PLANT BREEDING NEWS
EDITION
169
31 July 2006
An Electronic Newsletter of Applied Plant
Breeding
Sponsored by FAO and Cornell University
Clair H. Hershey,
Editor
Archived issues available at: http://www.fao.org/WAICENT/FAOINFO/AGRICULT/AGP/AGPC/doc/services/pbn.html
(NOTE: cut and paste link if it does not work
directly)
CONTENTS
1. NEWS, ANNOUNCEMENTS AND RESEARCH
NOTES
1.01 Rising CO2 levels not as good for crops as thought
1.02 Two articles in Science of interest
to plant breeders:
1.03 More on the Global Partnership Initiative for Plant
Breeding Capacity Building
1.04 Brazil will share expertise in agriculture with
Africa
1.05 Filipino scientists join effort to develop 'Golden Rice'
1.06 International collaboration helps CLIMA fight the negative effects of disease, drought, salinity,
waterlogging and temperature on legume crops in Western Australia
1.07 In the battle
against the devastating rice blast pathogen, USDA's Rice Core Collection proves
a genetic treasure chest
1.08 The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for
Food and Agriculture - A real treaty
1.09 New research may reduce global need
for nitrogen fertilizers
1.10 Gene controlling aphid resistance in soybean reported
1.11 Peru launches new kiwicha
cultivar
1.12 IITA takes on banana virus with UV, juice help
1.13 New barley has higher yields,
available phosphorous
1.14 Pinto bean lines developed to resist mold
1.15 Cloned oil palm
making its way in Malaysia
1.16 UCSD biologists solve plant growth hormone enigma
1.17 Grass roots
research will help develop new energy crops
1.18 Energy-rich portfolio of new genome sequencing
targets for DOE JGI
1.19 Full-length switchgrass genes
sequenced and genetic variation characterized
1.20 Plan to boost rice photosynthesis
with inserted genes
1.21 Potato
blight pathogenicity explained by genome plasticity
1.22 South Africa halts
'super sorghum' study
1.23 Biotechnology opens new opportunities for flavor and
fragrance industry
1.24 How purple corn and RNA break genetic laws
1.25 Selections from Update 5-2006 of
FAO-BiotechNews
2. PUBLICATIONS
(None
submitted)
3. WEB RESOURCES
3.01 New search portal for IPK’s genebank (Gatersleben,
Germany) is online
4 GRANTS AVAILABLE
4.01 International Foundation for Science (IFS): Calls
for applications
5 POSITION ANNOUNCEMENTS
(None submitted)
6 MEETINGS, COURSES AND WORKSHOPS
7 EDITOR'S
NOTES
=========================
1. NEWS,
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND RESEARCH NOTES
1.01 Rising CO2 levels not as good for crops as
thought
Scientists' predictions that rising levels of atmospheric
carbon dioxide will boost crop yields have been too optimistic, according to a
study published today (30 June) in Science.
It says the effect is likely
to be only about half as strong as previously thought.
Researchers have
long reported that most major crops grow faster and need less water when more
carbon dioxide (CO2) is available.
It was thought that this
'fertilisation effect' might offset the negative effects on crops such as
increased temperature and reduced soil moisture that climate change is
expected to bring.
But the new study, led by Stephen Long of the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States, points out that these
conclusions are mostly based on research done in greenhouses or
controlled-environment chambers in labs and fields.
Long's team surveyed
results from a more realistic approach known as Free-Air Concentration
Enrichment (FACE), which involves releasing CO2 just above the crops in open
fields without interfering with other environmental conditions.
They
concluded that the CO2 level expected by 2050 would only increase crop yields by
about half what was predicted.
Long told SciDev.Net that the new results
suggest that "the damaging effects of rising temperature and decreased soil
moisture will not be offset by the fertilisation effect of rising
CO2".
The researchers note that for some tropical crops such as maize and
sorghum the fertilisation effect might not even apply because they do not use
CO2 for growth in the same way that most other plants do.
Commenting on
the research in the same issue of Science, David Schimel of the US National
Center for Atmospheric Research says the findings "may move impacts on
agriculture higher up on the list of pressing concerns about climate
change".
Atmospheric CO2 concentrations have risen from 260 parts per
million (ppm) 150 years ago to 380 ppm today, and are expected to rise to 550
ppm by 2050 because of human activities.
Link
to full paper in Science
Reference: Science 312, 1918
(2006)
Source: SciDev.Net
30 June 2006
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1.02 Two articles in Science of interest
to plant breeders:
Long, S., E. Ainswroth, A. Leakey, J. Noesberger,
and D. Ort. 2006. Food for thought: Lower-than-expected crop
yield stimulation with rising CO2 concentrations. Science 312:1918-1921,
30 June 2006. (See overview in this edition of PBN-L)
And a commentary on
the above article, in the same issue:
Schimel, D. 2006. Climate
change and crop yields: Beyond Cassandra. Science 312:1889-1890, 30
June 2006.
I encourage plant breeders to join AAAS, the professional
society that publishes Science. There is a AAAS Agriculture section, but
it is small and needs more of us. AAAS listens to its members.
If there are more agies in AAAS, we will have more influence on the programs and
policies of what is a highly influential society. At a
minimum, it is another venue to work for increased understanding and
respect for our discipline. Articles like the two cited above suggest that
the time is ripe for this. Alas, becoming an ag activist in
AAAS is not free; annual dues are $142 ($75 for students).
AAAS is
not suggested as an alternative to our existing societies! (e.g., CSSA,
ASHS). We should retain those memberships! -- because in those societies,
we do determine programs and policies, and those societies work for
us.
Submitted by Ann Marie Thro
CSREES/USDA
athro@csrees.usda.gov
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1.03 More on the Global Partnership
Initiative for Plant Breeding Capacity Building
(Follow-up on PBN-L
Edition 168)
The article at the site below explains what the Global
Partnership Initiative for Plant Breeding Capacity Building (GIPB) can do to
work in partnership with your organization to strengthen national capacity to
use plant genetic resources.
http://www.fao.org/ag/magazine/0606sp1.htm
Contributed
by Elcio Guimaraes
FAO/AGPC
Elcio.Guimaraes@fao.org
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1.04 Brazil will share expertise in
agriculture with Africa
Carla Almeida
[RIO DE JANEIRO] African
nations are set to benefit from Brazilian expertise in tropical agriculture
thanks to an agreement between Brazil and Ghana.
Under the agreement
signed this week (10 July), Ghana will host the first African branch of the
Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa).
The branch will
act as a regional base for sharing Brazil's agricultural knowledge with the
whole continent, and will be located at the Council of Scientific and Industrial
Research in Accra.
Two staff will identify local research needs, plan
studies that can be undertaken in Brazil, and seek international partners to
cooperate in the agency's initiatives.
Research will be carried out in
Brazil by Embrapa's 38 research units, which will send their findings back to
Ghana.
Sotto Pacheco Costa, Embrapa's supervisor of bilateral
cooperation, says the branch will also "train local technicians, in Brazil and
in Africa, and offer technical assistance [on agricultural
problems]".
The branch was decided upon after an increasing number of
demands coming from Africa for Brazilian agricultural technology. The move comes
as part of Brazil's commitment to South-South cooperation.
"This is a
fascinating experience and a challenge to work with African countries", says
Costa. "We are hoping to help resolve the problems in the agricultural sector
and become closer partners."
Source: SciDev.net
14 July
2006
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1.05 Filipino
scientists join effort to develop 'Golden Rice'
Manila, The
Philippines
By Carlos D. Marquez, Jr. (Correspondent), Business Mirror via SEAMEO SEARCA
Selected
scientists from Germany, US, China, Vietnam and the Philippines are making rice
nutrient -dense grain-food to save about 10 million children in poor countries
from dying everyday due to malnutrition.
By 2015, as envisioned, a cup or
160 gram of what would be genetically engineered cooked rice can give the poor -
who would often content themselves with rice alone for their diet - the combined
nutrients from a slice of steak, a piece of prawn, a fried egg, some vegetables
and fruits.
"The overall goal is to engineer rice with increased levels
of provitamin E high quality protein, zinc and iron," explains the Golden Rice
Project web site. The Golden Rice, notable for its yellowish color resulting
from the high concentration of betacarotene in it, was first developed in 1999
by German scientist Peter Beyer of the University of Freiburg.
Now, the
project ProVitamin A Rice Consortium, has been formed to fortify it further with
protein, vitamin E, zinc and iron.
To achieve the goal, the consortium,
funded by the Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation, gathered molecular biologists,
biochemists and plant breeders from Albert-Ludwigs University, Freiburg,
Germany, Michigan State University and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston,
Texas, USA, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Cuu Long Delta Rice
Research Institute and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) in
Muñoz Science City, Philippines.
This current research, which aims to
fuse vital nutrients and achieve a balanced composition of the needed amino
acids, is part of the Grand Challenges in Global Health Program of the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation in collaboration with plant breeding and crop
protection multinational Syngenta.
The consortium is led by German
scientist Peter Beyer, the acknowledged "principal investigator" of the Golden
Rice project. Each of the consortium members has an assigned task in completing
the rice project.
The University of Freiburg and Michigan State
University are in charge of the multigene stacking and for transformations;
Baylor College of Medicine with Michigan State University identifies
quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for iron bioavailability and assess
bioavailability in model systems as well as the human iron acceptability
studies; Chinese University of Hong Kong enhances the protein quality and lysine
content of rice; CLRRI and PhilRice do the introgression of the needed nutrient
into their respective local varieties; while IRRI takes charge of the latter
task in the rice varieties in other Southeast Asian
countries.
"Hopefully, we can develop one single line per country
containing all the essential micronutrients," said Dr. Rhodora R. Aldemita,
chief science research specialist of PhilRice and a genetic engineering expert.
She is the PhilRice principal scientist for the Golden Rice
project.
Aldemita had her postdoctoral fellowship at the Albert-Ludwigs
University Freiburg, Germany, from June 2003 to December 2005 and PhD in Botany
from Purdue University, in Indiana, USA, in 1996. She obtained her Ms in
Agronomy from the University of the Philippines-Los Baños,
Laguna.
Aldemita conducts breeding studies to incorporate the provitamin
A genes into PSBRc 82 and Mabango 1together with Dr. Antonio A. Alfonso, a
molecular plant breeder and geneticist who heads PhilRice's Plant Breeding and
Biotechnology Division.
