The Global Partnership Initiative for Plant Breeding
Capacity Building (GIPB) brings you:
PLANT BREEDING NEWS
EDITION 186
21 January 2008
An Electronic Newsletter of Applied Plant Breeding
Clair H. Hershey, Editor
chh23@cornell.edu
Sponsored by FAO/AGPC and Cornell University,
Dept. of Plant Breeding and Genetics
Archived issues available at: FAO Plant Breeding
Newsletter
1. NEWS, ANNOUNCEMENTS AND RESEARCH NOTES
1.01 Can crops
be climate-proofed?
1.02 The molecularization of public sector
crop breeding: progress, problems and prospects
1.03 New African Crop Science Society
Council (2007-2009)
1.04 Directory of experts: Merit scholarship programme of the
Islamic Development network
1.05 Latin America and EU
to collaborate on biotechnology
1.06 Government of Pakistan
launches vegetable seed and seedling production program, calls for cooperators
and suppliers
1.07 Projects to be carried out by
IDB science development network in 2008
1.08 Crops for the
Future: an new global body
1.09 Human skills still vital after 90 years of NIAB seed testing
1.10 Researchers team up to improve popcorn
1.11 NIAB staff to set up agricultural
aid site in Moldova
1.12 Feeding the world: new method for producing high-vitamin
corn could improve nutrition in developing countries
1.13 Cornell University to share $5.5
million federal grant with Yale for study of major cereal crops
1.14 NDSU releases Stampede, a new pinto bean variety
1.15 NDSU releases Lariat, a new
pinto bean variety
1.16 Research and field monitoring
on transgenic crops
1.17 USDA/APHIS seeks public comment on
genetically engineered alfalfa
1.18 UBC discovery unlocks tree genetics, gives new hope for pine
beetle defense
1.19 Genetically modified carrots provide more calcium
1.20 Testing program for glufosinate-tolerant cotton varieties paves the way for industry's first three-way
stack of herbicide-tolerant technologies
1.21 Disease resistant crop varieties head the ‘most wanted’
list for Australian graingrowers
1.22 Transgenic potatoes with multiple
stress tolerance
1.23 Research on how plants transport sugars could be of critical
importance in era of global warming
1.24 Plant geneticists find veritas in
vino
1.25 Jumping genes
to remove markers from GM plants
1.26 Plant genome sequencing continues
to progress
1.27 Cornell University
research sheds light on the mechanics of gene transcription
1.28 U.S. Department of Energy Joint
Genome Institute Releases Soybean Genome Assembly
2. PUBLICATIONS
2.01 Proceedings of the
2006 International Plant Breeding Symposium
2.02 White paper on the organic food industry
in the United States and the European Union
2.03 Biofortified Food Crops: Progress
and Prospects in Developing Countries
2.04 S&G issues the 6th edition of S&G Peppers Today, the newsletter for the world of peppers
3. WEB RESOURCES
3.01 S&G launches www.melontoday.com, the
website about the world of melons
4 GRANTS AVAILABLE
4.01 Funding opportunities posted by the
Global Facilitation Unit for Underutilized Species
4.02 Generation Challenge Programme: Call
for proposals for competitive research
4.03 Ceres Bioenergy scholarships established at Texas
A&M
5 POSITION ANNOUNCEMENTS
5.01 Tree fruit genomics at the Geneva
campus of Cornell University
5.02 Vegetable breeding position: Cornell University
5.03 Research Scientist, Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research, Aberystwyth Research Centre
6 MEETINGS, COURSES AND WORKSHOPS
7 EDITOR'S NOTES
=========================
1. NEWS, ANNOUNCEMENTS AND RESEARCH NOTES
1.01 Can crops be climate-proofed?
Climate change threatens food crops across the world. Now scientists
are re-focusing their efforts on crop resilience, rather than yields.
Among the most worrying aspects of climate change is its effects on the
world's food supply. The worst-case scenario is stark: Africa's Sahel region
will produce fewer cereals, rice cultivation in Asia will be under threat, there
will be fewer vegetables with potatoes and beans potentially wiped out
and livestock and fisheries will be severely stressed.
Climate change is making crop scientists review their research agenda. Until
now, their main focus was on improving yields. But with successive International
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports warning that increased droughts and floods
will shift crop systems, 'climate-proofing' of crops has become crucial. The
Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) institutes
are now investigating how to make crops' more resilient to environment stresses.
Working blind
But efforts are hampered because few climate models predict changes for individual
regions, making it difficult to predict how climate change will affect growth
and yields of specific crops in each region.
"A partnership between climatologists and crop scientists will be valuable in
developing regional analogues," says Martin Parry, IPCC co-chair and a scientist
at the UK-based Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research.
And the need is urgent. At a meeting of CGIAR institutes in Hyderabad, India,
in November 2007, Parry said that the estimated window for implementing mitigation
and adaptation programmes has shrunk from 30–40 years to 15.
He advised CGIAR scientists to put climate change at the heart of research programmes.
Others agree. As Kwesi Atta-Krah, deputy director-general of the Italy-based
research organisation Biodiversity International says, "Plant breeders now need
to focus on the future as well as the present, and use the vast genetic resources
in gene banks and in the wild that hold potential for adaptation of major crops
to a changing climate."
