Sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] is the fifth most important cereal crop globally by harvested area and production. Its drought and heat tolerance allow high yields with minimal input. It is a promising biomass crop for the production of biofuels and bioproducts. In addition, as an annual diploid with a relatively small genome compared with other C4 grasses, and excellent germplasm diversity, sorghum is an excellent research species for other C4 crops such as maize. As a result, an increasing number of researchers are looking to test the transferability of findings from other organisms such as Arabidopsis thaliana and Brachypodium distachyon to sorghum, as well as to engineer new biomass sorghum varieties. Here, we provide an overview of sorghum as a multipurpose feedstock crop which can support the growing bioeconomy, and as a monocot research model system. We review what makes sorghum such a successful crop and identify some key traits for future improvement. We assess recent progress in sorghum transformation and highlight how transformation limitations still restrict its widespread adoption. Finally, we summarize available sorghum genetic, genomic, and bioinformatics resources. This review is intended for researchers new to sorghum research, as well as those wishing to include non-food and forage applications in their research.

中文翻译：

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高粱生物技术的进展和挑战，一种生物经济的多用途原料

高粱 [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] 是全球收获面积和产量第五大的谷类作物。它的干旱和耐热性允许以最少的投入获得高产。它是一种很有前景的生物质作物，可用于生产生物燃料和生物制品。此外，高粱作为一年生二倍体，与其他C4禾本科植物相比基因组相对较小，种质多样性优良，是玉米等其他C4作物的优良研究品种。因此，越来越多的研究人员正在寻求测试从其他生物（如拟南芥和二穗短柄草）的研究结果到高粱的可转移性，以及设计新的生物质高粱品种。在这里，我们概述了高粱作为一种多用途原料作物，可以支持不断增长的生物经济，并作为单子叶植物研究模型系统。我们回顾了高粱如此成功的原因，并确定了未来改进的一些关键性状。我们评估了高粱转化的最新进展，并强调了转化限制如何仍然限制其广泛采用。最后，我们总结了可用的高粱遗传、基因组和生物信息学资源。本综述面向刚接触高粱研究的研究人员，以及希望将非食品和草料应用纳入研究的研究人员。和生物信息学资源。本综述面向刚接触高粱研究的研究人员，以及希望将非食品和草料应用纳入研究的研究人员。和生物信息学资源。本综述面向刚接触高粱研究的研究人员，以及希望将非食品和草料应用纳入研究的研究人员。