Molecular basis of Iron Biofortification in crop plants; A step towards sustainability

Iron is one of the most important micronutrients for crop plants due to its use in important physiological processes such as photosynthesis, mitochondrial respiration, metal homeostasis, and chlorophyll synthesis. Crop plants have adapted different strategies for uptake, transport, accumulation, and...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Plant breeding 2021-02, Vol.140 (1), p.12-22
Main Authors: Rehman, Attiq ur, Masood, Sara, Khan, Naqib Ullah, Abbasi, Muhammad Ejaz, Hussain, Zawar, Ali, Ihtisham, Byers, Diane
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accumulation
Bioavailability
biofortification
Chlorophyll
crop plants
Crops
Homeostasis
Human populations
Infants
Iron
Iron deficiency
iron deficiency anaemia
iron homeostasis
iron transport
Micronutrients
Mitochondria
Nutrient deficiency
Organs
Photosynthesis
Plant breeding
Pregnancy
Sustainable development
sustainable developmental goals (SDGs)
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Iron is one of the most important micronutrients for crop plants due to its use in important physiological processes such as photosynthesis, mitochondrial respiration, metal homeostasis, and chlorophyll synthesis. Crop plants have adapted different strategies for uptake, transport, accumulation, and storage of iron in tissues and organs which later can be consumed by humans. Estimates indicate that about 2 billion people (33% of human population) are at risk of iron deficiency in which infants, children, and pregnant women are potentially compromised. Biofortification refers to the increase in concentration of micronutrients in edible parts of plants and understanding the pathways for iron accumulation in plants is necessary for breeding iron‐enriched crops. Iron‐biofortified crops are also one of the key factors in achieving multiple United Nations Sustainable Development goals. This review article covers different strategies of iron acquisition and transport in plants, its bioavailability, coping with the iron deficiency as a global perspective, the current status of iron biofortification, and how breeding future biofortified crops could be helpful in combating the said issue in a sustainable manner.
ISSN:0179-9541
1439-0523
DOI:10.1111/pbr.12886