Antonio is crossing the female parent of the two
Philippine rice varieties, selected for their popularity, taste and other
attributes with the male parent donor SGR1, or the Syngenta Golden Rice 1, which
contains around 8 mg per gram of beta-carotene.
After producing an F1, or
the resulting progeny, it will then be crossed again with the two recurrent
parents PSBRc82 and Mabango 1. The process, Antonio adds, will be done
repeatedly until a uniform line, with the same agronomic characteristics of the
parent is obtained.
Another study deals with the incorporation of the
Golden Rice characteristics into the locally adapted tungro-and bacterial
blight-resistant varieties.
"PhilRice already has conventionally bred
varieties which contain these disease-resistant traits and adding vitamin A
through conventional breeding and backcrossing is a very important endeavor. The
product will become a new variety with all the desired genes in it," Aldemita
said.
SGR1 contains the important genes to convert the precursor
geranyl-geranyl pyrophosphate present in the rice endosperm into beta-carotene.
The daffodil gene phytoene synthase, and the phytoene desaturase from a common
soil bacterium Erwinia uredovora were introduced into the variety Cocodrie
through Agrobacterium tumefaciens - mediated transformation. This led to the
production of high amounts of beta-carotene in the endosperm which is available
for food.
In the latter course of the five-year project, Aldemita will
introduce multinutrient constructs to include genes for vitamin A, E, high
lysine, and possibly iron zinc into rice through genetic engineering. "Achieving
this will be the realization of an ultimate goal, that of improving the nutrient
and protein quality of the staple rice," she confided.
"Golden Rice and
other engineered rice lines with stacked traits will be incorporated into
ongoing breeding and seed delivery programs for developing countries," said the
Golden rice web site. When fully developed, the engineered variety will be made
available to farmers.
Source: SeedQuest.com
28 June 2006
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1.06 International collaboration helps CLIMA fight the negative effects of disease, drought, salinity,
waterlogging and temperature on legume crops in Western
Australia
Nedlands, Perth, Western Australia
Agricultural
scientists from Iran, Egypt, Pakistan and China, along with their Australian
allies, are fighting the negative effects of disease, drought, salinity,
waterlogging and temperature on legume crops in Western Australia and their
countries.
Western Australian and Iranian researchers, for example, are
pooling resources to find drought tolerant chickpea genotypes to benefit drought
affected Iranian and Australian farming systems.
Associate Professor
Nasser Majnoun Hosseini, of the University of
Tehran, is in West Australia for six months to help develop agronomic and
genetic strategies to increase yields during drought.
Speaking at the Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean
Agriculture (CLIMA) at the University of West Australia (UWA), he explained
that Iran’s farming systems have similarities to Western Australia.
“Iran has arid regions, with low annual rainfall, where chickpea is
grown although current varieties give poor emergence and establishment under
limited moisture conditions.
“There is a need for chickpea varieties that
can emerge early, with limited soil moisture and then withstand cold and dry
winter conditions, hence we are screening for suitable genotypes under simulated
conditions in the glasshouse at CSIRO,” Professor Hosseini said.
Three other scientists, from Egypt, Pakistan
and China, are collaborating with local scientists at UWA, CSIRO and the Department of Agriculture and Food
(DAFWA).
Visiting Western Australia on an Australian Government Endeavour
Fellowship, Dr Magdi Abdelhamid, of the National Research Centre, Cairo, is
working with CLIMA to improve water use efficiency in faba beans and studying
how they fix nitrogen when moisture stressed.
“Drought is extremely
stressful for crops and understanding how they grow at that time will allow us
to define drought resistant traits and ultimately breed cultivars better able to
withstand stress and produce respectable yields,” Dr Abdelhamid said.
At
the opposite end of the rainfall spectrum, Asia Gulnaz of the Nuclear Institute
for Agriculture and Biology (NIAB), Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, is
exploring the interactions between waterlogging and salinity and their effects
on legumes.
Funded by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), her
study, using radio-isotope techniques, will help legume breeders develop and
select salt and waterlogging tolerant cultivars.
“Salinity and
transient waterlogging are important production constraints in Pakistan and
Australia,” she said.
Western Australia will also benefit from the
genomic researching skills of Dr Ruiming Lin of the Chinese Academy of
Agricultural Science, Beijing.
He is collaborating with UWA and DAFWA to
identify a marker in lupin to create an anthracnose resistant plant using the
Microsatellite anchored Fragment Length Polymorphisms (MFLP)
technique.
Developed by CLIMA, MFLP shows DNA patterns and produces
genetic markers.
Dr Lin will use the MFLP technique he learns in Western
Australia to develop a yellow rust resistant wheat variety when he returns to
China.
CLIMA Director, Professor Kadambot Siddique described
international collaboration as a very important CLIMA activity, which enhances
research capacity in Western Australia.
“Simultaneously hosting such high
achieving scientists from four countries reflects CLIMA’s standing in the global
legume science community and augers well for the future of Western Australian
legume growers, the ultimate beneficiaries of such
collaboration.”
Source: SeedQuest.com
19 July 2006
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1.07 In the battle against the
devastating rice blast pathogen, USDA's Rice Core Collection proves a genetic
treasure chest
Agricultural Research Service scientists have
discovered a few good rice plants--and are taking them to the bank.
The
researchers, in their hunt for rice genes to guard against the devastating rice
blast pathogen Magnaporthe grisea, recently tapped the country’s most diverse
collection of rice. This genebank--the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA)
Rice Core Collection--contains more than 1,700 rice plant accessions from more
than 100 countries.
The ARS scientists, working at the Dale Bumpers
National Rice Research Center in Stuttgart, Ark., evaluated the hundreds of
accessions by growing and testing each one in the laboratory and field.
Led by ARS geneticist Wengui Yan, the scientists discovered new rice
genes resistant to blast. This destructive disease impacts about 30 percent of
the world’s rice plants each year.
Finding new genes to counter disease,
pests and other threats is central to the longevity of all crops. But rice,
which helps feed more than two-thirds of the world’s population, especially
benefits from continuous access to new genetic material, or
germplasm.
That’s because the crop’s nemesis, rice blast, has growers and
breeders engaged in a never-ending, tug-of-war battle. Farmers plant rice that’s
expected to stand up to the blast-causing fungus. But in just a short period of
time, the pathogen finds a new way to overcome its weary host.
The blast
resistance genes the Stuttgart researchers discovered should give rice plants a
needed boost. These findings are different from any resistance genes currently
available to the U.S. rice industry.
The USDA Rice Core Collection is
part of the ARS-coordinated National Plant Germplasm System, a cooperative
effort by public and private organizations to preserve crops’ genetic diversity.
This collection is referred to as “core” because it captures the essential
genetic diversity contained in an even larger USDA rice collection of 18,000
accessions. Working with a smaller core collection streamlines breeders’ efforts
to uncover valuable genes.
Read more about the research in the July 2006
issue of Agricultural Research magazine, available online at:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/jul06/rice0706.htm
Washington, DC
ARS News Service
Agricultural Research Service,
USDA
Erin Peabody ekpeabody@ars.usda.gov
ARS is
the USDA’s chief scientific research agency.
Source:
SeedQuest.com
12 July 2006
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1.08 The
International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture - A
real treaty
Rome, Italy
The International Treaty on Plant
Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture may still have a few sharp edges.
It’s not the prettiest creature. And those who worked on it over the years have
certainly lost a lot of their hair. But, the Treaty is now decidedly REAL.
Efforts to achieve an international treaty addressing the conservation
and exchange of plant genetic resources date to the late 1970s. Reaching
consensus on a binding instrument proved impossible before the new millennium.
The absence of an agreed international framework for acquisition of
genetic resources stifled exchange and perpetuated mistrust without providing
any off-setting benefits. Accusations swirled. New words, such as “biopiracy,”
entered the lexicon. Collecting for conservation purposes decreased – countries
were leery of what might be lost, stolen or misappropriated. Exchanges declined,
undermining breeding programs.
Some assumed genetic resources could be
sold sample-by-sample and that the marketplace would thus provide an incentive
for conservation. It didn’t happen. There was no market, little access, and zero
benefits. Everyone lost.
Because seeds are so easy to multiply and
transport, genetic resources defy attempts at commercialization. For 500 years,
they have foiled all attempts.
In economists’ terms they are a “public
good.” The marketplace provides little, if any, economic incentive to
entrepreneurs to conserve crop diversity in order to sell it. And yet, it is in
society’s interest that crop diversity be conserved.
It has been wryly
observed that governments always do the right thing…but only when all other
options have been exhausted. The challenge countries faced in the Treaty
negotiations was how to regulate the exchange of genetic resources so as to
promote both access and the rewards that flow from access (e.g., food security).
For political reasons, negotiators also needed to find a mechanism for
generating additional benefits, benefits they could manage and dispense. If
selling genetic resources were unworkable, providing access with no regulation
or recompense was unthinkable, and not providing access was slowly suicidal.
New International Legal Framework
Following seven years of formal
negotiations, the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and
Agriculture debuted in 2002. Featuring a Multilateral System for the access and
benefit-sharing of crop diversity, it lacked the detailed provisions needed to
implement the system.
The tough nuts-and-bolts decisions were bequeathed
to the first meeting of the Treaty’s Governing Body, the 104 countries that had
formally ratified the Treaty when the Governing Body convened in June in Madrid.
Confounding most observers who thought the issues too technically and
politically intractable to resolve, the Governing Body:
Agreed on the
terms of a standard Material Transfer Agreement (sMTA) through which all crop
diversity covered by the Treaty’s Multilateral System (covering more than 35 of
the world’s most important crops, plus a number of forages) will be accessed and
used. The sMTA calls for a royalty of 1.1% of sales to be paid into a fund when
(a.) genetic material is accessed from the Treaty’s multilateral system, (b.) it
is incorporated into a product that is a plant genetic resource, such as a new
crop variety, (c.) the product is commercialized, and (c.) there are
restrictions, such as patent protection, that limit use of the product for
further plant breeding and research. Users can opt for a lower royalty rate
(0.5%) if they apply it to all products of a particular crop regardless of
whether there are restrictions to further use and regardless of whether
multilateral system materials were used in making them. The Treaty’s Governing
Body will control and dispense funds raised, using them to support crop
diversity related programs.
