Plant Productivity: Can Photoreceptors Light the Way?

Abstract

One of the crucial challenges faced by the plant research community today is in understanding the myriad processes that orchestrate growth, which is paramount to produce sufficient biomass for food and non-food applications in the future. Plant photoreceptors play important regulatory roles in developmental processes that can consequently affect productivity. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that by 2030 the world population will reach 8.3 billion. Biological approaches that can increase productivity and lower postharvest losses are thus essential for future food security. Regulating the activity of genes that can affect plant architecture, development or yield could likely be the key to increasing plant productivity. Recent advances in plant research have identified several photoreceptor genes and gene networks that play pivotal roles in these responses. The knowledge arising from such research therefore needs to be translated to the field to support programs aimed at increasing crop productivity. Given the evidence for their role in determining agricultural traits, these genes are favorably placed to become the focus of targeted breeding approaches for enhancing the agronomic value of domesticated lines.