In many agricultural contexts, boosting crop genetic variety is a key approach for climate resilience as climate change increasingly affects agricultural productivity. Future heat waves are expected to become more frequent and intense due to climate change, posing a serious risk to human health. But individuals aren't the only ones in danger. Many plants, particularly critical food crops, struggle to thrive as temperatures climb. A plant's immune system may shut down when temperatures rise, removing its protective mechanism. With major agricultural regions already seeing record highs, global food supply risk potentially disastrous implications.
A call to action: The time is now
Many companies and scientific disciplines are looking into cutting-edge technology to lessen the impact of climate change on agriculture. Gene editing is one technique that allows for precise and programmed alterations to an organism's DNA. The desired genes may be deleted, silenced, or inserted due to these alterations.
CRISPR can potentially reduce agricultural emissions by making crops more tolerant to a more changeable and harsh environment and employing crops and soil bacteria to store and fix carbon. Shortly, combating both hunger and climate change will need various methods for increasing genetic diversity, some of which may involve the appropriate application. People, activists, and legislators may rely on gene-editing technology since it has demonstrated that it not only helps generate high-yielding types sustainably but also has good effects on human health. Despite the effects of climate change on ecosystems and agriculture, we are still a long way from having a sustainable system that can supply future generations with food. Genome editing technology is a potent tool to enhance crops and generate plants better suited to future environmental circumstances, leading to more effective and sustainable agriculture in improving crop yield and resistance to plant infections.