Open AccessGenome editing: propelling the next generation of crop improvement
Author(s) -
Jéssika Angelotti-Mendonça,
Alessandra Koltun,
Fernanda Freitas de Oliveira,
Nathalia Volpi e Siva
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
colloquium agrariae
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1809-8215
DOI - 10.5747/ca.2021.v17.n4.a451
Subject(s) - crispr , microbiology and biotechnology , genome editing , biology , food security , scope (computer science) , population , abiotic stress , agriculture , green revolution , resistance (ecology) , business , computer science , genetics , agronomy , ecology , gene , programming language , demography , sociology
Climate change and population size records threaten food security. Therefore, the call for a more sustainable and efficient crop production has never been more urgent. Traditional plant breeding was one of the first successful approaches to expand cultivation areas and crop yield. Later, biotechnological tools and their products, such as genetically modified organisms containing exogenous DNA, further broadened the limits of agricultural results, yet bringing huge financial, bureaucratic, and public rejection hurdles. In the 90s, scientific advances brought the opportunity to drive mutations using engineered nucleases, and since 2013 CRISPR-Cas has emerged as the most practical toolkit to edit genomes. One of the most striking possibilities is to generate edited and non-transgenic plants. In this review, we present the working mechanism behind CRISPR-induced mutations and pinpoint the latest techniques developed, as well as its myriad of applications in agriculture. The enhancing scope of CRISPR ranges from introducing traits of agronomic interest – such as herbicide resistance, resistance/tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses, and quality and durability of products – to accelerating plant breeding processes, including haploid induction, generating male-sterile lines, fixating hybrid vigor, and overcoming self-incompatibility. We also discuss regulatory issues surrounding edited plants and derived products around the world, challenges that must be overcome, and future prospects to harness all the potential of this amazing tool to guarantee the new crop production revolution.