Rice crops most vulnerable
Rice crops are most vulnerable to global warming. Studies worldwide show that
rising carbon dioxide levels may initially increase growth, but the benefit
is temporary. Rising temperatures make rice spikelets the slender branches
containing rice flowers sterile, and grain yields will fall.
Asia and sub-Saharan Africa will be amongst the most severely affected by climate
change. About 90 per cent of the world's rice is grown and consumed in Asia
(where 70 per cent of the world's poor live), and sub-Saharan Africa is the
world's fastest growing rice consumer. The most vulnerable agricultural systems
are the rain-fed uplands and lowlands that form almost 80 per cent of total
rice land in Africa.
Reiner Wassman, coordinator of the Rice and Climate Change Consortium at the
International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines, says IRRI strategies
should include breeding rice that can survive climate change. He wants to see
plants that can tolerate higher temperatures and/or flooding, that flower in
the mornings before temperatures rise, and that transpire (lose water through
evaporation from leaves) more efficiently to cool the air around them.
His hopes are buoyed by IRRI's latest research into the rice line 'sub1', which
survived submersion for 17 days (see Scientists
create flood-resistant rice). The line could provide genes for flood tolerance.
In Africa, the Africa Rice Centre (WARDA) is focusing on its NERICA (New Rice
for Africa) varieties. These combine traits of Africa's Oryza glaberrima
such as drought and local disease tolerance with the high yields
of Asia's Oryza sativa.
Looming disaster for wheat?
Drought is also a big concern for the International Maize and Wheat Improvement
Centre (CIMMYT) in El Batan, Mexico. The IPCC's predictions of increasing droughts
spell disaster for half of the developing world's wheat growing areas.
The problem is particularly acute in central and west Africa, where the poor
depend on wheat but get an annual rainfall of less than 350 mm, says CIMMYT
scientist Rodomiro Ortiz.
CIMMYT has launched a hunt for drought tolerance in wild wheats and 'landraces'
traditional crops that have adapted to local conditions over centuries.
The centre is also teaming up with the Japan International Research Centre for
Agricultural Sciences to map drought-tolerant genes in wheat and maize.
CIMMYT is using its findings in both traditional breeding and genetic engineering
programmes. For example, researchers are working on genetically engineered wheat
containing the DREB gene of Arabidopsis thaliana a relative of
mustard plants that may confer tolerance to drought, saline soils and
low temperatures. CIMMYT is testing yields of genetically engineered plants
with the DREB gene under varying water stress.
However, Ortiz cautions that the plant is still experimental. Most published
studies simulated drought conditions in greenhouses more rapidly than would
occur naturally. Ortiz wants more experiments under natural water stress conditions.
Shrinking diversity
Scientists look for useful genes in plants grown only locally, and CIMMYT already
has maize breeding programmes that work with local communities. But researchers
fear many useful wild species could disappear.
"Climate change is leading to significant losses of genetic resources in several
regions of the world," says Atta-Krah. He says diversity among crop species
must be effectively conserved, managed, and used to improve crops and adapt
to climate change.
One striking example of shrinking diversity is Latin America's beans. Peter
Jones, a scientist at the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)
in Columbia, says that of the 17 wild species of the Arachis genus
the pea family that includes the peanut 12 will be extinct by 2055 due
to climate change.
We must systematically map important bean species and ensure important collections
have more than five live specimens, adds Jones.
The world's livestock are also in the danger zone. A 2006 assessment of global
animal genetic resources by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization estimated
that 70 per cent of the world's unique livestock are in developing countries.
Many breeds already risk extinction. On average, one livestock breed is lost
every month, mainly due to globalisation of livestock markets.
Climate change will strike further blows. According to the International Livestock
Research Institute (ILRI) in Kenya, climate change will affect livestock by
changing the yield and nutritional quality of their fodder, increasing disease
and disease-spreading pests, reducing water availability, and making it difficult
to survive in extreme environments.
"Climate change will have impacts at the ecosystem level that are poorly understood,"
says ILRI's deputy director-general for research, John McDermott. Effects will
vary between the rain-fed highlands in the Great Lakes region of eastern Africa,
the coastal regions of south, east and west Africa, and the forests of central
Africa. The exact consequences for each ecosystem need to be analysed in detail.
Water holds the key
The common theme in all these changes is water availability. Already, one-third
of the world's people live in river basins where they face water scarcity. But
climate change will have other effects on agricultural irrigation.
The timing and size of river flows will change, affecting river water schemes,
says Colin Chartres, director-general of the Sri-Lanka-based International Water
Management Institute. He adds that receding glaciers mean less water will be
available in spring, which could affect some 17 per cent of the world's population,
including those irrigating the Indus basin. Changes in groundwater recharge
could also affect irrigation in China, India, Mexico and the United States.
Chartes says scientists need to go beyond coarse global models, and develop
specific river-basin and farm-scale models of how climate change will affect
river water availability and lake levels. He also calls for more precise models
of how climate change may affect fish productivity in oceans, seas and inland
fisheries.
