Genome Editing for Sustainable Agriculture: From Conventional Breeding to Advanced CRISPR and Prime Editing Technologies, Delivery Systems, and Crop Improvement Applications

Abstract

Global agriculture is increasingly challenged by climate change, population growth, emerging pests and diseases, and the depletion of natural resources, underscoring the need for innovative breeding strategies to achieve sustainable crop production. Genome-editing technologies have emerged as transformative tools in modern plant breeding, enabling precise, efficient, and targeted modification of genes underlying agriculturally important traits. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the progression of crop improvement from conventional breeding and transgenic approaches to advanced genome-editing platforms, including CRISPR/Cas9, CRISPR/Cas12, base editing, prime editing, RNA editing, epigenome editing, and transcriptional regulation. The capabilities, limitations, and breeding applications of these technologies are critically evaluated, alongside recent advances in delivery systems, including Agrobacterium-mediated transformation, particle bombardment, protoplast transfection, viral vectors, nanoparticle-mediated delivery, and DNA-free ribonucleoprotein-based approaches. Particular emphasis is placed on the application of genome editing across major crop groups, including cereals, vegetables, fruits, legumes, and oilseed crops, for improving yield potential, disease resistance, abiotic stress tolerance, nutritional quality, shelf life, herbicide resistance, and hybrid seed production. Emerging approaches that integrate genome editing with genomic selection, speed breeding, artificial intelligence, and high-throughput phenotyping are also examined as promising strategies for accelerating genetic improvement. In addition, the review addresses key technical, regulatory, biosafety, intellectual property, and public acceptance challenges that may constrain the broader adoption and commercialization of genome-edited crops. Collectively, current advances indicate that genome editing has considerable potential to accelerate the development of high-yielding, climate-resilient, and nutritionally enhanced crop varieties, thereby supporting sustainable agricultural production and contributing to global food security.