Advancing Crop Sustainability Through Engineered Molecular Pathways for Stress Tolerance

The agricultural sector is facing unprecedented challenges owing to climate change and the growing demand for global food security. Contemporary agriculture struggles with the vulnerability of crops to various abiotic stresses—such as drought, heat, and salinity—and biotic stresses, including diseases and pests. As climate change continues to amplify the frequency and intensity of these stresses, developing crops resilient to such conditions has become a critical area of research. The exploration of molecular pathways to create climate-resilient crops is essential in this context. By identifying key biochemical and genetic networks associated with stress tolerance, scientists aim to engineer crops with improved adaptability, yield stability, and resource efficiency. Traditional techniques like back cross breeding and marker-assisted selection often suffer from inefficiencies, whereas genetic engineering provides a more precise approach with significant potential for advancing crop development.

This Research Topic aims to delve into the modern advancements in genetic engineering and their application, from model plants to actual crop species. By directly manipulating genes responsible for stress responses, genetic engineering offers a way to create stress-resilient crops, which can result in enhanced yields, reduced dependence on chemical fertilizers, and sustainable farming practices in the face of climate unpredictability.

This Research Topic is focused on, yet not limited to, the development of abiotic and biotic stress tolerance in crops. It also covers challenges associated with transformation, editing efficiency, and regeneration in recalcitrant crop species. To gather further insights in crop genetic engineering, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

• Functional genomics from model to crop plants for stress signaling and tolerance

• Employing genetic engineering for stress-tolerance traits modulation in plants

• Development and/or improvement of genome-editing tools

• Rapid and novel methods for plant transformation and genome-editing, such as tissue-culture-free genome editing

The submissions may include Original Research Articles, Methods, Review Articles, Short Notes, Opinions, and Perspectives.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• Systematic Review

Keywords: Crop genetic engineering, Stress tolerance, Climate-resilient agriculture, Genome editing

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.