Crop Quality Improvement Through Genome Editing Strategy

Abstract

Good quality of crops has always been the most concerning aspect for breeders and consumers. However, crop quality is a complex trait affected by both the genetic systems and environmental factors, thus, it is difficult to improve through traditional breeding strategies. Recently, the CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing system, enabling efficiently targeted modification, has revolutionized the field of quality improvement in most crops. In this review, we briefly review the various genome editing ability of the CRISPR/Cas9 system, such as gene knockout, knock-in or replacement, base editing, prime editing, and gene expression regulation. In addition, we highlight the advances in crop quality improvement applying the CRISPR/Cas9 system in four main aspects: macronutrients, micronutrients, anti-nutritional factors and others. Finally, the potential challenges and future perspectives of genome editing in crop quality improvement is also discussed.

Genetically engineered crops for sustainably enhanced food production systems

“…However, such an issue can be addressed through genome editing techniques and with the contrasting view that the genetic modification is simply one more step in the processes of modification of the physical world. It is similar to the manufacturing of novel chemicals in industries and to natural breeding of plants and animals ( Yang et al., 2022 ). As people are having a choice to use different novel chemicals, similarly a right to choose can be developed for the GM crops consumption.…”

A consensus map for quality traits in durum wheat based on genome-wide association studies and detection of ortho-meta QTL across cereal species

“…Since crop quality is a complex trait, it can be either related to end-use properties or to nutritional content and these parameters are regulated by different compounds, the genetic determination of quality traits is rather complicated. Due to the high environmental influence on crop quality traits, the search for genes related to them is more complicated such as the transfer of these characters, despite the presence of novel genomic tools ( Yang et al, 2022 ).…”