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IMAGE: The ability of a high-quality genome for a hazelnut species provides resources for high-precision molecular breeding instead of the traditional empirical breeding methods. view more
Credit: Hoticulture Research
Humans have been breeding plants for their economic value for thousands of years. Traditionally, plant breeding techniques included cumbersome and time-consuming techniques like grafting and hybridization to enhance traits of economic value like disease resistance and high nutrition content. Now, with the ability to edit plant DNA using revolutionary gene-editing tools, particularly the CRISPR-Cas9 system, it is possible to enhance traits of economic value in plants easily and more efficiently than by using traditional techniques. But for that, it is necessary to sequence whole genomes of economically important crops and identify all the genes controlling these desirable traits.