A tentative start
As the problems become apparent, CGIAR centres are working on better understanding
their implications.
The India-based International Centre for Research in Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)
research strategy for 2007–2012 targets climate change issues in the short-
and medium-to-longer term.
ICRISAT director-general, William Dar, says ICRISAT is working to make millets,
sorghum, pigeon pea and groundnut better adapted to major climate stresses.
The organisation has already developed varieties tolerant to heat, high soil
temperatures, low and variable rainfall, and diseases.
What is needed now, says Dar, is a better knowledge of the physiology behind
stress tolerance, wider gene pools, and more effective screening methods for
useful genes.
CIAT is developing computer software to analyse future climate scenarios. Examples
include 'MarkSim' to simulate daily weather for up to 100 years anywhere in
the tropics, and 'Homologue' to compare climate and soil throughout the tropics.
The International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)
has studied how areas in and around Egypt, Morocco and Sudan are coping with
water scarcity in rainfed and irrigated grasslands, as well as traditional watershed
management systems.
But the task ahead is tough. As Jones points out, historically the average time
between scientists beginning to hunt for useful traits and a new stable variety
growing in farmers' fields has been 46 years. "So that is how far ahead we should
be looking at the start of every project," he says.
And as one participant at the Hyderabad conference commented, "You may put all
those traits for tolerance to drought, salt and pests in a plant and then
find it has no yield!"
T.V. Padma
Source: SciDev.net
11 January 2008
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1.02 The molecularization of public
sector crop breeding: progress, problems and prospects
coauthored by Sangam Dwivedi, Jonathan Crouch, David Mackill, Yunbi
Xu, Matthew Blair, Michel Ragot, Hari Upadhyaya, and Rodomiro Ortiz
Advances in Agronomy 95:163-318, 2007.
This article provides a comprehensive overview of the status and use of DNA
marker technologies in the genetic enhancement of major cereals (rice, maize,
wheat, barley, oat, pearl millet, and sorghum), legumes (beans, broadbean, chickpea,
cowpea, pea, peanut, and soybean), and clonal crops (cassava, potato, yam, sweetpotato,
plantain and banana); which together constitute the major staple foods in the
developed and developing world. The subjects included in this review are genetic
resources; markers and genetic maps; marker-trait association using both traditional
genetic linkage and association-based mapping; marker/QTL validation; application
of marker assisted selection (MAS) in product development; computational tools
needed to assist molecular breeding; and finally how researchers are using plant
genomics to address some of the complex issues of significant agricultural importance.
It is hoped that researchers will find this review a useful literature resource
to update their knowledge and plan future strategies to enhance the genetic
potential of these food crops around the world.
Abstract
Molecular markers and genetic maps are available for most important food crops.
Marker-trait associations have been established for a diverse array of traits
in these crops, and research on marker/QTL validation and refinement is increasingly
common. Researchers are now routinely using candidate gene-based mapping and
genome-wide linkage disequilibrium and association analysis in addition to classical
QTL mapping to identify markers broadly applicable to breeding programs. Marker-assisted
selection (MAS) is practiced for enhancing various host plant resistances, several
quality traits and a number of abiotic stress tolerances in many well researched
crops. Markers are also increasingly used to transfer yield or quality enhancing
QTL alleles from wild relatives to elite cultivars. Large-scale MAS-based breeding
programs for crops such as rice, maize, wheat, barley, pearl millet and common
bean have already been initiated worldwide. Advances in “omics” technologies
are now assisting researchers to address complex biological issues of significant
agricultural importance: modeling genotype-by-environment interaction; fine
mapping, cloning and pyramiding of QTL; gene expression analysis and gene function
elucidation; dissecting the genetic structure of germplasm collections to mine
novel alleles and develop genetically structured trait-based core collections;
and understanding the molecular basis of heterosis. The challenge now is to
translate and integrate this knowledge into appropriate tools and methodologies
for plant breeding programs. The role of computational tools in achieving this
is becoming increasingly important. It is expected that harnessing the outputs
of genomics research will be an important component in successfully addressing
the challenge of doubling world food production by 2050.
Contributed by Sangam Dwivedi (s.dwivedi@cgiar.org) and Rodomiro Ortiz
(r.ortiz@cgiar.org)
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1.03 New African Crop Science Society
Council (2007-2009)
The affairs of the Society are managed by a Council, consisting of:
The immediate Past-President of the Society;
plus the following elected members: i) A President, ii) A Vice-President, iii)
Five (5) Regional members, iv) Woman representative; v) Three ordinary Council Members; c) A Secretary, Treasurer and an
Editor-in-Chief, African Crop Science Journal, to be appointed by the chosen
Council.
At the General Meeting Assembly (El-Minia, Egypt, October 29, 2007) Through
holding of the 8th African Crop Science Society Conference, 27-31
October 2007, El-Minia, Egypt , New Council was elected for the upcoming two
years periods (2007-2009).
