Extracellular Vesicles\nMimetic Design of Membrane\nChimeric Nanovesicles for dsRNA Delivery in Spray-Induced Gene Silencing\nfor Crop Protection

Spray-induced gene silencing (SIGS) presents a promising\nRNA interference\n(RNAi)-based crop protection strategy against eukaryotic phytopathogens.\nHowever, the application of SIGS faces challenges, such as the limited\nuptake of dsRNA by certain pathogens and the instability of dsRNA\nin the environment. This study introduces innovative biomimetic nanovesicles,\ncalled extracellular vesicle (EV) mimetic chimeric nanovesicles (ECNs),\nassembled from tomato leaf cell membranes and cationic sterosomes\nvia the freeze–thaw method. Similar to the function of EVs\nin nucleic acid transport between cells, ECNs serve as a hybrid nanosystem\nto overcome the challenge of delivering exogenous dsRNA in Phytophthora infestans. When applied to SIGS, the\nsuperiority of ECNs in crop protection becomes more apparent, including\nhigh loading and protection of dsRNA, improved biosafety, and efficient\ninternalization into pathogen and plant cells, all of which significantly\nenhance the efficacy of RNAi in preventing early infection of P. infestans to susceptible tomato plants. This study\ndemonstrates that ECNs are promising RNA delivery vehicles and will\npromote the use of SIGS-based RNA pesticides in sustainable agricultural\nproduction.