Agreed on a financial strategy for
implementation of the Treaty and Rules of Procedure for the Governing
Body.
-Approved the text of agreements bringing collections held by the
CGIAR under the terms of the Treaty. These collections contain much of the
diversity of the world’s major crops and are the most widely used collections in
the world.
-Expressed in the final report of the meeting its “unanimous
support” for the Global Crop Diversity Trust and approved and signed a
Relationship Agreement with the Trust recognizing, uniquely, the Trust’s role as
an “essential element” of the Treaty’s funding strategy in regards to ex situ
conservation and availability of plant genetic resources.
In short, the
Treaty became Real in Madrid.
The Treaty removes the uncertainty of
access and the fear of exploitation that prevailed in the 1990s – uncertainty
and fear that choked off exchanges of crop diversity and undercut conservation
and plant breeding efforts.
By promoting cooperation and the sharing of
genetic resources, will the Treaty reduce the impulse of countries to take an “every man for himself” approach to conservation? We’ll see. It should, because
through cooperation based on the Treaty, a rational, efficient, effective and
sustainable system can now be created for conserving crop diversity and making
it available to all. This can be done without incurring large costs, and it can
be done without diminishing any country’s access to the crop diversity it needs.
The International Treaty on
Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture
A legal framework is
in place. Now it is time for thinking to shift and for attitudes to catch up to
the new reality. By normalizing transactions, the Treaty should help create a
new climate of trust and cooperation among custodians and users of crop
diversity. If it does, it will be the Treaty’s greatest achievement. This may
take a little time. By then we may all be a little loose in the joints and
shabby, but it won’t matter. The new global system will be Real.
Learn
more about the topic
Explanatory
Guide to the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and
Agriculture, by G. Moore and W. Tymowski.
Summary of the First
Session of the Governing Body of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic
Resources for Food and Agriculture
Source: The Global Crop Diversity Trust via
SeedQuest.com
21 July 2006
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1.09 New research may reduce global need for nitrogen
fertilizers
Research published June 29 in the journal Nature reveals
how scientists at the John Innes Centre (JIC), Norwich and Washington State
University, USA have managed to trigger nodulation in legumes, a key element of
the nitrogen fixing process, without the bacteria normally necessary. This is an
important step towards transferring nodulation, and possibly nitrogen fixation,
to non-legume crops which could reduce the need for inorganic fertilizers.
The researchers, funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences
Research Council (BBSRC), the Royal Society and the US National Science
Foundation, have used a key gene that legumes require to establish the
interaction with the nitrogen-fixing bacteria to trigger the growth of root
nodules, even in the absence of the bacteria.
The fixation of nitrogen
by some plants is critical to maintaining the health of soil as it converts the
inert atmospheric form of nitrogen into compounds usable by plants. Legumes, as
used in this study, are an important group of plants as they have the ability to
fix nitrogen – which they owe to a symbiotic relationship with nitrogen-fixing
bacteria in root nodules. Legumes are often used as a rotation crop to naturally
enhance the nitrogen content of soils. Scientists have been working for a number
of years to understand the symbiosis between legumes and rhizobial bacteria,
with the hope that one day they can transfer this trait to crop plants, the
majority of which cannot fix nitrogen themselves.
Intensive crop
agriculture depends heavily on inorganic fertilisers that are often used to
provide nutrients particularly nitrogen that are critical for plant growth. The
production of nitrogen fertilisers requires a large amount of energy and is
estimated to constitute approximately 50 per cent of the fossil fuel usage of
the modern agricultural process. Inorganic fertilizers also cause environmental
problems associated with leeching into our water systems.
Dr Giles
Oldroyd is the research leader at JIC. He said: "We now have a good
understanding of the processes required to activate nodule development. The
nodule is an essential component of this nitrogen fixing interaction as it
provides the conditions required for the bacteria. Nodules are normally only
formed when the plant perceives the presence of the bacteria. The fact that we
can induce the formation of nodules in the plant in the absence of the bacteria
is an important first step in transferring this process to non-legumes. If this
could be achieved we could dramatically reduce the need for inorganic nitrogen
fertilizers, in turn reducing environmental pollution and energy use. However,
we still have a lot of work before we can generate nodulation in non-legumes."
Professor Julia Goodfellow, Chief Executive of BBSRC, commented: "BBSRC
is the principal funder of fundamental plant research in the UK and commits
millions of pounds a year to furthering our understanding of basic plant
biology. Such fundamental research may seem disconnected from the every day
world for many people but this project shows how potentially important such
science is. The findings have the potential to lead to a practical application
with substantial economic impact for the UK."
Contacts
Victoria Just
victoria.just@bbsrc.ac.uk
Matt Goode matt.goode@bbsrc.ac.uk
Tracey
Jewitt tracey.jewitt@bbsrc.ac.uk
The JIC is grant-aided by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences
Research Council. http://www.jic.ac.uk
Source: EurekAlert.org
28 June 2006
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Contents)
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1.10
Gene controlling aphid resistance in soybean
reported
The soybean aphid is a serious pest of the crop, and has
caused millions of dollars in economic losses. Farmers controlled the pest by
applying chemical insecticides, until scientists discovered that plants could be
resistant to aphid infestation. Scientists are now busy mapping the gene or
genes involved in aphid resistance, and Curtis B. Hilla and colleagues of the
University of Illinois are no different. Their articles, "Soybean Aphid
Resistance in Soybean Jackson Is Controlled by a Single Dominant Gene" and "A
Single Dominant Gene for Resistance to the Soybean Aphid in the Soybean Cultivar
Dowling" appear in the latest issue of Crop Science.
Researchers aimed to
determine the inheritance of soybean aphid resistance in two cultivars, Jackson
and Dowling. They crossed the cultivars with Loda and Williams, soybean
cultivars susceptible to aphids. By testing parents and F2 plants for aphid
susceptibility in the greenhouse, and then performing statistical tests to
determine inheritance patterns, researchers traced the soybean aphid resistance
trait to a single dominant gene.
The gene is Rag1 in Dowling, but as yet
unknown in Jackson. Because there is no known genetic relationship between the
two resistant cultivars, it is possible that the resistance gene found in
Jackson is unique and distinct from the Rag1 found in Dowling. Since aphid
resistance is controlled by only one gene in soybean, however, breeders will
have an easier time converting existing susceptible cultivars to resistant
cultivars using backcrossing procedures.
Read more at http://dx.doi.org/10.2135/cropsci2005.11-0421
and http://dx.doi.org/10.2135/cropsci2005.11-0438.
Source:
CropBiotech Update 7 July 2006
Contributed by Margaret E. Smith
Dept.
of Plant Breeding & Genetics
Cornell
University
mes25@cornell.edu
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1.11 Peru
launches new kiwicha cultivar
The Agrarian Experimental Station
Canaán Ayacucho of the Peruvian National Institute of Agrarian Research and
Extension (INIEA) has released a new improved variety of kiwicha, or amaranth
grain. The Kiwicha Variety 413, "INIA Morocho Ayacuchano," has an early
germination phenotype, a yield of 3 to 4 tones/ha, and a high grain
quality.
The project is in line with the policies of the Ministry of
Agriculture and of the Institutional Strategic Program, and aims to introduce
new technologies to the Peruvian agricultural sector. The objective is to
increase the use of national genetic resources and promote the competitiveness
and sustainability of the sector for the benefit of all.
Kiwicha, a
natural plant from the Peruvian Andes, and a traditional Incan crop, has been
under cultivation for over 8000 years. However, as kiwicha has continued to grow
in the wild as a weed, this crop has a very large base of genetic diversity.
Kiwicha seeds have a high caloric nutrient content, and provide, besides
protein, dietary fiber and minerals such as iron, magnesium, phosphorus, copper,
and manganese.
Read more at: http://www.inia.gob.pe/eventos/evento0128/
Source:
CropBiotech Update 21 July 2006
Contributed by Margaret E. Smith
Dept.
of Plant Breeding & Genetics
Cornell
University
mes25@cornell.edu
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1.12 IITA takes on banana virus with UV, juice
help
Scientists from the International Institute of Tropical
Agriculture (IITA) are using vegetable juice and near ultraviolet (UV) light to
help them select the best banana plantlets in the laboratory. This is part of
the IITA's rapid screening process for resistant banana plants; field
evaluations for plant susceptibility to the Black Sigatoka fungus can be time
consuming and expensive, so scientists use a combination of UV and juice to grow
large amounts of fungal spores to transmit the disease and challenge culture
plantlets in test tubes.
Once resistant plantlets are identified, they
can be propagated in the laboratory, and subsequently distributed to banana
farmers. IITA is now focusing on refining their screening methods and
determining the relationship between early screening results and adult plant
reaction.
Black Sigatoka is a common, widespread disease of bananas in
sub-Saharan Africa. It can cause yield losses as high as 76%. Read the complete
news article at http://www.iita.org/.
Source:
CropBiotech Update 28 July 2006:
Contributed by Margaret E.
Smith
Dept. of Plant Breeding & Genetics
Cornell
University
mes25@cornell.edu
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1.13 New barley has higher yields, available
phosphorous
Scientists from the Agricultural Research Service, of the
United States Department of Agriculture (AR-USDA), have developed a new
high-yielding barley that provides more bio-available phosphorous. That is, the
phosphorous is present in a form more readily absorbed and used by animals that
feed on the crop; this also means that the phosphorous is less likely to end up
in animal manure and be carried away by rain runoff from pastures and fields
into freshwater supplies.
Named "Herald," the barley should save growers
the cost of feeding phosphorus supplements to farm animals.
For more
information, contact Marcia Wood of the ARS at marcia.wood@ars.usda.gov.
Read the complete press release at http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2006/060726.htm.
Source:
CropBiotech Update 28 July 2006:
Contributed by Margaret E.
Smith
Dept. of Plant Breeding & Genetics
Cornell
University
mes25@cornell.edu
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1.14 Pinto bean lines developed to resist mold
Two new
white mold-resistant, high-yielding pinto bean lines have recently been
developed by scientists of the United States Department of Agriculture's
Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS). Designated as USPT-WM-1 and USPT-WM-2,
these lines were developed by cross-breeding the pinto bean Aztec, a
semi-upright breed of pinto, with ND88-106-4, an upright navy bean breeding
line.
