Enhancing photosynthesis with sugar signals

Photosynthesis has long been a target in the quest to maximize crop productivity to feed burgeoning populations. Recent evidence suggests that improved photosynthetic performance can be most easily achieved by modifying sugar-signalling mechanisms that control the expression of genes for whole pathways and processes that determine photosynthetic capacity and source-sink balance, rather than by directly targeting individual 'key' enzymes. Here. we highlight recent progress and support for the hypothesis that genetic modification of trehalose metabolism through its interaction with sugar-signalling pathways can enhance photosynthetic capacity.