPP transcription levels in these mutants compared to the wild type. Interestingly, the sllopp mutants did not show substantial growth retardation or yield loss. In fact, under normal growth conditions, these mutants exhibited enhanced vigor relative to the wild type, characterized by longer roots, taller shoots, and larger fruits.These findings suggest that knocking out SlLOPP in tomato plants not only confers resistance to various bacterial diseases but also contributes to increased yield. This research provides theoretical and experimental support for the potential application of LOPP in breeding disease-resistant tomato varieties.