Can Genome Editing Alone Generate High-Fertility Clonal Seeds?

The development of synthetic apomixis enables the fixation of heterosis, which is a breakthrough that promises to transform conventional hybrid breeding strategies and trigger a new wave of green revolution in agricultural production. At present, the engineered synthetic apomixis system, which is entirely based on genome editing, exhibits reduced fertility, thereby limiting its practical applications. Recently, the research team led by Kejian Wang at the China National Rice Research Institute combined MiMe-related genes with the OsPLDα2 gene through genome editing technology, creating a new apomixis system termed Fix4 (Fixation of hybrids 4).

This system not only produces stable and heritable clonal seeds but also shows a normal seed-setting rate, providing theoretical support and innovative solutions for accelerating the application of apomixis technology in hybrid rice production.

Heterosis, where cross-pollinated plants exhibit higher yield and enhanced resistance compared to their self-pollinated counterparts, has long been exploited in the hybrid seed industry, representing one of the landmark innovations in modern agriculture.