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REVIEW article

Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Biotechnology
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1370675
This article is part of the Research Topic Genetically Modified (GM) and Genome-Edited (GE) Plants For Achieving Sustainable Agriculture View all 12 articles

Advancements in Genome Editing Tools for Genetic Studies and Crop Improvement

Provisionally accepted
Asadollah Ahmadikhah Asadollah Ahmadikhah 1*Shahnoush Nayeri Shahnoush Nayeri 2Homa Zaraabizadeh Homa Zaraabizadeh 2
  • 1 Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Department of Plant Science and Biotechnology, Faculty of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran
  • 2 Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Alborz, Iran

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The rapid increase in global population poses a significant challenge to food security, compounded by the adverse effects of climate change, which limit crop productivity through both biotic and abiotic stressors. Despite decades of progress in plant breeding and genetic engineering, the development of new crop varieties with desirable agronomic traits remains a time-consuming process. Traditional breeding methods often fall short of addressing the urgent need for improved crop varieties. Genome editing technologies, which enable precise modifications at specific genomic loci, have emerged as powerful tools for enhancing crop traits. These technologies, including RNA interference, Meganucleases, ZFNs, TALENs, and CRISPR/Cas systems, allow for the targeted insertion, deletion, or alteration of DNA fragments, facilitating improvements in traits such as herbicide and insect resistance, nutritional quality, and stress tolerance. Among these, CRISPR/Cas9 stands out for its simplicity, efficiency, and ability to reduce off-target effects, making it a valuable tool in both agricultural biotechnology and plant functional genomics. This review examines the functional mechanisms and applications of various genome editing technologies for crop improvement, highlighting their advantages and limitations. It also explores the ethical considerations associated with genome editing in agriculture and discusses the potential of these technologies to contribute to sustainable food production in the face of growing global challenges.

    Keywords: CRISPR/Cas9, Crop Improvement, Genome editing, Meganuclease, RNA Interference, TALEN, ZFNs

    Received: 15 Jan 2024; Accepted: 31 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Ahmadikhah, Nayeri and Zaraabizadeh. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Asadollah Ahmadikhah, Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Department of Plant Science and Biotechnology, Faculty of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.