For more information, kindly visit conference website at hppt://www.acss2007.org
moreover you can contact via E-mail: orgcom@acss2007.org
Contributed by Kasem Zaki Ahmed
President, ACSS, & Chairperson, Local Organizing Committee.,
orgcom@acss2007.org
Website:http://www.acss2007.org
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1.04 Directory of experts: Merit scholarship
programme of the Islamic Development network
The Merit scholarship programme of the Islamic Development network is forming
a directory of experts to be used for forming a panel of external reviewers.
The panel will review and assess applications for Ph.D. and post-doctoral applications
in the following fields of study
1. Biotechnology (genetics, medicine, pharmacy, agriculture and food technology,
environment, water research)
2. Nanotechnology (chemical engineering, Material sciences, conductors and semi-conductors,
laser and fiber optics)
3. Information and communications technologies (Electronics, telecommunications,
computer science)
4. Fuel technology (renewable energy, fuel technology)
5. Physical sciences (nuclear science, polymers, system engineering, metallurgy,
space sciences)
6. Technology management
Thus, if you are interested to be included in the directory of experts, please
send the following information to Wagdy.sawahel@scincedev.net :
1. Your CV
2. The field of study, from the above-mentioned 6 fields, to be reviewed.
The preference language for reviewing (English, French)
It might be worth mentioning that there will be a symbolic honorarium in return
to your valuable efforts.
Looking forward to hearing from you within a week
Contributed by Wagdy Sawahel
General coordinator, science development network
www.sciencedev.net
wagdy.sawahel@sciencedev.net
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1.05 Latin America and EU to collaborate
on biotechnology
The Latin American trade pact Mercosur and the European Union have agreed
to develop a programme to fund agricultural biotechnology projects in Latin
America.
BIOTECSUR was unveiled last week (19 December) at Argentina's Ministry of Science,
Technology and Productive Innovation.
The European Union (EU) has pledged US$10.4 million to the programme, with Mercosur
members Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay investing US$1.4 million. Argentina will
coordinate the programme.
The initiative will fund four regional projects in four areas of interest: forestry,
oilseeds, ovine (sheep) and avian (bird).
"We are going to create a regional platform for biotechnology, which gathers
policy, science and the private sector", says Igueda Menvielle, director of
BIOTECSUR and national director of international relationships at the Argentinean
Ministry of Science.
Menvielle said the programme focuses on agricultural biotechnology because this
sector has a high impact on innovation and development, which in turn will have
a positive impact on the region's economy.
Representatives from the Mercosur nations and the EU will attend seminars between
February and April 2008 to identify the region's main biotechnology demands.
A call for project proposals will be launched in May and remain open until the
end of July.
A jury of experts and policymakers will select the four final projects, to be
presented to the EU in September. Each project will receive €1 million (US$1.4
million) and start in November 2008, running for about two and a half years.
Menvielle says that Brazil is organising a similar regional programme on information
and communication technologies.
Laura García
Source: SciDev.net
27 December 2007
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1.06 Government of Pakistan launches vegetable seed
and seedling production program, calls for cooperators and suppliers
Islamabad, Pakistan
Government of Pakistan has launched a project “Establishment of Facilitation
Unit for Participatory Vegetable Seed and Seedling Production Program.”
The main objective of the program is to acquire elite genetic resources, collection
of indigenous genetic resources, characterization, purification and multiplication,
to acquire vegetable seed processing machinery, seed drying, coating, pelleting,
packaging etc, to hire expertise internationally and locally to train our technician,
vegetable growers, and professionals for hybrid vegetable seed production.
The project will establish 10 participatory units through out the Pakistan where
such facility would be provided. These participatory units will be comprised
of private seed companies which will enter into agreement to abide by IPR issue,
royalties and investment in technical staff and use of genetic resources. Project
will facilitate the participatory units for commercial hybrid seed production.
The project has inbuilt fund provision to pay for material, consultants. It
is also envisage introducing through project vegetable nursery production, so
controlled environment facility would also be acquired in this regard.
Keeping in view the above significance for vegetable seed industry of Pakistan,
you are very humbly requested to extend cooperation for the provision of
genetic resources and information about relevant machinery alongwith
the cost/royalty and conditionality etc.
The seed manufacturing equipment companies are particularly requested
to send each specification of individual machinery for placement of order etc.
our request may please be conveyed to others concerned also.
Your cooperation will be greatly acknowledged.
With regards,
Dr. Akhlaq Hussain,
Director General/Project Director,
Federal Seed Certification &
Registration Department,
G-9/4, Mauve Area,
Islamabad
Government of Pakistan
Ministry of Food, Agriculture & Livestock
Federal Seed Certification & Registration Department
G 9/4, Mauve Area, Islamabad
Tel : +92 51- 9260126
Fax : +92 51-9260234
Source: SeedQuest.com
14 January 2008
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1.07 Projects to be carried out by IDB
science development network in 2008
Dear Members of science development network,
Many thanks for your continuous support to SDN.
I'm delighted to let you know that having about 20.000 scientists, researchers,
technologists and science policy makers from almost all Islamic Development
Bank (IDB) member countries, Muslim scientists living in non-Muslim countries
and other scientists in the world, IDB science development network (SDN) has
already become a global scientific forum.
