Genetic Engineering for Enhancing Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Canola (Brassica napus)

Canola is the second largest oilseed crop worldwide used for human and animal feed. Canola cultivation has grown rapidly over the past five years owing to a high demand for canola oil and meal and is now Australia’s third largest broad-acre crop. Australia is the world's second largest exporter of canola seed. With rising global demand for canola for food and non-food applications, its production is expected to increase by 40% by the year 2025. However, impending global climatic changes are predicted to hamper crop productivity. Salinity, drought and high temperatures are significant environmental factors that limit agricultural yields. In this context, genetic improvement of crops for abiotic stress tolerance is vital to maintaining our food supply.

Helicases, an important class of DEAD-box protein family, are primarily known to unwind duplex nucleic acids to perform many housekeeping activities. These highly conserved enzymes play an essential role in several cellular processes including RNA metabolism and regulation of gene expressions. The development of abiotic stress tolerant canola lines by heterologous overexpression of a DNA/RNA helicase gene will be presented.