Abstract
Since their domestication, Brassica oilseed species have undergone progressive transformation allied with the development of breeding and molecular technologies. The canola (Brassica napus) crop has rapidly expanded globally in the last 30 years with intensive innovations in canola varieties, providing for a wider range of markets apart from the food industry. The breeding efforts of B. napus, the main source of canola oil and canola meal, have been mainly focused on improving seed yield, oil quality, and meal quality along with disease resistance, abiotic stress tolerance, and herbicide resistance. The revolution in genetics and gene technologies, including genetic mapping, molecular markers, genomic tools, and gene technology, especially gene editing tools, has allowed an understanding of the complex genetic makeup and gene functions in the major bioprocesses of the Brassicales, especially Brassica oil crops. Here, we provide an overview on the contributions of these technologies in improving the major traits of B. napus and discuss their potential use to accomplish new improvement targets.
Highlights
Rapeseed includes the Brassica oilseed crops in which Brassica napus is the leading crop globally, while Brassica juncea, Brassica rapa, Brassica carinata, and Brassica nigra are cultivated in selected regions of the world [1]
There is an increasing amount of reference genome data available for Brassica species, a high-quality reference genome comprised of genome data of individuals within a species is mandatory for comparison studies and evaluation of genetic diversity, which is essential for improvement of breeding [57]
Darmor-bzh), suggesting many genes relating to plant resistance mechanisms may be unknown. This is consistent with the fact that the core genes (10584 SNPs identified, 70.97%) contained more SNPs than variable genes (4734 SNPs identified in 299 genes), and 688 SNPs were found in 106 resistance gene analog (RGA) within quantitative trait loci (QTL) (LepR1, LepR2, Rlm1, Rlm3, Rlm4, Rlm7, and Rlm9)
Summary
Rapeseed includes the Brassica oilseed crops in which Brassica napus is the leading crop globally, while Brassica juncea, Brassica rapa, Brassica carinata, and Brassica nigra are cultivated in selected regions of the world [1]. A platform for induction of mutagenesis in oilseed rape via the CRISPR/Cas system has been developed [42], facilitating early utilization of this tool in improving agronomic traits of B. napus e.g., plant height [43], silique development [44], pod shatter resistance [45], and flowering time [46]. This genome editing tool provides a faster route to interpret the relationship between genes and phenotypic traits controlled by complex genetic structure, biosynthetic pathways, and regulatory elements [26]. This review provides a summary of their impressive contributions towards improvement and innovations of canola varieties
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