Now, SDN is the world's leading online Islamic network of science and technology
(S&T) for development of the Ummah.
SDN has also established itself as a knowledge transfer and dissemination house
as it managed to transfer about half million pages to its members since its
launch in 2005.
Information is the key to the growth of knowledge and dissemination of information
is crucial for the scientific enterprise.
Thus, in line with IDB vision to become a knowledge-based bank and in abid to
expand SDN service to business community as well as professionals, SDN will
set up the following projects to promote science cooperation between IDB member
countries and stimulate the flow of knowledge and technology.
(1) Directory for S&T associations, societies and networks in IDB member
countries.
(2) Directory of S&T parks, incubators, and cities in IDB member countries.
This directory will highlight the important role of science parks in promoting
the culture of innovation and competitiveness among businesses and knowledge-based
institutions. It will also promote links between scientists at universities
and R&D institutions and science parks in the region with the aim to facilitate
the set up and development of innovation-based companies through incubation
and spin-off processes.
(3) Innovation Alliance Resources in IDB member countries
"Muslims must learn to innovate or be left behind" ABDULLAH Bin Ahmad Badawi,
Malaysia's prime minister said.
The shortcomings of education systems in IDB member countries have been highlighted
by the lack of entrepreneurship and innovation in the region. Of the top 15
countries which have submitted international applications under the patent cooperation
treaty, not one of them are Muslim country.
For innovation to take root, the 'golden triangle' of academic institutions,
governments and the private sector must cooperate in doing business…..
This project is the first step for SDN effort towards building innovation and
knowledge-based society in the Islamic world.
(4) Database of technological innovations for poverty reduction
Given that all 57 OIC Member States are categorized as developing countries,
poverty alleviation in the Muslim World is both evident and compelling. While
the OIC countries account for 21 % of the global population in 2005, they make
up only 6% of global G.D.P.
Of the 50 Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in the world today, where the majority
of the populace live in extreme poverty, 22 are OIC Member States and 18 of
them are in Africa. Additionally, 12 OIC Member States in Asia and Africa are
Landlocked Developing States (LLDCs) while 6 others in Asia, Africa and the
Americas are Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Both these groups face unique
developmental challenges due to geographical limitations and urgently need scaled-up,
targeted development assistance if they are to make progress towards the attainment
of the Millennium Development Goals.
There is a growing interest in government and civil society organizations to
adopt innovative poverty reduction approaches to reach the poorest of the poor.
In this regard, finding approaches geared towards poverty reduction among the
poor is important as it adds new ideas to donors, policy makers, and researchers
to develop easily adaptable technology in a cost-effective manner.
Thus, this database will include examples of technological innovations that
have been used for poverty reduction.
Contributed by Wagdy Sawahel
General coordinator, science development network
www.sciencedev.net
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1.08 Crops for the Future: an new global
body
A new global body, provisionally called ‘Crops for the Future’ will spearhead
the drive to bring underutilized crops into the mainstream
Underutilized crops are crops for the future. Around the world, species
that are little used, or which were grown traditionally but have fallen into
disuse, are being brought out of the shadows and put to use, especially in the
hands of the poor. Over 7,000 plant species have been grown or collected for
food. But worldwide, less than 150 have been commercialized and just three crops
– maize, wheat and rice – supply half our daily proteins and calories.
http://www.underutilized-species.org/Documents/PUBLICATIONS/Cropsforthefuture.pdf
( www.underutilized-species.org)
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1.09 Human skills still vital after 90 years of NIAB
seed testing
England’s Official Seed Testing Station, based at the National Institute
of Agricultural Botany in Cambridge, has just reached its 90 year milestone.
Its laboratories play a vital role in promoting seed quality and introducing
new plant varieties in support of UK agriculture. It ensures that the highest
standards are maintained, and that the finest crops are produced as a result
of using seed fit for purpose.
The reason the Official Seed Testing Station (OSTS) started is as relevant today
as it was back in 1917 when it was originally based in London, before moving
to its present NIAB site in 1921 – to ensure food security. Between 1914-1918,
there was an urgent need for increased home food production and this resulted
in new legislation requiring seed to be tested for purity and germination before
use.
Today, global concerns about the impact of climate change on crop production
mean that these challenges still very much exist. Seeds are stringently scrutinised
and approved for certification following EU directives. The technical protocols
followed have been developed by the International Seed Testing Association,
of which the OSTS is a member, and strives to establish uniformity in seed testing
world wide.
The NIAB seed testing laboratories are designated as the Official Seed Testing
Station for England and Wales by DEFRA. Highly skilled seed analysts closely
monitor the quality of testing carried out at 28 licensed laboratories throughout
the country where 12,500 seed lots are certified each year, mainly cereals,
along with other crops like grasses, pulses, oilseed rape and vegetables. They
carry out random tests on 5% of these seeds to ensure that quality standards
are maintained. They also provide staff training at home or around the
world. The OSTS is used by farmers and merchants for advisory and information
purposes, with the range of species extending to include flowers, trees, herbs
and spices, as well as enforcement of the legislative requirements.
