Precise plant genome editing using base editors and prime editors
Abstract
The development of CRISPR-Cas systems has sparked a genome editing revolution in plant genetics and breeding. These sequence-specific RNA-guided nucleases can induce DNA double-stranded breaks, resulting in mutations by imprecise non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) repair or precise DNA sequence replacement by homology-directed repair (HDR). However, HDR is highly inefficient in many plant species, which has greatly limited precise genome editing in plants. To fill the vital gap in precision editing, base editing and prime editing technologies have recently been developed and demonstrated in numerous plant species. These technologies, which are mainly based on Cas9 nickases, can introduce precise changes into the target genome at a single-base resolution. This Review provides a timely overview of the current status of base editors and prime editors in plants, covering both technological developments and biological applications.
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Base editors allow for direct base conversion without inducing double-stranded breaks.
“the base editors allow for direct base conversion without inducing double-stranded breaks”
From Emerging applications of gene editing technologies for the development of climate-resilient crops (2025) · cites this paper as Molla et al., 2021
Base editing technology empowers precise single-base substitutions without inducing double-strand breaks or requiring donor DNA templates.
“It empowers precise single-base substitutions without inducing double-strand breaks or requiring donor DNA templates (Molla et al., 2021; Negishi et al., 2019).”
From Emerging applications of gene editing technologies for the development of climate-resilient crops (2025) · cites this paper as Molla et al., 2021
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References 223 · Cited by 387
- Authors
- Molla, K. A., Sretenovic, S., Bansal, K. C., & Qi, Y.
- Affiliations
- Indian Council of Agricultural Research (IN)
- University of Maryland, College Park (US)
- Alliance Bioversity International - CIAT (IT)
- Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research (US)
- Corresponding author
- Molla, Kutubuddin A.
- Qi, Yiping
- Venue
- Nature Plants
- Published
- 2021-09-13
- Volume
- 7
- Issue
- 9
- Pages
- 1166-1187
- ISSN
- 2055-026X (ISSN-L)
- 2055-0278
- OpenAlex
- W3201528655
- Cited by
- 387
- References
- 223
- Citations by year
- 2026: 64 · 2025: 86 · 2024: 91 · 2023: 69 · 2022: 68 · 2021: 9
- FWCI
- 6.52
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- Locations
- Nature Plants (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- NSF | BIO | Division of Integrative Organismal Systems (IOS-1758745)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › CRISPR and Genetic Engineering
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › RNA regulation and disease
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Plant Science › Plant Genetic and Mutation Studies
- Keywords
- base editing, prime editing, precise genome editing, plant genome editing, CRISPR-Cas, Cas9 nickase, homology-directed repair, non-homologous end joining, single-base editing, plant breeding
- MeSH terms
- Plant Breeding, Gene Editing, CRISPR-Associated Protein 9, Crops, Agricultural, Genome, Plant
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