Advancing Functional Genomics in Marchantia polymorpha: A Review of Induced Mutagenesis Toolkits and Applications

Abstract

The liverwort Marchantia polymorpha has emerged as a premier model system for investigating plant evolution, development, and physiology. Its phylogenetic position, haploid-dominant life cycle, and compact genome confer unique advantages for genetic dissection and functional genomics. This review consolidates and evaluates the suite of induced mutagenesis approaches that have been developed and optimized for M. polymorpha . We discuss classical random mutagenesis techniques, such as chemical (e.g., EMS, sodium azide) and physical (e.g., UV, gamma, and heavy-ion beam) treatments, alongside the transformative impact of programmable nuclease systems, including CRISPR/Cas9 and TALENs. The growing accessibility of efficient transformation and delivery platforms, notably Agrobacterium -mediated and biolistic methods, has accelerated the pace of reverse genetics and precision editing in this basal land plant. By comparing the mechanisms, efficiencies, and applications of these approaches, we highlight how induced mutagenesis has enabled the rapid expansion of functional genomics in M. polymorpha . Finally, we outline emerging frontiers, such as base and prime editing, enhanced homology-directed repair, and synthetic regulatory circuits, that promise to further refine this model’s utility in evolutionary and applied plant biotechnology. Collectively, these advancements position M. polymorpha as a foundational system for bridging plant evolutionary biology with next-generation genetic engineering.

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