The seed testing station, headed by Dr Steve Jones, can boast a wealth of experience
as many of the long serving staff remain dedicated to their very painstaking
work; five of the nine staff have clocked up between 30 and 39 years service
each.
It is a job which requires excellent eye sight and patience, a steady hand and
a good memory. The training requires the ability to identify at least 150 species
of plant just by looking at the seeds and to name them using the specific botanical
name as this will be understood by seed analysts and seed traders worldwide.
In fact, some staff have far exceeded this and can identify more than 400 species
by sight. The real skill is in being able to see one seed of a different species
in 25,000 seeds.
Dr Jones says that many of the methods used in seed testing have not changed
since the 1900s.
He said: “One essential piece of ‘equipment’ has always been a well trained
seed analyst able to tell apart by sight over 200 species of crop and weed seeds
to allow purity and other plant species examinations.
“As a result of our expertise, there is no doubt that NIAB has gained a high
reputation for monitoring the quality of British crops and promoting the use
of better varieties and high quality seeds.
“It is very rewarding to know that the test results we produce help in the production
of quality produce or products on sale in our shops and supermarkets.”
In most cases, the useful clues for the identification of seeds comes from size,
shape, colour, surface, markings, texture and the shape and positions of the
attachment scar. But seeds, like all living organisms, are inherently variable
and not all the usually typical features may be developed.
At the OSTS, seeds are normally examined by eye and for some species with an
x8 or x10 hand lens, or a binocular microscope with magnification up to x40
in difficult cases.
Up until 1974, only women worked as seed analysts at the OSTS; men may have
felt deterred because of the manual dexterity involved in handling the small
seeds.
Janice Day, who has had 32 years experience as a seed analyst, said:
“Seeds are beautiful, they fascinate me and the work is a challenge. I think
this was a much better alternative than the choice I was faced with of working
in an office. I have always been known for my very good eye sight and you soon
learn how to develop images in your mind and recognise the different shapes,
colours and textures.”
Seed specialist Jane Taylor, with 39 years experience as a seed specialist,
described her love of the job: “It is a unique job with a lot of variation and
even after 39 years, there is still an opportunity to learn more. Much of my
work has involved liaison with customers who export seed worldwide. It’s interesting
to check out produce in supermarkets for its source of origin. For example,
broccoli may have had seed tested here for an ISTA certificate and the seeds
will perhaps go to Kenya and then come back here as produce in our shops.”
Dr Jones described what was likely to happen in the next 90 years: “Our future
challenges are to pass on the expertise to younger team members and provide
innovative solutions to measuring and recording purity and germination. Possible
solutions include using robotics, image analysis and visual recognition systems.
“It is easy to forget how good the human brain is at recognising shapes and
objects and how practical it is to look through a kilogram of seeds to find
the odd one out. Perhaps in 90 years time, there may be some helpful software
or extra bits of kit, but I am sure there will still be the need for the human
touch.”
Contributed by Ellee Seymour
ellee.seymour@btopenworld.com
20 December 2007
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1.10 Researchers team up to improve popcorn
Washington, DC
On a long winter's night, no treat seems simpler than a big bowl of popcornuntil
you start to trace the connections between traditional races of popping corns
and modern commercial varieties of popcorn.
Plant geneticist Amalio Santacruz Varelathen a graduate student at Iowa
State University and currently a professor and researcher at el Colegio de Postgraduados in Mexicoteamed
up with Mark Widrlechner
to assemble some popcorn pedigrees. Widrlechner is a plant geneticist with the
Agricultural Research Service (ARS), working at the agency's North Central
Regional Plant Introduction Station ( NCRPIS)
in Ames, Iowa.
They focused on 56 maize (Zea mays L.) varieties from the United States
and Latin Americaemphasizing popcornsand measured 29 morphological
traits based on heritable qualities and popping characteristics. They also obtained
genetic data from DNA markers and from variations in proteins called enzymes.
Statistical programs were used to analyze these data and estimate the probability
of close genetic relationships among the maize varieties. Drawing on the results,
the team proposed classifying the majority of U.S. popcorn varieties into three
main groups.
Most of the common U.S. commercial varieties belong to the North American Yellow
Pearl Popcorns group. This type of popcorn may have its origins in a Chilean
popcorn variety adapted to growing conditions similar to conditions in typical
U.S. production areas.
The second group, North American Pointed Rice Popcorns, has two subgroups. One
contains genetically similar, white popcorns with pointed kernels from the United
States, and another represents the major pointed popcorn races from Latin America.
A third group, North American Early Popcorns, appears to be closely related
to Northern Flint varieties, which in turn originated from Mexican maize progenitors.
Northern Flint varieties have contributed significantly to the development of
other important U. S. corn varieties, including Corn Belt Dentsthe yellow
field corn grown on millions of acres in the United States and other nationsand
many sweet corn types.
Plant breeders can use this information about the origin and genetic relationships
of U. S. popcorns to develop even better varieties of popcorn for snacking enthusiasts.
ARS is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's
chief scientific research agency.
ARS News Service
Agricultural Research Service, USDA
Ann Perry
Source: SeedQuest.com
11 January 2008
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1.11 NIAB staff to set up agricultural aid site in Moldova
A team of scientific experts from the National Institute of Agricultural
Botany plan to visit Moldova next month, the poorest country in Europe, and
set up an agricultural aid site.
