IN GRAPEVINE, CULTURAL ASPECTS, VARIETAL TRADITIONS, AND THE NECESSITY TO MAINTAIN GENETIC INTEGRITY OF CLONES, LIMIT THE APPLICABILITY OF GENE EDITING TECHNOLOGY USING TRADITIONAL TECHNIQUES OF PLANT GENETIC ENGINEERING THAT REQUIRES INSERTION OF FOREIGN DNA AND THEREFORE CONSIDERED GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS. THIS LAST ASPECT MAKES DIFFICULT THE TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY TO THE GRAPE INDUSTRY, WHICH OTHERWISE CONSIDERS GENE EDITING AS A PREFERRED TOOL FOR RAPID INTRODUCTION OF NEW TRAITS. ONCE ESTABLISHED, THE TRANSGENE-FREE METHODOLOGY PROPOSED IN THE CURRENT PROJECT WILL OFFER NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR DELIVERING NEW GENETIC MATERIALS MORE AMENABLE TO ADAPT TO RAPIDLY EVOLVING SOCIETAL AND CLIMATIC CONDITIONS. THIS OUTCOME WILL ALSO CREATE THE POTENTIAL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF INNOVATIVE NICHES IN THE CURRENT MARKET. THE METHODOLOGY TO BE DEVELOPED IS VERSATILE ENOUGH TO EXPAND THE SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO OTHER MAJOR CROPS. TO CIRCUMVENT THE MAJOR HURDLE OF DNA-INTEGRATION VIA TRADITIONAL PLANT GENETIC ENGINEERING AND THEREBY LABELLED AS GMO, THE PIS PROPOSE TO FACILITATE THE DELIVERY OF CARGO MOLECULES LIKE THE GENE EDITING PROTEIN (CRISPR-CAS9) USING A SERIES OF MOLECULES THAT FACILITATE THE ENTRY OF GENE EDITING PROTEIN INTO PLANT CELLS. THE ULTIMATE GOALS OF THE PROJECT ARE TO DEVELOP AN INNOVATIVE METHODOLOGY FOR PLANT GENE EDITING THAT GENERATE TRANSGENE-FREE EDITED GRAPEVINE MATERIAL, WHICH UNDER THE CURRENT USDA REGULATIONS WILL BE CONSIDERED A NON-GMO PLANT MATERIAL. THE INTRODUCTION OF AGRICULTURALLY IMPORTANT TRAITS SUCH AS RESISTANCE TO MILDEW AND BOTRYTIS RELATED DISEASES CAN BE ENVISIONED WHILE MAINTAINING VARIETY AND CLONAL DIVERSITY FEATURES OF THE GRAPEVINE CROP. THE GENERAL IMPACT OF THE PROJECT WILL ADVANCE GRAPEVINE SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH IN THE ACADEMY AND PRIVATE SECTORS BY I) CONTRIBUTING TO THE DEVELOPMENT TO A NEW RESEARCH NICHE IN GRAPEVINE GENE EDITING RESEARCH, A PRIORITY FOR THE NATIONAL GRAPE RESEARCH ALLIANCE, II) DEVELOPING A SUSTAINABLE AND ATTRACTIVE CONTINUUM ON THE RESEARCH ON THE CURRENT MODEL (GRAPEVINE), III) EXTENDING THE CURRENT APPROACH TO OTHER CROPS, IV) STRENGTHENING COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS WITH INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATORS FOR DEVELOPING NEW PROJECTS THAT ADDRESS WORLDWIDE GRAPEVINE INDUSTRY NEEDS, AND V) FACILITATING THE TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER IF REQUESTED TO THE INDUSTRY PARTNER AND THE TRAINING OF RESEARCHERS WORKING IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR.