Biofortification of Cereals and Pulses Using New Breeding Techniques: Current and Future Perspectives

Abstract

Cereals and pulses are consumed as a staple food in low-income countries for the fulfillment of daily dietary requirements and as a source of micronutrients. However, they are failing to offer balanced nutrition due to deficiencies of some essential compounds, macronutrients, and micronutrients, i.e., cereals are deficient in iron, zinc, some essential amino acids, and quality proteins. Meanwhile, the pulses are rich in anti-nutrient compounds that restrict the bioavailability of micronutrients. As a result, the population is suffering from malnutrition and resultantly different diseases, i.e., anemia, beriberi, pellagra, night blindness, rickets, and scurvy are common in the society. These facts highlight the need for the biofortification of cereals and pulses for the provision of balanced diets to masses and reduction of malnutrition. Biofortification of crops may be achieved through conventional approaches or new breeding techniques (NBTs). Conventional approaches for biofortification cover mineral fertilization through foliar or soil application, microbe-mediated enhanced uptake of nutrients, and conventional crossing of plants to obtain the desired combination of genes for balanced nutrient uptake and bioavailability. Whereas, NBTs rely on gene silencing, gene editing, overexpression, and gene transfer from other species for the acquisition of balanced nutritional profiles in mutant plants. Thus, we have highlighted the significance of conventional and NBTs for the biofortification of cereals and pulses. Current and future perspectives and opportunities are also discussed. Further, the regulatory aspects of newly developed biofortified transgenic and/or non-transgenic crop varieties via NBTs are also presented.

Nutritional and Food Composition Survey of Major Pulses Toward Healthy, Sustainable, and Biofortified Diets

“…This method necessitates a one-time investment in plant breeding, but it may be produced and propagated by farmers at essentially no marginal cost over time. Recurring costs are modest, and germplasm can be obtained from anywhere in the world (Shahzad et al, 2021).…”

The Selection of the Optimal Impregnation Conditions of Vegetable Matrices with Iodine

“…The daily requirement for iodine is 150 mcg/day. Food enrichment offers significant benefits, from reducing the prevalence of nutritional deficiencies to providing benefits for societies and economies [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ].…”

The role of zinc to mitigate heavy metals toxicity in crops

“…This approach used breeding and agronomic practices to enhance the accumulation of nutrients in crop plants. The breeding techniques are considered costly and time-consuming, whereas agronomic practice (fertilizers application) is a quick solution to tackle this problem (Bouis et al, 2011;Shahzad et al, 2021). The breeding techniques involve exploring the natural variations amid genotypes for nutrient concentration and changing their genetic makeup to improve the bioavailability and quantity of nutrients (Pfeiffer and McClafferty, 2007).…”