Epigenetics Unveiled: The Case of the Horticultural Crops’ Hidden Secrets < Part 1>

Editors:　Ryo Fujimoto¹, Etsuko Itabashi², Dong-Hwan Kim³

Preface
The Japanese Society for Horticultural Science has launched a new special feature series, Hort New Focus, in The Horticulture Journal (Hort. J.) to further expand interdisciplinary research and enhance the journal’s value and appeal. The theme of the first Hort New Focus is epigenetics. Variation in DNA sequence has long been known to drive gene expression diversity, contributing significantly to phenotypic variation in plants. However, an expanding body of research now underscores the pivotal role of epigenetic changes, which influence gene expression without altering the underlying DNA sequence, in driving phenotypic variation. Epigenetics is revealing a hidden layer of complexity in plant biology, particularly in horticultural crops. The potential for epigenetics in breeding strategies and epigenome editing presents exciting new opportunities for horticultural crop improvement. This Hort New Focus, “Epigenetics Unveiled: The Case of the Horticultural Crops’ Hidden Secrets”, will be published in two parts.

Editors’ Affiliation
¹ Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Kobe University
² Institute of Vegetable and Floriculture Science, NARO
³ Department of Plant Science and Technology, College of Biotechnology, Chung-Ang University