Genome-edited plants in the field

Abstract

The application of site directed nucleases (SDN) for Genome Editing (GE) in plant breeding and research increases exponentially in the last few years. The main research so far was on 'proof of concept' studies or improvement of the precision and delivery of the SDN. Nevertheless, a reasonable amount of research is present on market-oriented applications for cash crops such as rice but also for commercially lesser interesting crops and vegetables. Reported field trials involving GE plants are scarce around the world and almost not existing in Europe. This is due to the regulatory landscape for GE plants, which is quite distinct and especially in the European Union very demanding. By far the most field trials involve GE rice varieties in the Asian area, followed up by tomato and other vegetables and crops.