‌This special issue aims to highlight cutting-edge research and practical innovations that leverage CRISPR systems (including base editing and prime editing) to reprogram plant traits and to engineer metabolic/signaling pathways for strong, high-value, and sustainable crops and forest trees. 

Topics of interest include (but are not limited to):

- CRISPR/Cas genome editing in plants: design, validation, and optimization (Cas9, Cas12, Cas13; PAM engineering).

- Multiplex editing and trait stacking for complex quantitative traits.

- Base editing and prime editing for precision allele engineering.

- CRISPR-mediated transcriptional regulation (CRISPRa/CRISPRi) and epigenome editing (e.g., targeted DNA methylation/demethylation).

- Pathway engineering for specialized metabolites, nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, and industrial bioproducts.

- Delivery technologies: Agrobacterium, protoplast/RNP delivery, viral vectors, nanoparticles, and tissue-culture-free approaches.

- Off-target assessment, genotyping pipelines, and genome-scale validation; safe-by-design editing strategies.

- AI/ML-assisted gRNA design, pathway prediction, and genotype-to-phenotype modeling for engineering decisions.

- Case studies in crops and forest trees addressing climate resilience (drought/heat/salinity), biotic resistance, quality traits, and sustainability.