The recent genetic modification techniques for improve soil conservation, nutrient uptake and utilization

Figures & data

Figure 1. The benefit of genetically modification technologies on soil conservation and nutrient uptake and utilization. (a) Genetically modified (GeMo) plants for improving soil conservation are produced by the process of genetic engineering through the addition of genes for large and deeper root systems or overexpression of nutrient transporter genes. (b) The GeMo produced by transgenic approach and RNA interference (RNAi) or edited plant produced by gene editing technique such as clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-associated endonuclease Cas9 (CRISPR-Cas9) with a large, deeper root, high biological N fixation, high efficiency in use N, and enhancing nitrate uptake will improve nutrient absorption and soil binding ability. Its ability to tolerate environmental pressure such as abiotic stresses will enable the plant to survive harsh conditions and thereby protect the soil from degradation. Genetic modification of plants to produce organic compound exudation from roots will enhance soil stability and structure. All of these genetic modification pathways improve soil conservation, nutrient uptake, and utilization, which eventually improve agriculture yield and ecological sustainability.

Table 1. Showing examples of how genetic intervention improves soil conservation and nutrient uptake.

Plant	Traits/Genes	Technique used	Agriculture benefits	References
Rice (Oryza sativa), Arabidopsis and Prunus domestica (plums)	DEEPER ROOTING 1 (DRO1)	Transgenic approach and phylogenetic analysis	Modify the root architecture to prevent abiotic stress and make better use of resources.	^Citation72,Citation73,Citation75
Rice	Flavone biosynthetic pathway	CRISPR-based gene editing	Reduce the application of inorganic N fertilizers and promoting biological N fixation in cereals.	^Citation76
	Nitrate Transporter 1/Peptide Gene OsNPF7.6	Transgenic approach	Enhance the nitrate uptake rate of rice	^Citation77
	MYB transcription factor OsMYB305	Transgenic approach	Increasing rice’s absorption of nitrogen by lowering the flow of carbohydrates toward the production of cell walls.	^Citation78
Rice, barley (Hordeum vulgare, cv. Golden Promise, and Wheat (Triticum aestivum, cv. Gladius)	Alanine Aminotransferase	Transgenic approach	Offers thorough genetic and metabolic profiling of the reactions to AlaAT overexpression and identifies various elements and pathways that lead to the phenotype of nitrogen-use efficiency.	^Citation79
Maize (Zea mays L.) Maize	zmm28 transcription factor	Transgenic approach	Increasing maize’s efficiencies in the uptake and utilization of N	^Citation80
	CYTOKININ OXIDASE/DEHYDROGENASE (CKX)	Transgenic approach	Provide ability to modify shoot element composition and engineer the root system of maize.	^Citation81
Winter wheat (T. aestivum) variety Kenong 199 (KN199)	ABRE-binding factor (ABF)-like leucine zipper transcription factor TabZIP60	RNA interference (RNAi)	Enhance wheat yield and efficiency in N use.	^Citation82
Winter wheat	Plastidic glutamine synthetase isoform (GS2)	Transgenic approach	Provide the significance of utilization of allele TaGS2-2Ab in enhancing the efficiency and yield of N usage in wheat.	^Citation83

Table 2. Challenges arise due to the use of genetic modification techniques for improving soil conservation, nutrient uptake, and utilization.

Challenge	Issue	Possible solutions	References
Environmental concern	Unforeseen consequences	Ensure long term safety assess of Confined Field Trials (CFTs) and proper labeling of GeMo products.	^Citation103,Citation104
	cross-pollination with wild or non-GMO crops		^Citation105,Citation106
Socio-economic concern	Ownership and control of GMO seeds		^Citation107,Citation108
	Exploitation to the local farmers		^Citation109
Regulatory framework	Variation of regulatory framework from different nations		^Citation110,Citation111
Public perception and opinions	Worries for long-term impacts of utilizing GM techniques		^Citation112

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Data Availability Statement

No data was generated in this study.