Mutagenesis: Exploring Genetic Diversity of Industrial Crop Plants

Beyond their use in food production, industrial crops—a distinct class of crops grown primarily for nonhuman consumption—are essential to many facets of human existence. Plant mutagenesis plays a cardinal role in creating the genetic diversity for desirable traits in various crop plants. The fundamental step in any plant breeding program is to select appropriate parental genotypes containing the desired combo of genes among existing varieties or to generate one if it is not existing naturally. Mutation is the primary source of creating variability in nature, and without it breeding would have been impossible. Induced mutagenesis is among the most efficient techniques that has been exploited substantially to create genetic variability, additionally to identify the key regulatory genes for economically valuable attributes concerning the crop improvement. There are several techniques to induce mutations, like physical, chemical, and insertional mutagen treatments, although these techniques have not been greatly employed because of its higher costs and tedious processes. However, induced mutagenesis is considered a the most efficient tool used for exploring regulatory genes and molecular mechanisms. Mutagenesis is a promising technique to develop new crop varieties endowed with better agronomic attributes like tolerance potential to biotic and abiotic stresses and bio-fortification for nutrient enrichment to overcome the prevailing hidden hunger in the human population. Industrial crops have grave importance for being able to be cultivated on land considered less fertile due higher levels of harmful elements. Improvement of industrial crops through mutation will be highly valuable for a food-secure future, and use of low fertile land will also benefit the world. Additionally, these crops can be good sources for high value-added products and bioenergy. Recent technological advancement in molecular biology has reopened the mutagenesis-based breeding, making it more powerful and efficient tool than assumed before. Present endeavor highlights the progresses and novelties in the field of mutagenesis for the creation of genetic variability in crop plants and how it can improve industrial crops for multipurpose usage, consequently increasing farmers’ economic status. This chapter will be a helpful resource for students and researchers working in crop science and agricultural policymaking.