Recent strategies of increasing metal tolerance and phytoremediation potential using genetic transformation of plants

• Published in: Plant biotechnology reports Vol. 12; no. 1; pp. 1 - 14
• Main Authors: Koźmińska, Aleksandra, Wiszniewska, Alina, Hanus-Fajerska, Ewa, Muszyńska, Ewa
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Singapore Springer Singapore 01-02-2018; Springer Nature B.V; 한국식물생명공학회
• Subjects: Agriculture; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biotechnology; Cell Biology; Contamination; Gene silencing; Genetic engineering; Genomes; Heavy metals; Life Sciences; Metal concentrations; Metals; Phytoremediation; Plant Biochemistry; Plant extracts; Plant Sciences; Plants (botany); Review; Soil contamination; Soil pollution; Toxicity; 농학; Hyperaccumulation; Genetic engineering; Environmental pollution; Genoremediation; Transgenesis; Heavy metals
• ISSN: 1863-5466; 1863-5474
• DOI: 10.1007/s11816-017-0467-2

Avoidance and reduction of soil contamination with heavy metals is one of the most serious global challenges. Nowadays, science offers us new opportunities of utilizing plants to extract toxic elements from the soil by means of phytoremediation. Plant abilities to uptake, translocate, and transform heavy metals, as well as to limit their toxicity, may be significantly enhanced via genetic engineering. This paper provides a comprehensive review of recent strategies aimed at the improvement of plant phytoremediation potential using plant transformation and employing current achievements in nuclear and cytoplasmic genome transformation. Strategies for obtaining plants suitable for effective soil clean-up and tolerant to excessive concentrations of heavy metals are critically assessed. Promising directions in genetic manipulations, such as gene silencing and
cis
- and intragenesis, are also discussed. Moreover, the ways of overcoming disadvantages of phytoremediation using genetic transformation approachare proposed. The knowledge gathered here could be useful for designing new research aimed at biotechnological improvement of phytoremediation efficiency.