The UK Plant Epigenetics Network

Due to rapid population growth and climate change, global food demand is expected to increase by over 60%, necessitating transformative advancements in crop production and improvement. The pace and magnitude of the change required to ensure food security is beyond present day technological capability of crop improvement programmes that combine genetics and molecular tools. Incorporating epigenetics into the breeding toolbox is the key to meet our future food demands as it expands the potential of crops to adapt to changing environments and enables us to rationally manipulate traits without changing DNA sequences. Although significant progress has been made in model species such as Arabidopsis in elucidating epigenetics mechanisms in environmental responses, development, disease resistance, stress adaptation, and cellular memory - mechanisms paramount for the adaptation of all plants including high yield crops to changing environments - these have not been sufficiently exploited for crop improvement. The main barrier is the complexity of major crops, particularly polyploid species such as wheat, whose complex genomes hinder seamless application of epigenetic principles for crop improvement. Establishing the fundamental mechanisms of epigenetic control of polygenic agronomic traits such as yield, stress resistance, and climate adaptability and optimisation of tools to manipulate these could offer unparalleled opportunities and add to the potential of modern breeding technologies including genome editing. To address these challenges, we propose the development of a collaborative research network – The UK Plant Epigenetic Network (UK-PEN) that brings together experts in plant epigenetics and physiology, crop genomics and epigenetics, and crop breeding. Through building such a robust group of complementary expertise, from both academia and industry, this community aims to draw in knowledge, expertise and resources to accelerate the application of epigenetic insights to crop improvement. The complex nature of crop genomes requires a multidisciplinary approach, where experts from various fields share their expertise to identify and fill knowledge gaps and develop new strategies. Central to this effort is the exchange of ideas, with the goal of identifying key research areas where epigenetics can make the greatest impact on crop performance. We will organise focussed actions to foster communication and knowledge-sharing among researchers, and the crop breeding industry. By consolidating existing research and identifying bottlenecks in our current understanding, the community will work to extend the knowledge of epigenetics principles to a broad range of crop species to allow integration of epigenetics into breeding programs. UK-PEN pump-priming projects will provide proof-of-concept and work towards developing novel methodologies and resources to build on. A curated repository of epigenetic knowledge will be developed to ensure that the wider community has access to up-to-date information and tools. A dedicated event on data analysis will ensure that the community develops and shares analysis capabilities. The UK-PEN initiative seeks to deliver structured and transformational change in the field of plant epigenetics, with the ultimate goal of improving crop resilience and sustainability. As a community, we can develop novel approaches for developing climate resilient crops by combining the power of epigenetics and modern molecular tools. This collaborative effort will not only advance scientific understanding but also provide actionable strategies to enhance food security and sustainable crop production for future generations.