A MAJORITY OF WINE AND TABLE GRAPE CULTIVARS CURRENTLY CULTIVATED WORLDWIDE HAVE BEEN GROWN FOR CENTURIES AND ARE PROPAGATED THROUGH ASEXUAL/CLONAL MEANS USING CUTTINGS, GRAFTING OR BUDDING. ALTHOUGH THESE CULTIVARS POSSESS HIGHLY DESIRABLE VITICULTURAL AND ENOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS, THEY ARE EXTREMELY SUSCEPTIBLE TO A NUMBER OF BIOTIC STRESSES INCLUDING FUNGAL, BACTERIAL AND VIRAL DISEASES. THE HETEROZYGOUS NATURE OF THE GRAPEVINE GENOME AND SEVERE INBREEDING DEPRESSION LIMITS TRAIT IMPROVEMENT IN COMMERCIAL GRAPEVINE CULTIVARS WITHOUT CAUSING MAJOR DISRUPTIONS IN EXISTING CHARACTERISTICS. THUS IT IS DIFFICULT TO IMPROVE EXISTING CULTIVARS FOR DESIRED TRAITS SUCH AS DISEASE RESISTANCE. IMPROVEMENTS IN GRAPE PRODUCTIVITY AND QUALITY ARE POSSIBLE WITH A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE MOLECULAR GENETICS OF VINE RESPONSE TO BIOTIC STRESS IN CONCERT WITH GENOME EDITING TECHNOLOGY FOR RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF NEW CULTIVARS. GENOME EDITING TECHNOLOGIES NOW MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO IMPROVE SPECIFIC TRAITS IN GRAPE CULTIVARS WHILE KEEPING EXISTING DESIRABLE CHARACTERISTICS INTACT. WE HYPOTHESIZE THAT DEVELOPMENT OF TRANSIENT GENE EXPRESSION/GENOME EDITING SYSTEMS CAN ENABLE RAPID TRAIT IMPROVEMENT IN GRAPEVINE WITHOUT THE INSERTION AND INTEGRATION OF FOREIGN DNA SEQUENCES IN RESULTING CULTIVARS. SUCH CULTIVARS ARE EXPECTED TO BE REGULATED IN A MANNER SIMILAR TO THOSE OBTAINED THROUGH CONVENTIONAL BREEDING AND WILL HELP OVERCOME CUMBERSOME REGULATORY PROCEDURES THAT ARE CURRENTLY APPLIED TO COMMERCIALIZATION OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED CROPS.