Abstract
RNA interference (RNAi) is a gene regulatory mechanism that limits the transcript level by either suppressing transcription (transcriptional gene silencing [TGS]) or by activating a sequence-specific RNA degradation process (posttranscriptional gene silencing [PTGS]). The discovery of RNA silencing via RNAi has facilitated major recent breakthroughs in medicine, veterinary, agriculture, and environmental sciences. As such, the use of RNAi in agricultural fields presents an environmental friendly approach to generate pest- and pathogen-resistant crops. Spray-induced gene silencing (SIGS) provides an intelligent method of using double-stranded (ds)RNA as a trigger to silence target genes in pests and pathogens without side-effects like in the case of chemical pesticide use. This review examines the risks associated with accumulation of dsRNA and small interfering RNA (siRNA) in plants and invasive targeted organisms and environmental contamination, transgeneratioal gene silencing, dsRNA fate and future implementation of SIGS.
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