Significance and genetic control of membrane transporters to improve phytoremediation and biofortification processes.

Humans frequently consume plant-based foods in their daily life. Contamination of agricultural soils by heavy metals (HMs) is a major food and nutritional security issue. The crop plants grown in HM-contaminated agricultural soil may accumulate more HMs in their edible part, further transferring into the food chain. Consumption of HM-rich crops can cause severe health issues in humans. On the other hand, the low content of the essential HM in the edible part of the crop also causes health problems. Therefore, researchers must try to reduce the non-essential HM in the edible part of the crop plants and improve the essential HMs. Phytoremediation and biofortification are the two strategies for resolving this problem. The genetic component helps to improve the efficiency of phytoremediation and biofortification processes in plants. They help eliminate HMs from soil and improve essential HM content in crop plants. The membrane transporter genes (genetic components) are critical in these two strategies. Therefore, engineering membrane transporter genes may help reduce the non-essential HM content in the edible part of crop plants. Targeted gene editing by genome editing tools like CRISPR could help plants achieve efficient phytoremediation and biofortification. This article covers gene editing's scope, application, and implication to improve the phytoremediation and biofortification processes in non-crop and crop plants.