CRISPR/Cas System: Applications and Prospects for Maize Improvement

Maize ( Zea mays ) is one of the most important cereal crops to secure food supplies in the world. A growing world population requires new approaches to facilitate and accelerate maize breeding. As a powerful tool, the CRISPR/Cas system has revolutionized the fields of functional genomics and crop breeding. Compared to cross breeding and transgenic breeding, genome-editing breeding based on CRISPR/Cas will bring new opportunities in rapidly cultivating novel maize varieties with desired characteristics. Here, we review the applications of the CRISPR/Cas9 system in maize improvement. We also discuss the potential of new CRISPR/Cas technologies, such as base editors, prime editors, and multiplex genome editing toward future maize breeding. In addition, challenges for genome-editing breeding are discussed.