GENETIC ENGINEERING OF MEIOSIS RELATED GENES FOR CROP IMPROVEMENT IN CEREALS

Meiosis is a vital event in the sexual reproduction process of flowering plants and has seldom been elucidated due to the lack of genetic material from plants. Meiotic DNA processing includes molecular functions such as DNA replication, repair, recombination, chromosome modification, and segregation. The process of recombination is fundamental for the creation of novel variations of highly desired traits by breeders. The fidelity of DNA processing events during meiosis is crucially important as errors can give rise to genetic mutations, genome rearrangements, and aneuploidies connected with genetic disorders. Traditional plant breeding strategies exploited the events like homologous recombination and selection of varieties. Gaining control over the process of recombination is important for molecular breeding to achieve more precise, large-scale and quicker plant improvement. This article will review the different processes that may allow us to capture key genes responsible for the process of recombination and ultimately design a higher quality plant variety.