White mold is an endemic disease affecting pinto and other dry
edible bean crops throughout the United States. Crop losses can be minimized
with fungicides, careful irrigation, or widely spaced rows, but the fungus that
causes white mold can elude these measures and spread quickly through the air.
Severe outbreaks of the disease can reduce bean yield and quality.
Read
the complete article at http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2006/060724.htm.
For more information, contact Jan Suszkiw of the ARS News Service at jan.suszkiw@ars.usda.gov.
Source:
CropBiotech Update 28 July 2006:
Contributed by Margaret E.
Smith
Dept. of Plant Breeding & Genetics
Cornell
University
mes25@cornell.edu
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Contents)
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1.15 Cloned oil palm making its way in Malaysia
Applied
Agricultural Resources Sdn Bhd (AAR), an agricultural advisory firm based in
Malaysia, has successfully developed cloned plantlets of oil palm through tissue
culture clonal propagation, a technology the firm uses to clone high-yielding
oil palms. These plantlets have 20 - 25% higher oil extraction rate, which
translates to higher revenue for plantation companies. The clonal propagation
technique, though developed in the 1970's, was commercialized only by two firms
in Malaysia, including AAR. Currently, seven firms have invested in the research
and development of tissue culture clonal propagation.
For more
information, contact Mahaletchumy Arujanan of the Malaysian Biotechnology
Information Center (MABIC) at maha@bic.org.my.
Find out more about MABIC at http://www.bic.org.my.
Source:
CropBiotech Update 28 July 2006
Contributed by Margaret E. Smith
Dept.
of Plant Breeding & Genetics
Cornell
University
mes25@cornell.edu
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Contents)
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1.16
UCSD biologists solve plant growth hormone
enigma
By Sherry Seethaler
Gardeners and farmers have used the
plant hormone auxin for decades, but how plants produce and distribute auxin has
been a long-standing mystery. Now researchers at the University of California,
San Diego have found the solution, which has valuable applications in
agriculture.
The study, published in the July 1 issue of the journal
Genes and Development, describes the discovery of a whole family of auxin
genes, and shows that each gene is switched on at a distinct location in the
plant. Contrary to the current thinking in the field, the research shows that
the patterns in which auxin is produced in the plant influence development, a
finding that can be applied to improving crops.
“The auxin field dates
back to Charles Darwin, who first reported that plants produced a substance that
made them bend toward light,” said Yunde Zhao, an assistant professor of biology
at UCSD. “But until now, the auxin genes have been elusive. Our discovery of
these genes and the locations where auxin is produced in the plant can be
applied to agricultural problems, such as how to make seedless fruit or plants
with stronger stems.”
Applying auxin to plants can have many different
effects. For example, it can promote root development in cuttings, stimulate
fruit development in the absence of fertilization or, in excess, kill weeds.
However, this study is the first to show what happens in a plant when auxin
production is turned off.
The researchers identified a family of 11 genes
(YUCCA 1-11) that are involved in the synthesis of auxin. In
Arabidopsisa small plant favored by biologists because it is easy to
manipulate geneticallyZhao’s team inactivated combinations of the YUCCA
genes and studied the effects of the inactivations on plant growth and
development.
“Plant biologists have wanted to do this experiment for a
long time, but only recently have new genetic tools such as ‘reverse genetics’
and ‘activation tagging’ made it possible,” explained Youfa Cheng, a
postdoctoral fellow working with Zhao. “Even with the advances in technology, it
took about three years to produce plants lacking at least four of the 11 YUCCA genes.”
Disrupting one YUCCA gene did not have any
obvious effects. Therefore, there is overlap in the functions of the genes in
this family. However, when two or more YUCCA genes were inactivated, the
plants had developmental defects. The defects, including flowers with missing or
misshapen parts, or deformations in the tissues that transport water and
nutrients throughout the plant, differed depending on which combinations of
genes were deleted.
The researchers say that this finding was surprising
because most people in the field thought that where auxin was made did not
really matter. The widely held view was that auxin could just be transported
wherever it was needed. Not so, because turning auxin off in specific tissues of
the plant led to defects in those tissues, while the rest of the plant appeared
normal.
“Knowing which auxin genes are activated when should make it
possible to modify plant development,” said Zhao. “It wouldn’t require adding
any new genes to the plant, just changing when the appropriate auxin genes were
on or off could alter growth. For example, to make seedless tomatoes, one could
activate auxin in the floral organs before fertilization has taken
place.”
Applying auxin to the flowers by hand can also induce seedless
tomatoes, or other seedless fruit, but this method is too tedious to be useful
for commercial purposes. Seedless fruits would not just be novelty items. For
example, Zhao points out that seeds significantly increase the effort and waste
involved in producing tomato sauce.
“This study is a real tour de force,”
commented Martin Yanofsky, a professor of biology at UCSD, who was not one of
the authors of the study. “People have been trying to figure out auxin for
decades. By carefully inactivating the genes for auxin synthesis one by one, the
team was able to show how the localized production of auxin controls the
architecture of a plant.”
Xinhua Dai, a research associate working with
Zhao, also contributed to the study. This research was supported by the National
Institutes of Health.
Media Contact: Sherry Seethaler
Source:
EurekAlert.org
30 June 2006
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1.17 Grass
roots research will help develop new energy crops
Norwich, United
Kingdom
The John Innes Centre (JIC)
has recently entered into a partnership with the US Dept of Agriculture (USDA) and Department of Energy (DOE) to study the genome of
the grass Brachypodium as part of the Joint Genome Institute’s Community
Sequencing Programme. The genetic information from this project will be used as
a template for analysing the much larger and more complex genomes of wheat and
barley which will accelerate progress towards improving food production and help
develop sustainable production of biofuel from grass
crops.
Brachypodium distachyon, commonly known as Purple False
Brome, is a close relative of wheat, barley and forage grasses. Its small size,
rapid growth time and small genome size make it an ideal plant model for the
in-depth study of temperate grasses such as wheat and barley. The JIC
scientists, led by Prof Michael Bevan and Prof John Snape, aim to generate a “map” or rough outline of the Brachypodium genome. This will then be used
by the DOE scientists to assemble and analyse the vast amount of DNA sequence
data. It can then be used to identify important genes in food and fuel crops.
This work will help scientists to develop grasses into superior energy crops and
to improve grain crops and forage grasses that are the foundations of our food
supply.
“Our collaboration with the DOE and USDA laboratories provides
an important new foundation for understanding and utilising members of the grass
family for food and fuel”, says Mike Bevan, Head of the Cell and Developmental
Biology Dept at the John Innes Centre. “The Brachypodium genome sequence
will accelerate progress in developing new generations of crop plants and lead
to new approaches to increase biomass productivity for energy production and as
a chemical feedstock. This work will be an important contribution to developing
a sustainable energy economy”.
Work will start in late 2007 and the 300
mega-base genome should be completed towards the end of 2008. All of the data
will be placed in the public domain so scientists worldwide can benefit from
this useful resource.
The Joint Genome Institute (JGI), supported by
the US Department of Energy Office of Science, unites the expertise of five
national laboratories, Lawrence Berkeley, Lawrence Livermore, Los Alamos, Oak
Ridge, and Pacific Northwest, along with the Stanford Human Genome Center to
advance genomics with the mission to enable scientific approaches to challenges
in energy and the environment. The Community Sequencing Program (CSP) provides
the scientific community with access to high-throughput sequencing at the JGI.
JGI press release for this project: Energy-rich
portfolio of new genome sequencing targets for U.S. Department of Energy Joint
Genome Institute
The JIC, Norwich, UK is an independent,
world-leading research centre in plant and microbial sciences with over 800
staff. JIC carries out high quality fundamental, strategic and applied research
to understand how plants and microbes work at the molecular, cellular and
genetic levels. The JIC also trains scientists and students, collaborates with
many other research laboratories and communicates its science to end-users and
the general public. The JIC is grant-aided by the Biotechnology and Biological
Sciences Research Council.
Source: SeedQuest.com
12 July
2006
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1.18
Energy-rich portfolio of new genome sequencing targets for DOE JGI
WALNUT CREEK, CA--Bioenergy crop plants switchgrass
and cassava, other important agricultural commodities such as cotton, and
microbes geared to break down plant material to render biofuels, round out the
roster of more than 40 projects to be tackled by the U.S. Department of Energy
Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI) over the next year. Drawing submissions from
DOE JGI's more than 400-strong user community, the genomes of these organisms
will be sequenced and characterized as part of the DOE JGI Community Sequencing
Program (CSP). Over 15 billion letters of genetic code--or the equivalent of the
human genome five times over--will be processed through the DNA sequencers at
the DOE JGI Production Genomics Facility for this year's program and ultimately,
the information will be made freely available to the greater scientific
community.
"By coupling DNA sequencing technology with fundamental
research, we seek to make cellulosic ethanol a major part of the nation's energy
future," said DOE JGI Director Eddy Rubin. His remarks and the CSP selections
echo recommendations outlined in the "Breaking the Biological Barriers to
Cellulosic Ethanol" report issued by DOE on July 7 ( http://www.doe.gov/news/3804.htm). "The newest direction in biosciences research--systems biology--is built on a
strong foundation of DOE's investment in genomics, with DNA sequence as the
starting material of that endeavor and DOE JGI as the generator of that
information through the CSP. Downstream characterization of the pathways
inferred by the genetic code of the target CSP organisms is then supported
through the DOE Genomics:GTL program."
In his 2006 State of the Union
Address, President George W. Bush specifically cited the promise of switchgrass
as a bioenergy crop. A tall perennial grass, a dominant species of the North
American prairie, switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) is particularly
compelling because of its relatively low production costs, minimal nutrient and
pesticide requirements, perennial growth habit, as well as its ability to adapt
to a broad range of growing conditions. The net energy gain for ethanol
production from switchgrass is exceptionally favorable, coupled with low
greenhouse gas emissions. The switchgrass project, which entails sequencing the
gene transcripts, or Expressed Sequence Tags (ESTs) of the plant, is led by
Christian Tobias and researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Western
Regional Research Center in Albany, Calif. and Gautam Sarath at the University
of Nebraska, Lincoln.
