Breeding crops for enhanced food safety

Authors: MELOTTO, MAELI - University Of California, Davis; Brandl, Maria; JACOB, CRISTIÁN - University Of California, Davis; JAY-RUSSELL, MICHELE - University Of California, Davis; MICALLEF, SHIRLEY - University Of Maryland; Warburton, Marilyn; VAN DEYNZE, ALLEN - University Of California, Davis

Submitted to: Frontiers in Plant Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/24/2020
Publication Date: 4/15/2020
Citation: Melotto, M., Brandl, M., Jacob, C., Jay-Russell, M.T., Micallef, S.A., Warburton, M.L., Van Deynze, A. 2020. Breeding crops for enhanced food safety. Frontiers in Plant Science. 11:428. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2020.00428.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2020.00428

Interpretive Summary: This article is a review of the knowledge, opportunities, and challenges of plant breeding as a tool to enhance the safety of plant-based foods. We discuss the significant effect of plant genotypic and phenotypic variation in the contamination of plants by heavy metals, mycotoxin-producing fungi, and human pathogenic bacteria. In addition, we report on the various factors (temperature, relative humidity, soil, microbiota, cultural practices, and plant developmental stage) that may influence the interaction between plant genetic diversity and a given contaminant. It is evident that a multidisciplinary approach to understand plant genotype x environment x microbe x management interactions will be necessary to develop effective plant breeding programs for food safety. While breeding programs for some human pathogen/toxin systems are ongoing (e.g. Fusarium in wheat), it would be premature to start breeding when targets and testing systems are not well defined. Furthermore, identification of high-risk pairs, such as Salmonella/tomato and Escherichia coli/lettuce, will be required as we initially explore plant breeding as a mitigation to improve produce safety. This review highlights advances in the field and critical points for the success of this initiative.

Technical Abstract: The substantial impact of foodborne disease outbreaks on public health and the economy has led to multidisciplinary research aimed to understand the biology underlying the different contamination processes. Here we review the knowledge, opportunities, and challenges of plant breeding as a tool to enhance food safety of plant-based products. First, we discuss the significant effect of plant genotypic and phenotypic variation in the contamination of plants by heavy metals, mycotoxin-producing fungi, and human pathogenic bacteria. In addition, we discuss the various factors (i.e., temperature, relative humidity, soil, microbiota, cultural practices, and plant developmental stage) that can influence the interaction between plant genetic diversity and contaminant. This exposes the necessity of a multidisciplinary approach to understand plant genotype x environment x microbe x management interactions. Moreover, we show that the numerous possibilities of crop/hazard combinations make imperative the definition and identification of high-risk pairs, such as Salmonella/tomato and Escherichia coli/lettuce, for breeding programs geared toward improving microbial safety of produce. Finally, we discuss research on developing effective assays and approaches for selecting desirable breeding germplasm. Overall, it is recognized that although breeding programs for some human pathogen/toxin systems are ongoing (e.g., Fusarium in wheat), it would be premature to start breeding when targets and testing systems are not well defined. Nevertheless, current research is paving the way toward this goal and this review highlights advances in the field and critical points for the success of this initiative.