**Dr. Mahmut Çalişkan**

Professor, Biology Department, İstanbul University, İstanbul, Turkey

#### **Dr. Sevcan Aydin**

Associate Professor, Biology Department, İstanbul University, İstanbul, Turkey

**1**

**1. Introduction**

**Chapter 1**

Changes

*A.S. Anter*

**Abstract**

Induced Mutation to Enhance Plant

Biodiversity and Genetic Resources

Plant genetic diversity is a valuable resource for the production of food and other agricultural products. However, the loss of genetic resources is accelerating at an astonishing rate, especially in light of climate change. Induced mutation is one of the means to generate genetic variation in plants contributing to global food security. Mutation breeding has been widely used to create new genetic variations and identify important regulatory genes in order to create varieties with higher yields, more stable yields, and greater tolerance to climate change. Mutation breeding has been to upgrade the well-adapted plant varieties by altering one or two major traits. Mutagenesis can occur in any gene and are unpredictable, we also have a strong possibility of discovering novel traits. For example, tolerance for salt in sesame and *orobanche* in faba beans. Mutation breeding is a well-known method that allows plant breeders to work with farmers to create varieties of rice, barley, sesame, and other crops that are high-yielding and more resistant to disease, resulting in the intensification of crop production. This chapter will discuss the role of mutation breeding to

**Keywords:** DNA changes, field crops mutagenesis, plant biodiversity, climatic changes

New semi-dwarf, disease-resistant, and high-yielding cultivars have been created as a result of the green revolution [1]. This innovative agricultural technique raised annual yields, which increased the amount of food produced by vital crops [2]. On the other hand, commercial crops have a very small genetic base, making them vulnerable to environmental dangers. Up to 75% of agricultural genetic variety has already been lost, and another 15–37% are in danger of going extinct [3]. Out of the 200,000 plant species, humanity has historically used roughly 3000 for food production. Only 15–20 of these are now used to produce food [4]. Therefore, addressing this issue poses a significant

Production to Mitigate Climatic

for Intensification of Crop

intensify crop production to mitigate climate change.
