Novel Breeding Techniques to Improve Disease Resistance in Horticultural Crops

Dear Colleagues,

Addressing plant diseases is crucial for sustaining global food production and ensuring food security for a growing population. Plants respond to biotic and abiotic stresses, activating an array of morphological, physiological, biochemical, and molecular changes. In addition, epigenetic modifications are also considered a regulatory mechanism of stress-responsive genes and biological processes. Novel breeding techniques (NBTs) offer innovative ways to improve disease resistance in horticultural crops. These techniques leverage advances in biotechnology to enhance the precision, speed, and efficiency of the breeding process. Some of the key NBTs that can be applied to improve disease resistance in horticultural crops include genome editing, RNA interference (RNAi), marker-assisted Selection (MAS), transgenic approaches, genome-wide association studies (GWAS), mutagenesis techniques, synthetic biology, bioinformatics, and computational approaches to predict candidate genes associated with disease resistance. By combining these novel breeding techniques, researchers and breeders can develop horticultural crops with enhanced disease resistance, leading to improved crop yields, reduced dependence on chemical pesticides, and more sustainable agricultural practices. Furthermore, epigenetic engineering at the target sites involved in the disease resistance mechanism could be an emerging and powerful approach for crop improvement. However, it is crucial to consider regulatory frameworks and address public concerns regarding the use of biotechnology in crop improvement. This Special Issue focuses on recent advances in NBTs to improve disease resistance in horticultural crops, inviting all types of articles, such as research papers and methods, reviews, and opinions.

Dr. Marina Laura
Dr. Sara Sestili
Guest Editors

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• plant disease
• biotic stress
• disease-resistant cultivars
• plant breeding
• genome editing
• CRISPR-Cas
• NBT
• RNAi
• MAS
• R genes and S genes
• next-generation sequencing (NGS)