Genetic Aspects of Mineral Nutrition: Future Challenges and Directions

Abstract

There are several avenues the modern plant scientist can use to study the genetic basis of mineral nutrition. The one that has been most widely followed to date could be termed the classical genetic or breeding approach, which involves collecting and screening germplasm for a particular phenotypic trait. For mineral nutritionists, this might involve looking for plants resistant to stressfully low levels of minerals (Gabelman and Gerloff, 1983) or for plants resistant to high levels of a toxic ion or salt (Rush and Epstein, 1981). A second approach, made possible in part by recent advances in recombinant DNA techniques, could be termed a molecular genetic approach. In this case, the researcher first identifies and isolates a specific gene or gene product that is suspected to play a role in mineral nutrition. Each of these approaches has advantages and disadvantages, as described below.