Exploiting the engine of C₄ photosynthesis
2011
Sage, Rowan F. | Zhu, Xin-Guang
Ever since the discovery of C₄ photosynthesis in the mid-1960s, plant biologists have envisaged the introduction of the C₄ photosynthetic pathway into C₃ crops such as rice and soybeans. Recent advances in genomics capabilities, and new evolutionary and developmental studies indicate that C₄ engineering will be feasible in the next few decades. Furthermore, better understanding of the function of C₄ photosynthesis provides new ways to improve existing C₄ crops and bioenergy species, for example by creating varieties with ultra-high water and nitrogen use efficiencies. In the case of C₄ engineering, the main enzymes of the C₄ metabolic cycle have already been engineered into various C₃ plants. In contrast, knowledge of the genes controlling Kranz anatomy lags far behind. Combining traditional genetics, high-throughput sequencing technologies, systems biology, bioinformatics, and the use of the new C₄ model species Setaria viridis, the discovery of the key genes controlling the expression of C₄ photosynthesis can be dramatically accelerated. Sustained investment in the research areas directly related to C₄ engineering has the potential for substantial return in the decades to come, primarily by increasing crop production at a time when global food supplies are predicted to fall below world demand.
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