"Switchgrass has enormous potential as an energy
crop and environmental benefits that are associated with its cultivation," said
Chris Somerville, professor of biological sciences at Stanford University and
director of the Carnegie Institution's department of plant biology. "I envision
that switchgrass will be an important feedstock for the emerging lignocellulose
to ethanol industry. An enhanced understanding of gene structure and diversity
at the molecular level may lead to new approaches to enhance both biomass
productivity and feedstock quality for bioenergy production."
In
complement to switchgrass, DOE JGI will be sequencing Brachypodium
distachyon, a temperate grass model system with a simple genome more
amenable to sequencing. This choice responds to the urgent need for developing
grasses into superior energy crops and improving grain crops and forage grasses
for food production. Brachypodium will be undertaken via a two-pronged
strategy: the first, a whole-genome shotgun sequencing approach, a collaboration
between John Vogel and David Garvin, both of the USDA, and Michael Bevan at the
John Innes Centre in England; and the second, an expressed gene sequencing
effort, led by Todd Mockler and Jeff Chang at Oregon State University, with Todd
Michael of The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, and Samuel Hazen from The
Scripps Research Institute.
Another major CSP project is the selection of
cassava (Manihot esculenta), an excellent energy source and food for
approximately one billion people around the planet. Its roots contain 20 to 40
percent starch, from which ethanol can be derived, making it an attractive and
strategic source of renewable energy. Cassava grows in diverse environments,
from extremely dry to humid climates, acidic to alkaline soils, from sea level
to high altitudes, and in nutrient-poor soil.
"Sequencing the cassava
genome will help bring this important crop to the forefront of modern science
and generate new possibilities for agronomic and nutritional improvement," said
Norman Borlaug, Nobel laureate, father of the "Green Revolution," and
Distinguished Professor of International Agriculture, Texas A&M University.
"It is a most welcome development."
The cassava project will extend broad
benefits to its vast research community, including a better understanding of
starch and protein biosynthesis, root storage, and stress controls, and enable
crop improvements, while shedding light on such mechanisms shared by other
important related plants, including the rubber tree and castor bean.
The
cassava project, led by Claude M. Fauquet, Director of the International
Laboratory for Tropical Agricultural Biotechnology and colleagues at the
Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis, and includes contributions from the
USDA laboratory in Fargo, ND; Washington University St Louis; University of
Chicago; The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR); Missouri Botanical Garden;
the Broad Institute; Ohio State University; the International Center for
Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) in Cali, Colombia; and the Smithsonian
Institution.
Adding to the list of crops to be sequenced by DOE JGI is
the oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus, for its prospective role in
bioenergy and bioremediation. This white-rot fungus is an active lignin degrader
in the forests. Lignin, a poly-aromatic hydrocarbon, is the second most abundant
biopolymer on earth and its breakdown is a necessary step for making
cellulose--the most abundant carbon biopolymer--available for conversion to
biofuels. This organism will serve as a valuable comparison to the reference
genome of white-rot fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium, previously
sequenced by DOE JGI, which belongs to a different phylogenetic branch and
carries a different set of ligninolytic enzymes. Understanding the whole-genome
regulation of the P. ostreatus will add further value in that its
lignocellulolytic enzymes could facilitate bioremediation and other
biotechnological processes. The poly-aromatic hydrocarbon oxidizing enzymes
present in P. ostreatus can participate in the biodegradation of dyes, of
contaminating wastes produced in agroindustries, and of forest, pulp and paper
industrial by-products. This project is led by Antonio Pisabarro of the Public
University of Navarre, Spain and includes more than a dozen other institutions
including University of Wisconsin, Michigan State, Texas A&M, Duke, and
Southeast Missouri State.
The CSP has tapped important projects from the
most extreme locales, including the pristine cold environment described by a
system of lakes in the Vestfold Hills region of Antarctica. This project, led by
Rick Cavicchioli of the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia,
seeks to define a microbial model for the biogeochemical process that take place
in extreme cold conditions. This project entails the strategy of metagenomics,
pioneered by DOE JGI, for isolating, sequencing, and characterizing DNA
extracted directly from environmental samples. These data are then used to
define a profile of the microbial community residing in a particular
environment.
"Microbes are too small to be seen with the naked eye,"
said Carl Woese, professor of microbiology at the University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign, whose pioneering contribution of phylogenetic taxonomy of 16S
ribosomal RNA led to the definition of the domain of life known as Archaea.
"That is why the average person and most scientists pay little or no attention
to them--except, of course, when they cause us problems or make us money.
Nature does not look at the living world this way," Woese said. His remarks on
the significance of the Antarctic project ring true for other CSP microbial
investigations.
"Microbes constitute as much or more of the living mass
on this planet than do the 'higher forms,'" Woese said. "Microbes are absolutely
basal to the great flows of organic matter and energy that underlie the
biosphere; without them macroscopic life on this planet is impossible. In other
words, the existence of macroscopic life is totally conditioned upon the prior
and continued existence of microbial life. You can see why the proposed work
delights an old evolutionist like myself. Here you see the microbial world in
its full glory--its true significance to the biosphere, and so to mankind. Here
is the microbiology of the 21st century."
The genomic and functional data
gleaned from the Antarctic environmental samples, linked to meteorological,
geological, chemical and physical data, will provide a better understanding
about how these microorganisms have evolved, transformed, and presently interact
with their frigid environment. These studies, while basic to understanding how
microbes cope with environmental challenges, also seek to unlock the potential
of cold-adapted microbes as sources of fuel, for example, transforming carbon
dioxide effluent into methane. The work has even more astronomical
ramifications--modeling extraterrestrial environments and
processes.
Plant pests are the target of another international
collaboration, linking researchers in Sweden, France, Norway, Germany, Canada
and at the University of California, Berkeley. Heterobasidion annosum is
the most economically devastating forest pathogen in the northern hemisphere,
causing root rot in conifers, a major renewable biological energy resource.
These forests support biodiversity and serve as an important CO2 sink buffering
global climate change. Improved knowledge of this tree pathogen will help build
strategies to protect these wooden resources and enable a better understanding
of important enzymatic systems involved in oxidation and degradation of
polyphenolic substances--pollutants that are targets for bioremediation.
Actinobacteria, which can be found in soil, can be harnessed for
environmental clean-up as well. Strains, the subject of another CSP project,
proposed by researchers at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and
Hebrew University, have promise for the development of environmentally sound,
cost effective biological strategies to reduce environmental
pollution.
For a full list of the CSP 2007 sequencing projects, see: http://www.jgi.doe.gov/sequencing/cspseqplans2007.html
The
DOE Joint Genome Institute, supported by the DOE Office of Science, unites the
expertise of five national laboratories, Lawrence Berkeley, Lawrence Livermore,
Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, and Pacific Northwest, along with the Stanford Human
Genome Center to advance genomics in support of the DOE mission related to clean
energy generation and environmental characterization and clean-up. DOE JGI's
Walnut Creek, Calif. Production Genomics Facility provides integrated
high-throughput sequencing and computational analysis that enable systems-based
scientific approaches to these challenges.
For more information,
contact
David Gilbert
DOE JGI Public Affairs Manager
gilbert21@llnl.gov
Source:
EurekAlert.org
11 July 2006
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1.19
Full-length switchgrass genes sequenced and genetic variation
characterized
Thousand Oaks, California
Ceres, Inc. announced today that they have
achieved a major milestone in their switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) genomics
program for enhancing biomass yield, completing analysis of over 12,000
switchgrass genes and characterizing the genetic variation associated with them.
Switchgrass is a perennial grass native to the prairies of North America. It has
been identified by the U.S. Department of Energy as the primary perennial plant
species for development as a dedicated cellulosic energy crop. It is estimated
that switchgrass and other plant species grown in the U.S. have the potential to
produce over 100 billion gallons of biofuels per year while still allowing food,
animal feed and export demands for other crops, including corn, to be met.
Moreover, switchgrass has the potential to produce cellulose for biofuels such
as ethanol and butanol on lands incapable of supporting traditional food crops.
The large-scale Ceres switchgrass sequencing effort has utilized
libraries of full-length cDNAs rather than ESTs (partial genes), in order to
capture information not only on complete gene sequences and encoded proteins but
also on genetic variation associated with these genes that enables targeted,
marker-assisted breeding programs for switchgrass improvement. The generation of
large numbers of full-length cDNA sequences, which are notably absent from most
high-throughput gene sequencing programs because of technical difficulties,
represents an important component of Ceres' intellectual property strategy. To
date, Ceres has filed patent applications covering over 70,000 full-length plant
genes from Arabidopsis, corn, soybean, wheat and cotton, amongst others.
"These switchgrass sequences are being utilized in our integrated
genomics platforms and high-throughput product development pipeline," said Dr.
Richard Hamilton, Chief Executive Officer of Ceres. "Using the sequences of
these genes as well as the physical clones of our proprietary collection of
full- length plant genes enhances our leading position in dedicated energy crop
genomics and will accelerate breeding and commercialization of elite switchgrass
varieties. These genes may also be useful in improvement programs of other crops
such as corn."
The switchgrass sequencing project is part of an
agreement with the USDA Western Regional Research Center and of the recently
announced collaboration with The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, Inc. for the
development and commercialization of new, advanced biomass crops for biofuels
production.
Ceres, Inc. (www.ceres.net), headquartered in Thousand Oaks,
CA, is a privately-held plant biotechnology company utilizing cutting-edge
genomics technologies to deliver sustainable solutions in energy production,
agriculture, human health and nutrition.
Source: SeedQuest.com
10
July 2006
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1.20 Plan to
boost rice photosynthesis with inserted genes
Mike Shanahan, SciDev.Net
Scientists have announced
plans to radically boost rice yields, warning that unless production increases
millions of people could fall back into poverty.
Delegates who met at the
International Rice Research Institute in the
Philippines this month (17-21 July) said they hope to manipulate the crop's
genetics to enable it to grow faster and bigger.
Traditional methods of
increasing rice production such as crossing different varieties have
been pushed to the limits of what is scientifically possible. But now that
researchers have sequenced rice's entire genetic code, more advanced approaches
could become available.
Key to the strategy discussed at the workshop is
a difference in the way that rice and other plants convert sunlight and carbon
dioxide into sugar for growth a process called photosynthesis.
