Methods of crop improvement and applications towards fortifying food security

Agriculture has supported human life from the beginning of civilization, despite a plethora biotic (pests, pathogens) and abiotic (drought, cold) stressors being exerted on global food demand. In past 50 years, enhanced understanding cellular molecular mechanisms in plants led to novel innovations biotechnology, resulting introduction desired genes/traits through plant genetic engineering. Targeted genome editing technologies such as Zinc-Finger Nucleases (ZFNs), Transcription Activator-Like Effector (TALENs), Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) have emerged powerful tools for crop improvement. This new CRISPR technology is proving be an efficient straightforward process with low cost. It possesses applicability across most species, targets multiple genes, used engineer metabolic pathways create resistance pathogens stressors. These (GE) are poised meet UN’s sustainable development goals “zero hunger” “good health wellbeing.” could more developing transgenic crops aid speeding up regulatory approvals risk assessments conducted by US Departments (USDA), Food Drug Administration (FDA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).