The former Communist-run country suffered its worst heatwave in living memory
last summer when wells – their main source of water - dried up for the first
time in 70 years.
The four-man NIAB team from Cambridge, headed by Chief Executive Prof Wayne
Powell, will be given a 2-hectare plot of land by the mayor in the village of
Burlacu which will be transformed into a productive agricultural site to demonstrate
how different crops can be grown successfully throughout the year. It will become
a community project and a best practice model for nearby villages.
The trip, between 4 – 10 January, is being organised by the charity Central
and Eastern European Ministries (CEEM), whose Secretary John Law, a former NIAB
scientist, said the Moldovan region was desperately in need of agricultural
aid.
Most of its land is presently being used to grow vines, threatening their food
security. There is also little knowledge or access to improved cultivars or
sources of seed to plant new crops.
Prof Powell, and team members Mike Day, Don Pendegrast and Terry Rugg, plan
to set up poly tunnels in the village, which has a population of 1,200, and
establish a mini research site to demonstrate how various crops can be grown
to provide food over a longer growing season; for example cabbage, which can
be produced throughout the year, as well as maize, peppers, tomatoes and sweetcorn.
Prof Powell said he was looking forward to helping Moldovans in this hands-on
project which would make a real difference to their lives, helping them to produce
healthy crops, as well as providing advice and sponsorship in the poorest European
country.
He said: “I am delighted to be involved in this project and explore how the
skills and expertise of NIAB can help improve the lives of Moldovans.
Indeed this project has galvanised all our staff who are collecting clothes
and other old office computers and equipment which will be taken to road lorry
next spring.”
Mr Law said CEEM was thrilled to have the support of NIAB, recognised as a world
leading agricultural research company, and that it was a unique partnership
with the village mayor and local church.
He said the region also suffered from a lost generation of 30-50 year olds who
have moved to other countries to work, leaving their young children and elderly
parents behind. This has added to poverty and an increase in starving “street
children” who the local church is caring for. These children are expected to
help with the project too.
Mr Law said: “We hope that this demonstration farm will be in the centre of
the village so villagers can come and see their local best practice. I am confident
word will spread and there will be tremendous interest from neighbouring communities
who will want to replicate this. NIAB will supply the poly tunnels and may sponsor,
or seek a sponsor, for its irrigation which could also be extended to the whole
village.
“This is a very important visit to promote self sufficiency in crop production
during future year, regardless of the climatic conditions. We are also hoping
NIAB’s high profile support will encourage other organisations and seed companies
to follow suit and offer sponsorship too.
“NIAB is uniquely placed to help provide technical expertise with the appropriate
technology solutions that can make real differences to the lives of so many
in an often overlooked part of Europe. It is an extremely worthwhile humanitarian
and agricultural project to support.”
Contributed by "Ellee Seymour
ellee.seymour@btopenworld.com
20 December 2007
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1.12 Feeding the world: new method for producing high-vitamin corn
could improve nutrition in developing countries
Could be produced easily and inexpensively in developing countries
Scientists have developed a potentially powerful new tool in the fight against
deficiencies in dietary vitamin A, which cause eye diseases, including blindness,
in 40 million children annually, and increased health risks for about 250 million
people, mostly in developing countries.
This tool consists of "a new method of analyzing the genetic makeup of corn
that will enable developing countries to identify and increase cultivation of
corn that has naturally high levels of vitamin A precursors," says Ed Buckler,
a co-leader of the research team from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural
Research Service and Cornell University
Corn is an essential part of the diets of hundreds of millions of people around
the world, many of whom live in developing countries. Regular consumption by
adults and children of adequate quantities of corn high in vitamin A precursors,
which are converted in the human body into vitamin A, would reduce their chances
of developing vitamin A deficiencies and associated health problems.
This new method of increasing cultivation of high-vitamin corn is designed to
tap the natural genetic diversity of corn. It was developed by a team led by
Buckler and Torbert Rocheford of the University of Illinois, and was partially
funded by The National Science Foundation (NSF). It will be described in the
January 18, 2007 edition of Science.
"In a field of thousands of ears of corn, each ear has a slightly different
genetic makeup and resulting differences in physical characteristics, including
levels of vitamin A precursors -- just like every person in a crowd has a slightly
different genetic makeup and associated physiological differences," explains
James Collins, assistant director for the Biological Sciences Directorate at
NSF. But only a very small percentage of corn crops are genetically programmed
to have naturally high levels of vitamin A precursors, and these high-vitamin
ears cannot be identified merely by visual inspection. "Therefore, identifying
crops that have high levels of vitamin A precursors has traditionally been like
finding a needle in a haystack."
But the team led by Buckler and Rocheford has significantly simplified the task
of sifting through that proverbial haystack. They did so by identifying genetic
markers in corn that are associated with high levels of vitamin A precursors.
These markers can be used by "scientists working in very basic labs in developing
countries to quickly screen for local corn strains that are high in vitamin
A precursors," says Buckler. Then, these high-vitamin strains may be bred, cultivated
and consumed by local people.