Rice
photosynthesis is less efficient than that of some other plants such as maize
that use an extra chemical process for capturing carbon dioxide.
The
researchers say it should be possible to transfer this process to rice by
inserting genes from maize or from wild relatives of rice that also use
it.
The project is ambitious. The specialists who met this month say it
would take about four years to determine whether the technique is feasible and
another 10-15 years until the first improved varieties are available.
Related article: Chinese
scientists complete rice gene map
Source: SciDev.net via
SeedQuest.com
27 July 2006
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Contents)
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1.21
Potato blight pathogenicity explained by genome
plasticity
Wageningen, The Netherlands
'Adjustable' genes are
essential for inducing infection in potato plants
A team of
researchers from Wageningen University report in this month's issue of Genome
Research that they have identified a unique genetic fingerprint in the
pathogen responsible for potato blight. Some strains of the pathogen possess
multiple copies of a specific gene, while other strains possess only a single
copy. Certain potato plants do not recognize strains of the pathogen with only
the single gene copy, making them susceptible to infection. This is the first
report of gene amplification in a non-bacterial organism that is associated with
pathogenicity, and it provides insight into how plant pathogens tailor their
genomes to adapt to their environments.
The potato late blight pathogen,
known to scientists as Phytophthora infestans, is a fungus-like organism
that was responsible for the Irish Potato Famine of the 1840s and continues to
cause devastating agricultural losses worldwide today. Infected plants are
characterized by dark lesions on the stems, leaves, and tubers; damage to the
tuber surface allows other fungi and bacteria to enter and destroy the core,
often resulting in a foul odor. P. infestans is related to approximately
65 other pathogens that cause similar damage to commercial crops as well as
natural vegetation.
In the potato-Phytophthora system, the
host-pathogen response has evolved in a highly specific way: resistance
(R) genes from wild species, which are introduced into cultivated potato
by breeding, are matched by avirulence (Avr) genes in
Phytophthora. While many such gene matches are predicted, only a few have
been confirmed by molecular and functional studies. Avr genes are thought to
undergo rapid changes to evade detection by plants that possess R genes,
which means that many strains of Phytophthora and potato are likely to be
evolving at the present time.
"P. infestans is notorious for its
ability to change in response to R genes," says Dr. Francine Govers, the
principal investigator on the project. "These changes are probably facilitated
by its underlying genomic plasticity. Field isolates of P. infestans are
known to be genetically highly variable."
Govers, along with colleagues
Rays Jiang, Rob Weide, and Peter van de Vondervoort, set out to identify the
genetic basis for the virulence of specific Dutch P. infestans strains.
The outcome of their efforts was the identification of single gene, called
pi3.4, that was present as a single, full-length copy in both the
virulent and avirulent strains. They also identified multiple copies of
pi3.4 only in the avirulent strain – but, interestingly, these copies
represented only part of the pi3.4 gene.
The authors speculate
that the partial gene copies could function as a source of modules for
generating new genes. These new genes could be produced by unequal
crossing-over, or exchange of genetic material, during development. The partial
copies may also serve as alternative protein-coding units, which allow the
pathogen to produce a diverse array of proteins and, consequently, to adapt to
its environment.
"Surprisingly, the pi3.4 gene does not code for
an effector – a small protein that elicits a defense response in plants," adds
Govers. "Effectors are quite common in fungal and bacterial plant pathogens,
including Phytophthora. But in our case, the gene appears to produce a
large regulatory protein that exerts its effect by regulating the expression of
other genes, possibly effector genes."
While the exact mechanism by which
these partial gene copies function as a source of modular diversity remains to
be resolved, this study highlights the importance of genome plasticity in
evolution. Understanding genome plasticity as a mechanism for environmental
response and ecological adaptation in pathogenic organisms has important
implications. "The efforts of plant breeders to obtain resistant varieties by
introducing R genes, either by classical breeding or by genetic
modification, may be a waste of time and resources when the genome dynamics of
the pathogen population is not understood," says Govers. "Monitoring field
populations of plant pathogens at the genome level will be instrumental for
predicting the durability of R genes in crop plants."
Contact:
Maria Smit smit@cshl.edu
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Source:
EurekAlert.org
3 July 2006
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+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.22
South Africa halts 'super sorghum' study
The
project aims to boost nutrient levels in sorghum, a major crop in
Africa
[NAIROBI] South Africa has blocked trials of genetically modified
sorghum that leaders of a multi-million-dollar project hope can boost nutrition
in Africa.
Kenyan scientist Florence Wambugu, who heads the Africa
Harvest Biotech Foundation International, has secured US$18.6 millionover five years from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop new
sorghum varieties with elevated levels of iron, zinc and vitamins.
She
says her organisation wished to run their greenhouse trials in South Africa
because of its legal guidelines and policy framework on genetically modified
(GM) crops, which are so far absent in Kenya.
But last week (12 July)
South Africa rejected the application to set up a laboratory and greenhouse on
its soil.
According to Kenya's Sunday Nation, the South African
government expressed concern that the GM sorghum could contaminate wild
varieties.
Wambugu is hopeful that South African authorities will approve
a second application.
She says the project was asked to increase
'biosecurity' measures aimed at containing the GM sorghum. "Once we comply, we
will certainly go back and reapply to be allowed to start the
project."
On the same day the sorghum project was put on hold, the Kenyan
parliament overwhelmingly defeated a motion by Davies Nakitare, the member of
parliament for Saboti, that sought a blanket ban on all production, consumption
and sale of genetically modified foods.
The government said the country
had capacity to deal with GM biosafety issues.
Ochieng’ Ogodo
Source: SciDev.Net
20 July 2006
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++++++++++++++++++++
1.23
Biotechnology opens new opportunities for flavor and
fragrance industry
Auckland, New Zealand, 10 July 2006 – New research
designed to build scientific understanding of fruit genes could revolutionise
the way foods, cosmetics and perfumes are created.
Researchers at New
Zealand-based life sciences company HortResearch say they have fine-tuned the
science of gene discovery to such a degree that they can now accurately
determine which genes create the individual flavours and fragrances found in
fruits and flowers.
Combined with traditional biofermentation techniques – the same process that helps bread rise or grape juice to become wine - this
means that it should be possible for the natural tastes and aromas of fruit to
be recreated.
According to HortResearch Industrial Biotechnology
scientist Dr Richard Newcomb, that's exciting news for the world's food, perfume
and cosmetic producers, who have for years sought synthetic solutions to mimic
nature's flavours and fragrances in products ranging from ice cream to
shampoo.
"While manufacturers have largely been successful in copying
natural tastes and scents, they generally do so either through a chemical
synthesis process or extraction from harvested raw ingredients.
"Neither
approach is ideal. Chemical synthesis requires heat and pressure, so is reliant
on increasingly expensive and polluting fossil fuels for energy. What's more,
chemical synthesis can never truly recreate nature; the flavour or fragrance
will typically be slightly different to that found naturally in fruits and
flowers.
"Extraction is expensive and produces only limited quantities of
product, reducing the number of commercially viable options for the extract," says Dr Newcomb.
Biofermentation however can produce large amounts of a
desired compound at a low cost and with little environmental impact. And because
biofermentation uses the actual genes that plants use in the wild, the resulting
flavour or fragrance compound has exactly the same molecular make-up. It is, as
the scientists say; "Nature Identical".
While the possibility of
'fermenting' genes to produce compounds has been well understood for many years,
science has generally lagged behind in identifying which genes are needed to
produce the desired outcome. HortResearch has now overcome this issue by using
research initially intended to speed up the process of fruit breeding, says Dr
Newcomb.
"Through decades of fruit breeding research HortResearch has
developed extensive fruit gene and compound databases. Now we have developed
techniques that help determine which genes create each compound, and how those
compounds combine to create a flavour or fragrance. It's a complicated and
time-consuming process – some fruit flavours for example may be comprised of
over thirty different compounds, each in a precise volume.
"Much of this
information is fed back into the breeding programme, allowing naturally-bred new
fruit varieties with desired traits to be quickly recognised amongst young
breeding populations that frequently number in the tens of
thousands.
"However, it is also possible for us to isolate genes that
produce desirable flavour and fragrance compounds for use in industrial
biotechnology applications."
HortResearch has proven the bioproduction
concept can be used to produce fruit flavours and fragrances by perfectly
recreating a fruit compound called alpha-farnesene, responsible for the
distinctive aroma of green apples.
The company has filed international
patent applications on the use of the applicable gene in creating the fragrance,
and for another plant gene responsible for making a compound that smells like
the heady scent of red roses.
Dr Newcomb says HortResearch scientists
are continuing to seek new gene/compound combinations which they believe will
find ready demand in the marketplace.
"Alongside colour, flavour and
fragrance rank as some of the most important guides to the natural world. The
ability for manufacturers to recreate them exactly as they occur in nature will
open new opportunities for high-quality, novel products and foods."
While
many biofermented compounds will undoubtedly end up in non-food consumer
products such as make-up or household cleaners, Dr Newcomb is confident they
will also play a role in the expanding health food market.
"Researchers
are finding ever greater numbers of foods and food compounds that can enhance
human heath and wellbeing. The trouble is, they don't always taste very good –
and until they do it will be difficult to encourage consumers to make them part
of their regular diet," he says.
"Adding synthetic flavours destroys the
credibility of any health food, so natural flavours produced through
bioproduction would be a huge advantage to the health industry."
Dr
Newcomb has been invited to present details of HortResearch's flavour and
fragrance science programme to delegates at the World Congress on Industrial
Biotechnology which is being held in Toronto, Canada from July
11-14.
Contact: Joan Kureczka
jkureczka@comcast.net
Source:
EurekAlert.org
10 July 2006
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++++++++++++++++++++
1.24 How purple corn and RNA break genetic laws
A newly
cloned gene in corn will help explain how unusual interactions between a
parent's genes can have lasting effects in future generations. The finding has
implications for breeding better crop plants and unraveling complex genetic
diseases.
The new research indicates that an additional molecule, DNA's
little cousin RNA, is needed for the intriguing gene interactions known as
paramutation. Paramutation doesn't follow the laws of classical Mendelian
genetics.
