Genomics-assisted Breeding for Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Crops

Climate change-driven abiotic stresses pose significant threats to global agricultural productivity by reducing crop yields and challenging food security and economic stability. Recent innovations in genomics-assisted breeding (GAB) tools, gene editing, high-throughput phenotyping and artificial intelligence propose fast-forward solutions to alleviate these challenges. Significant advances in GAB, including genome-wide association studies, genomic selection, pangenomics and haplotype-based mapping, have facilitated the identification of key genes, markers and stress-responsive pathways underlying multiple stress tolerance. Integrating GAB with modern breeding methods facilitates the discovery of stress-smart traits, while artificial intelligence-driven models boost the precision of crop improvement efforts. Moreover, combining speed breeding protocols with genomic selection pipelines fast-tracks genetic gains, particularly under controlled stress settings. Therefore, this chapter briefly highlights the economic and agricultural impacts of abiotic stresses and investigates an innovative roadmap of GAB tools for designing stress-smart future crops. By leveraging these tools, biotechnologists or breeders can enhance crop productivity and tolerance against single and combined abiotic stresses.