Advances and Applications of Plant Base Editing Technologies

Base editing represents a major breakthrough in the field of genome editing in recent years. By fusing deaminases with the CRISPR/Cas system, it enables precise single-base modifications of DNA. This review systematically summarizes the development of base editing technologies, including cytosine base editors (CBEs), adenine base editors (ABEs), and glycosylase base editors (GBEs), with a particular focus on their applications in crop improvement as well as future trends and prospects. We highlight advances in the creation of novel germplasm with enhanced stress resistance and desirable agronomic traits through base editing in rice, wheat, maize, potato, and other crops, particularly for improving herbicide resistance, disease resistance, and grain quality. Furthermore, we analyze factors that influence base editing efficiency, noting that challenges remain, such as PAM sequence constraints, limited base conversion types, off-target effects, narrow editing windows, and efficiency variation. Future efforts should aim to optimize deaminase activity, expand PAM compatibility, and develop versatile tools to facilitate the broad application of base editing in molecular breeding. This review provides a timely reference for researchers and breeders, offering theoretical guidance and practical insights into harnessing base editing for crop genetic improvement.