"Paramutation is this incredibly interesting, tantalizing
violation of Mendel's laws," said senior author Vicki L. Chandler, director of
BIO5 Institute at The University of Arizona in Tucson. "It's been known to exist
for 50 years, but nobody understood the underlying mechanism."
Classical
genetics states that when offspring inherit genes from their parents, the genes
function in the children the same way the genes functioned in the parent.
When paramutation occurs, one version of the parent's gene orders the
other to act differently in the next generation. The gene functions differently
in the offspring, even though its DNA is identical to the parent's
version.
It happens even when the kids don't inherit the bossy version of
the gene. The phenomenon was originally found in corn and has since been found
in other organisms, including mammals.
"In previous work we identified a
gene that is absolutely required for paramutation to happen," said Chandler, a
UA Regents' Professor of plant sciences and of molecular and cellular biology.
"Now we've figured out what that gene does, and it's exciting because it
suggests a mechanism for how this process works."
Chandler's work is the
first to point out that an enzyme known as an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase is
needed for paramutation.
Corn, also known as maize, is the most
economically important crop plant in the United States. Better understanding of
plant genetics will help breeders develop improved strains of crops.
Understanding paramutation and similar non-Mendelian genetic phenomena
also has implications for human health. For some human diseases, a genetic
component is known to exist but has been hard to decipher. Non-Mendelian effects
may be at work in those diseases.
"Gene interactions in parents that
change the way a gene functions in the progeny are going to contribute to very
unexpected inheritance patterns that complicate identifying genes involved in
human disease," said Chandler, who holds the Carl E. and Patricia Weiler Endowed
Chair for Excellence in Agriculture and Life Sciences at UA.
Chandler and
her colleagues will publish their new findings in the July 20 issue of the
journal Nature. The article's title and a complete list of authors and their
affiliations is at the end of the release. The National Science Foundation, the
National Institutes of Health and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute funded the
research.
The Chandler lab investigated a gene called b1 that controls
whether a corn plant has a purple or green stalk. A plant has two copies of each
gene, one from each parent.
One version, or allele, of the gene codes
for a purple pigment. Generally, plants need just one copy of that allele, known
as B-Intense or B-I, to be the color purple.
But whether a B-I-carrying
plant is actually purple depends on the company B-I keeps. If the plant's other
b1 allele is the "paramutagenic" B' variety, the B-I allele is silenced. The
resulting plant is mostly green.
And although B-I's DNA doesn't change,
in subsequent generations the silenced B-I allele behaves as if it had mutated
-- the B-I-carrying progeny are mostly green, rather than being deep purple.
"It cannot revert -- it's a one-way street," said co-author Lyudmila
Sidorenko, an assistant research scientist in Chandler's lab.
Chandler
and her colleagues wanted to know how the B' allele changed B-I's behavior
without actually changing B-I's DNA. They already knew that paramutation
required normal versions of the mediator of paramutation 1 (mop1)
gene.
Plants with normal mop1 genes and one B-I allele and one B' allele
turned out as expected -- mostly green.
However, B-I/B' plants with two
mutant mop1 genes were deep purple -- they looked as if the purple-suppressing
B' allele wasn't present. This demonstrated that normal mop1 was necessary for
the B' allele to silence B-I.
The scientists mapped mop1's location on
one of the corn's chromosomes and cloned the gene. The mop1 gene makes an enzyme
called RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RDRP). Mutant mop1 genes can't produce the
enzyme.
The team had previously suspected a role for RNA, best known for
mediating the transfer of information from DNA to a cell's protein-making
machinery. This new result provides strong evidence that RNA is indeed
involved.
The researchers hypothesize that mop1 amplifies the RNA signals
coming from a key region of the B-I and B' allele. That key region is a
particular DNA sequence that is repeated seven times.
The researchers
hypothesize that those many RNA molecules silence the B-I and B'
alleles.
Chandler said, "It's exciting because it's a new role for RNA."
The researchers' next step is figuring out exactly how RNA suppresses
the function of the b1 gene and how those cease-and-desist orders are faithfully
transmitted to progeny in the absence of changes in the DNA.
Chandler's
co-authors on the article, "An RNA-dependent RNA polymerase is required for
paramutation in maize," are Mary Alleman of Duquesne University in Pittsburgh;
Lyudmila Sidorenko, Karen McGinnis and Kristin Sikkink of UA; Vishwas Seshadri,
now of Biologics Development Center Developing Businesses in Andhra Pradesh,
India; Jane E. Dorweiler, now of Marquette University in Milwaukee; and Joshua
White, now of the University of Texas at Austin.
Contact: Mari N.
Jensen
mnjensen@email.arizona.edu
Vicki L. Chandler
chandler@ag.arizona.edu
Source:
EurekAlert.org
(Return to Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++
1.25 Selections from Update 5-2006 of
FAO-BiotechNews
4) Electronic Journal of Biotechnology - REDBIO
Argentina 2005 The Electronic Journal of Biotechnology is a free international
scientific journal that publishes papers on all areas of biotechnology,
including agricultural biotechnology. It is supported, among others, by the
United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) MIRCEN
(Microbial Resources Centres) network and has been operational since April 1998.
All papers are freely available on the web and UNESCO also disseminates the
journal by CD-ROM to a number of partners in developing countries. A special
issue (June 2006) of the journal has just been published, including the complete
versions of a significant number of papers presented during the VI Symposium of
REDBIO Argentina 2005, held on 7-11 June 2005 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. REDBIO
is the Technical Co-operation Network on Plant Biotechnology in Latin America
and the Caribbean, based at the FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the
Caribbean in Santiago, Chile. See http://www.ejbiotechnology.info or
contact edbiotec@ucv.cl for more information.
5) UN-Biotech meeting
report The report of the 3rd meeting of UN-Biotech, the inter-agency cooperation
network in biotechnology, that took place on 16 May 2006 in Geneva, Switzerland,
is now available. At the meeting, the focus was on the establishment of a web
portal on biotechnology and it was also agreed that FAO would hold chairmanship
of UN-Biotech for the 2006-2007 biennium, with the United Nations Conference on
Trade and Development (UNCTAD) continuing to act as secretariat. See http://stdev.unctad.org/docs/unbiotech3.DOC
or contact menelea.masin@unctad.org for more information
13) The impacts
of AMBIONET The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) has
just published "The Asian Maize Biotechnology Network (AMBIONET): A model for
strengthening national agricultural research systems" by C. Pray. The 43-page
report reviews the impacts of this network, which ended in 2005 and was
organized by CIMMYT with funding from the Asian Development Bank to strengthen
the capacity of public maize research institutions in China, India, Indonesia,
the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam to produce high-yielding, disease
resistant, stress tolerant maize cultivars. The report is organised into the
following sections: history and structure of AMBIONET; framework for impact
assessment; impact on Asian maize research capacity; impact on research output
and productivity; impact on farmers; and conclusions: impacts and the future.
See http://www.cimmyt.org/english/docs/research_report/ambionet2006.pdf
(482 KB) or contact j.crouch@cgiar.org for more information
14) New
WARDA website launched The Africa Rice Center (WARDA), one of the 15 research
centres supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural
Research, has recently launched its new website. It provides updated information
about the centre (its history, structure etc.), its partnerships, publications
and newsroom services as well as its research, including extensive information,
inter alia, on the New Rice for Africa (NERICA) varieties developed using embryo
rescue and anther culture techniques. See www.warda.org (in English and French) or
contact warda@cgiar.org for more information.
From: The Coordinator of
FAO-BiotechNews, 21-7-2006
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the
United Nations (FAO)
FAO-Biotech-News@fao.org
(Return to
Contents)
=========================
3. WEB
RESOURCES
3.01 New search portal for IPK’s
genebank (Gatersleben, Germany) is online
The Genebank of the Leibniz
Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK) in Gatersleben,
Germany, comprises ca. 150,000 accessions of a large number or crop plant
species. Recently the new Internet search portal of the Genebank, GBIS/I, was
activated under http://gbis.ipk-gatersleben.de. It is
accessible via the IPK homepage (
http://www.ipk-gatersleben.de) and supersedes the previous three independent
online databases of the genebank collection in Gatersleben (active since 1996)
and those of the two branch stations in Malchow (oil and fodder crops) and in
Groß Lüsewitz (potatoes).
The new Genebank Information System of IPK,
GBIS, was developed in connection with the transfer of the former Braunschweig
genebank collection to IPK.
GBIS/I is freely accessible. It allows
searching for genebank material among more than 140,000 accessions, using
passport data. The results of a query can be stored in a “wish list”. Registered
users can order genebank material (seed or vegetative). Passport data of
selected accessions can also be downloaded for further processing by the
user.
Three possible search strategies are supported.
The
step-wise search allows refining the search by combining several search
criteria. Thus, if the number of hits for Genus = Hordeum is too large
(21,473 accessions), the resulting set can be reduced, e.g., by adding
Country of Origin = Afghanistan (355 accessions).
The free-text
search option allows finding accessions containing one or several pieces of text
in a number of text fields without specifying the descriptors to be searched.
For example, by entering “Paris” into the search field, among the 32 results
there are the pea (Pisum sativum) cultivar ‘Serpette de Paris’, a wheat
accession (Triticum aestivum) collected in Mega Paristeri, Northern
Greece, and two accessions of the caper-plant, Capparis spinosa.
The advanced search allows to formulate complex queries by combining
multiple search criteria with the logical operators “and” and “or”, using
parentheses if necessary.
After submitting a search request, an overview
table showing some basic information for the accessions matching the criteria is
shown. By clicking on an accession number, one will see the details of passport
data for that accession. Both in the overview table and in the detailed view,
the user can mark all or individual accessions for subsequent actions, such as
inclusion in the wish list or in the shopping cart (if the user is registered
and logged in), or downloading passport data.
The search portal is
available in German and English; the user can switch between the two languages.
Researchers and breeders who want to order seeds from the IPK Genebank
are encouraged to use the new search portal. We are looking forward to receiving
users’ feedback via gbis-info@ipk-gatersleben.de.
The
previous online databases for the collections in Gatersleben, Malchow and Groß
Lüsewitz remain active and accessible till end of 2006.
