Advancing Crop Breeding Through Targeted Genome Modification

Apr 26, 2024

By Zhang Nannan

Modern crop breeding is entering a new era of genome design, led by genome editing technologies as mainstream tools for targeted genome modification.

In a review published in Nature Reviews Genetics, Dr. Gao Caixia from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has described the current progress of the technical innovation in editing tools, the development of superior delivery methods as well as their advanced applications in crop breeding.

Targeted genome modification technologies have revolutionized crop breeding methods and significantly improved breeding efficiency. Understanding the basic principles of targeted genome modification tools and the iterative strategies involved in employing them is essential for their application in crop improvement.

In this review, Gao's team systematically introduced various genome editing tools, ranging from single base editing to manipulation of DNA fragments exceeding kilobases. In particular, the team focused on summarizing the latest advances in precise genome editing technologies, including base editing, prime editing, and precise manipulation tools for large DNA fragments.

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