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Viral vectors are a tool of choice to address functional genomics in plants. They allow the transient overexpression or, on the contrary, the specific extinction of a targeted gene in order to understand its function. A viral vector has the advantage of multiplying rapidly in the whole plant with a high level of expression, but it is also easy to manipulate and can be implemented much more rapidly than transgenesis or mutagenesis of plants, especially for plant species that are recalcitrant to transformation.

The technical platform allows us to clone and test viral vectors adapted to the different plant species studied in our research unit. Once optimized, these vectors are able to induce VIGS (Virus induced gene silencing) or gene silencing. In particular, we use cloning methods based on synthetic biology to assemble viral genomes in vitro, and we are developing the use of a viral vector to express RNA-guides in the CRISPR-Cas9 approach.