Omics platforms: Importance of twenty-first century genome-enabled technologies in seed developmental research for improved seed quality and crop yield

As the global population increases, so does the demand for caloric intake provided from agricultural crops. Agricultural food production depends predominantly on those species which propagate through seed formation, such as cereals and legumes. The available seed supply of agriculturally important crop varieties with enhanced disease resistance and improved yield is critical for improving food crop production. Traditional techniques used to identify favorable crop characteristics for use in plant breeding are often inadequate in determining specific gene-trait associations. This has resulted in a shift towards integrating plant breeding with new omics technologies. Twenty-first century omics technologies take advantage of many recently released crop genome sequences to investigate gene-function through four disciplines: First, genomics characterizes genome wide expression of DNA; secondly, proteomics studies global protein function and expression; thirdly, transcriptomics is the study of RNA regulation; and fourthly, interactomics is the analysis of complex protein-protein interactions. Examining gene-function of important seed characteristics, through use of omics technology, could reveal critical components that could be exploited for improving seed quality and yield.