Nanoparticle-Mediated Delivery towards Advancing Plant Genetic Engineering

Plant biotechnology is key to ensuring food and energy security; however, biomolecule delivery and progeny regeneration continue to be key challenges in plant genetic engineering. Conventional biomolecule delivery methods in plants have critical drawbacks, such as low efficiency, narrow species range, limited cargo types, and tissue damage. Advances in nanotechnology have created opportunities to overcome limitations in conventional methods: nanoparticles are promising for species-independent passive delivery of DNA, RNA, and proteins. The advent of nuclease-based genome editing (e.g., CRISPR-Cas9) has ushered in a new era of precise genetic engineering that, among other impacts, has enabled the development of genetically engineered crops without harsh regulatory restrictions. The potential of nanoparticles to overcome limitations in conventional delivery makes them excellent candidates for delivery of nuclease-based genome editing cargo, thus making nanoparticle delivery a critical technology for the advancement of plant genetic engineering. Genetic engineering of plants has enhanced crop productivity in the face of climate change and a growing global population by conferring desirable genetic traits to agricultural crops. Efficient genetic transformation in plants remains a challenge due to the cell wall, a barrier to exogenous biomolecule delivery. Conventional delivery methods are inefficient, damaging to tissue, or are only effective in a limited number of plant species. Nanoparticles are promising materials for biomolecule delivery, owing to their ability to traverse plant cell walls without external force and highly tunable physicochemical properties for diverse cargo conjugation and broad host range applicability. With the advent of engineered nuclease biotechnologies, we discuss the potential of nanoparticles as an optimal platform to deliver biomolecules to plants for genetic engineering. Genetic engineering of plants has enhanced crop productivity in the face of climate change and a growing global population by conferring desirable genetic traits to agricultural crops. Efficient genetic transformation in plants remains a challenge due to the cell wall, a barrier to exogenous biomolecule delivery. Conventional delivery methods are inefficient, damaging to tissue, or are only effective in a limited number of plant species. Nanoparticles are promising materials for biomolecule delivery, owing to their ability to traverse plant cell walls without external force and highly tunable physicochemical properties for diverse cargo conjugation and broad host range applicability. With the advent of engineered nuclease biotechnologies, we discuss the potential of nanoparticles as an optimal platform to deliver biomolecules to plants for genetic engineering. a mass of undifferentiated cells that can be used to regenerate plants. short for cultivated varieties, a group of plants with desired characteristics that have been selected from a naturally occurring species and are passed through propagation. one of the two major groups of flowering plants. The eponymous term originates from the presence of two embryonic leaves upon germination. Additionally, dicots can be distinguished from monocots by a number of characteristics that include leaf veins, vascular bundles, root development, floral bundles, and pollen. See monocotyledonous plants. a physical transfection method where an electric field is applied to create temporary pores in cell membranes for the uptake of genetic cargo into a cell. any segment of a plant that is removed to initiate a culture. a transformation paradigm involving the genetic transformation of any segment of a plant without the need for tissue culture and regeneration. delivering virus vectors using Agrobacterium T-DNA transfer. regions of tissue containing undifferentiated cells. one of the two major groups of flowering plants that have one embryonic leaf upon germination. Monocots include crops that make up the majority of a balanced diet, such as rice, wheat, and barley. See dicotyledonous plants. transport of cargo across cell wall and membrane to an intracellular location without the use of mechanical force. plant cells with their cell walls removed, typically through either mechanical or enzymatic means. a species of plant that is difficult to genetically transform and regenerate into mature plants. Often used in the context of Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. a gene taken from an organism and transferred into the genome of another. Consequently, transgene integration results in transgenic plants.