Submitted by
Helmut Knüpffer
Genebank Department
Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics
and Crop Plant Research (IPK)
D-06466 Gatersleben, Germany
knupffer@ipk-gatersleben.de
(Return to
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========================
4. GRANTS
AVAILABLE
4.01 International Foundation for Science (IFS): Calls for
applications
eNews No. 17, July 2006
A new application period
is now open and IFS calls for applications for Research Grants from young
scientists in developing countries. Details of eligibility criteria, areas of
scientific research covered and application forms are available on the IFS
website: http://www.ifs.se
Application deadline: December 31,
2006
(Return to
Contents)
===========================
6.
MEETINGS, COURSES AND WORKSHOPS
* 2006-2008. Plant Breeding
Academy, University of California, Davis.
The University of
California Seed Biotechnology Center would like to inform you of an exciting new
course we are offering to teach the principles of plant breeding to seed
industry personnel.
This two-year course addresses the reduced numbers
of plant breeders being trained in academic programs. It is an opportunity for
companies to invest in dedicated personnel who are currently involved in their
own breeding programs, but lack the genetics and plant breeding background to
direct a breeding program. Participants will meet at UC Davis for one week per
quarter over two years (eight sessions) to allow participants to maintain their
current positions while being involved in the course.
Instruction
begins Fall 2006 and runs through Summer 2008 (actual dates to be
determined)
For more information: (530) 754-7333, email scwebster@ucdavis.edu, http://sbc.ucdavis.edu/Events/Plant_Breeding_Academy.htm
*
2-6 July 2006. IX International Conference on Grape Genetics and
Breeding, Udine (Italy), under the auspices of the ISHS Section Viticulture
and the OIV. Info: Prof. Enrico Peterlunger, University of Udine, Dip. di
Scienze Agrarie e Ambientale, Via delle Scienze 208, 33100 Udine, Italy. Phone:
(39)0432558629, Fax: (39)0432558603, email: peterlunger@uniud.it
* 31 July -1
August 2006, Grass Breeders’ Conference, Ames, IA.
Information
available at http://www.plantbreeding.iastate.edu/gbc.html,
or by contacting Charlie Brummer, brummer@iastate.edu or Shui-zhang Fei
(sfei@iastate.edu).
* 31 July – 4 August 2006. African Rice Congress,
WARDA , Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Contact: Lawrence Narteh. http://www.warda.org/africa-rice-congress/
*8-10
August 2006. 7th Plant Genomics Conference, Heilongjiang University ,
Harbin, China. Contact: Rongtian Li,
Zhenqiang Lu, Chunquan Ma. http://www.plantgenomics.cn
* 13-19 August 2006:
XXVII International Horticultural Congress, Seoul (Korea) web: www.ihc2006.org
*16 - 19 August 2006.Tropical Crop
Biotechnology Conference 2006, Cairns, Queensland, Australia. Organized by: CSIRO Plant Industry. For more information: Contact: CSIRO
Plant Industry s.mckell@uq.edu.au
.Website: www.tcbc2006.com.au
* 20-25 August 2006. The
International Plant Breeding Symposium, Sheraton “Centro Historico” Hotel,
Mexico City. Presentations by invited speakers will be published in a
proceedings by Crop Science. More information is available at www.intlplantbreeding.com. If you are unable to register
online please send an e-mail to: intlplantbreeding@cgiar.org.
* 30 August – 1 September 2006. XIII EUCARPIA Biometrics in Plant Breeding Section
Meeting, EUCARPIA , Zagreb, Croatia
Contact EUCARPIA Secretariat
Event
Website
Links:
Meeting Announcement (PDF)
Pre-registration
Form (Word Document)
* 10-14 September 2006. First Symposium
on Sunflower Industrial Uses. Udine University, Udine Province, Friuli
Venezia Giulia Region, Italy.
http://www.sunflowersymposium.org/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1
http://www.isa.cetiom.fr/1st%20ann%20Symposium%20Udine.htm
Sponsored
by the International Sunflower Association (ISA)
* 11-15 September
2006. XXII International EUCARPIA Symposium - Section Ornamentals: Breeding
for Beauty, San Remo (Italy). Info: Dr. Tito Shiva or Dr. Antonio
Mercuri, CRA Istituto Sperimentale per la Floricoltura, Corso degli Inglesi 508,
18038 San Remo (IM), Italy. Phone: (39)0184694846, Fax: (39)0184694856, email:
a.mercuri@istflori.it web: www.istflori.it
* 17-21 September 2006. Cucurbitaceae 2006, Grove Park Inn Resort
and Spa in Asheville, North Carolina, USA (in the scenic Blue Ridge
Mountains).
Contact: Dr. Gerald Holmes, Department of Plant Pathology,
North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695-7616, 919-515-9779 (gerald_holmes@ncsu.edu)
Conference
website: http://www.ncsu.edu/cucurbit2006
* 18-20 September 2006.The International Cotton Genome Initiative
(ICGI) 2006 Research Conference, Blue Tree Park Hotel (
http://www.bluetree.com.br/index_ing.asp) Brasília, D.F., Brazil. Details of
the ICGI 2006 Research Conference will be posted on the ICGI website (http://icgi.tamu.edu ) as they
become available.
* 9-13 October 2006. Second International Rice
Congress 2006 (IRC2006). New Delhi, India. Organized jointly by the
International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and Indian Council of Agricultural
Research (ICAR), the theme of this congress is "Science, technology, and trade
for peace and prosperity". It comprises four major events: the 26th
International Rice Research Conference (including e.g. a session on 'genetics
and genomics' and workshops on hybrid rice and on genetically modified rice and
biosafety issues); the 2nd International Rice Commerce Conference; the 2nd
International Rice Technology and Cultural Exhibition; and the 2nd International
Ministers' Round Table Meeting. See http://www.icar.org.in/irc2006/ or
contact pramodag@vsnl.com for more information.
* 11-14 October 2006
Plant Genomics European Meetings, Venice, Italy. http://www.distagenomics.unibo.it/plantgems/
Contact
person: PGEM5@agrsci.unibo.it
* 14 - 18
October 2006. The 6th New Crops Symposium: Creating Markets for Economic
Development of New Crops and New Uses, University Center for New Crops and
Plant Products,The Hilton Gaslamp Quarter Hotel, San Diego, CA
Sponsored by:
Association for the Advancement of Industrial Crops and Purdue www.aaic.org or www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop
* 9-12 November
2006. 7th Australasian Plant Virology Workshop. Rottnest Island, Perth,
Western Australia.
For further information contact: Prof Mike Jones, Murdoch
University, Perth m.jones@murdoch.edu.au
* 4-22 November 2006.
International training program on plant genetic resources and seeds:
Policies, conservation and use, Karaj, Iran. For further information on the
program please visit the websites of ICARDA: www.icarda.org (see: Seed Systems Support),
Wageningen International: www.wi.wur.nl
(see: international education at Wageningen UR, courses), or the Generation
Challenge Program: www.generationcp.org (see: capacity
building corner, training courses
* 1-5 December 2006: The First
International Meeting on Cassava Plant Breeding and Biotechnology, to be
held in Brasilia, Brazil. For more details, email Dr. Nagib Nassar of the
University of Brasilia at nagnassa@rudah.com.br
or visit the meeting website at http://www.geneconserve.pro.br/meeting/.
*
8-9 February 2007. A national workshop on “Sustaining plant
breeding as a vital national capacity for the future of U.S. agriculture,”
Raleigh, NC.
Co-hosted by the Departments of Crop Science and
Horticultural Science North Carolina State University
* 24-28 June 2007.
The 9th International Pollination Symposium on Plant-Pollinator
RelationshipsDiversity in Action. Scheman Center, Iowa State
University, Ames, Iowa. The Conference webpage can be viewed at: http://www.ucs.iastate.edu/mnet/plantbee/home.html
* 24-28 July 2007. The 9th International Pollination Symposium,
Iowa State University (Note new dates, and see additional details in
New Announcements, above). The official theme is: "Host-Pollinator
Biology Relationships - Diversity in Action." For more information please visit http://www.ucs.iastate.edu/mnet/plantbee/home.html
* 9-14 September 2007. The World Cotton Research Conference-4,
Lubbock, Texas, USA (http://www.icac.org). There is no cost of
pre-registration and if you pre-register you will receive all the up-coming
information on WCRC-4.171 researchers from over 20 countries have pre-registered
as of today.
(Return to
Contents)
=======================
7. EDITOR'S NOTES
Plant Breeding News is an electronic forum for the
exchange of information and ideas about applied plant breeding and related
fields. It is published every four to six weeks throughout the year.
The
newsletter is managed by the editor and an advisory group consisting of Elcio
Guimaraes (elcio.guimaraes@fao.org), Margaret Smith (mes25@cornell.edu), and
Anne Marie Thro (athro@reeusda.gov). The editor will advise subscribers one to
two weeks ahead of each edition, in order to set deadlines for
contributions.
REVIEW PAST NEWSLETTERS ON THE WEB: Past issues of the
Plant Breeding Newsletter are now available on the web. The address is: http://www.fao.org/WAICENT/FAOINFO/AGRICULT/AGP/AGPC/doc/services/pbn.html
Please note that you may have to copy and paste this address to your
web browser, since the link can be corrupted in some e-mail applications. We
will continue to improve the organization of archival issues of the newsletter.
Readers who have suggestions about features they wish to see should contact the
editor at chh23@cornell.edu.
Subscribers are encouraged to take an active
part in making the newsletter a useful communications tool. Contributions may be
in such areas as: technical communications on key plant breeding issues;
announcements of meetings, courses and electronic conferences; book
announcements and reviews; web sites of special relevance to plant breeding;
announcements of funding opportunities; requests to other readers for
information and collaboration; and feature articles or discussion issues brought
by subscribers. Suggestions on format and content are always welcome by the
editor, at pbn-l@mailserv.fao.org. We would especially like to see a broad
participation from developing country programs and from those working on species
outside the major food crops.
Messages with attached files are not
distributed on PBN-L for two important reasons. The first is that computer
viruses and worms can be distributed in this manner. The second reason is that
attached files cause problems for some e-mail systems.
PLEASE NOTE: Every
month many newsletters are returned because they are undeliverable, for any one
of a number of reasons. We try to keep the mailing list up to date, and also to
avoid deleting addresses that are only temporarily inaccessible. If you miss a
newsletter, write to me at chh23@cornell.edu and I will re-send it.
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