Corn is the dominant subsistence crop in sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America,
where 17 to 30 percent of children under age five are vitamin A deficient, says
Buckler. Because corn is consumed for all three meals a day in much of Africa,
it is a good target for vitamin biofortification, he added.
Buckler says that his team's method for analyzing the genetic makeup of corn
is "much simpler and faster and up to 1,000-fold cheaper" than running the types
of chemical tests that were previously available for identifying corn high in
vitamin A precursors. He expects it to significantly accelerate the vitamin
biofortification of corn crops.
The Buckler and Rocheford team is currently working with various international
organizations, such as CIMMYT (the International Maize and Wheat Improvement
Center) and the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture, to help train
plant breeders in developing countries to use their techniques.
Buckler says that this new method of increasing cultivation of high-vitamin
corn was made possible by recent breakthroughs in statistical analyses and the
advent of rapid DNA sequencers -- instruments that are used to automate genetic
profiling of crops. The researchers expect this new method to have broad applications
beyond corn improvement.
Program Contacts
Jane Silverthorne, National Science Foundation
jsilvert@nsf.gov
Co-Investigators
Torbert Rocheford, University of Illinoiis
Trochefo@uiuc.edu
Ed Buckler, USDA, Agricultural Research Service and Cornell University esb33@cornell.edu
Source: EurekAlert.org
17 January 2008
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1.13 Cornell University to share $5.5
million federal grant with Yale for study of major cereal crops
Ithaca, New York
Cornell and Yale universities will share a $5.5 million, four-year
grant from the National Science Foundation for research to better understand
the biology of rice, maize and sorghum, among other crops.
The Cornell researchers include Associate Professor Klaas van Wijk and Professor
Robert Turgeon, both in the Department of Plant Biology, and Thomas Brutnell,
adjunct professor and Boyce
Thompson Institute for Plant Research associate scientist. They will collaborate
with Cornell computational biologist Qi Sun.
Specifically, the researchers will compare two categories of crops -- or grasses
-- known as C3 and C4. Common C3 grasses include wheat, rye and rice. C4 grasses,
which evolved from C3s, include such major cereal crops as maize and sorghum
as well as the most promising biofuels crops, such as switchgrass. C4 grasses
are more efficient than C3 grasses in their photosynthesis when under stress
or exposed to higher temperatures and are able to create more biomass.
"Many plants are C3," said van Wijk. "We are asking what is needed for a plant
to go from a C3 organization to a C4 organization. Maybe many of the components
of the C4 organization are already in place in C3, and we just don't know how
to turn those on." The study will provide a basic understanding of differences
in cell-specific gene regulation and protein accumulation.
By understanding how these two plant types differ, the researchers will contribute
to an effort led by the International Rice Research
Institute to introduce C4 characteristics into a C3 species, such as rice,
thereby possibly increasing both biomass and grain yields.
The project will use laser technologies to capture specific cell types in maize
and rice leaves for further analysis of proteins and gene transcripts. A quantitative
inventory of these molecules in each cell type will provide information regarding
the regulation of gene expression and will explain how maize and rice plants
differ in photosynthesis and in other cellular functions.
Researchers at Yale will be using laser technology to collect the cell types,
and along with BTI researchers, they will also conduct transcript analysis.
Cornell researchers will use mass spectrometry to analyze the proteins within
these captured cells, will study leaf physiology of the grasses and will make
a public database of the findings.
By Krishna Ramanujan
Source: SeedQuest.com
16 January 2008
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1.14 NDSU releases Stampede, a
new pinto bean variety
Stampede, an upright pinto bean variety for use in the northern Great Plains,
has been released by the North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station at North
Dakota State University.
Averaged across numerous locations during several years of testing, Stampede
out-yielded Maverick by more than 11 percent. Stampede’s yield is about equal
to Buster and has a slightly larger seed size than Maverick. Stampede has resistance
to bean common mosaic virus and local races of leaf rust.
Stampede has an upright, short vine with good lodging resistance. It exhibits
very uniform dry down of both pods and plants and matures about one day later
than Maverick. The improved plant structure, combined with its uniform dry down,
suggests that this line may be suitable for direct combining if the appropriate
equipment and operator care are used.
The development of Stampede began in 1996. The parentage of Stampede includes
numerous experimental lines from the NDSU breeding program, plus germplasm from
the USDA-ARS programs at Beltsville, Md.; Mayaguez, Puerto Rico; Michigan State
University; and Colorado State University. The final cross that led to the development
of Stampede was made during the greenhouse season in fall 1998. Plants resulting
from this cross then were increased and tested in New Zealand and Puerto Rico,
where the NDSU dry bean breeding project has winter nurseries.
Selections from the cross were made at the NDSU bean breeding nursery in Hatton,
N.D. Additional testing, selections and increases were made at numerous sites
in east-central North Dakota (Forest River, Johnstown and the Carrington Research
Extension Center). Additional evaluations were done at other NDSU Research Extension
Centers and in the Midwest Regional Performance Nurseries in Michigan, Nebraska,
Colorado and North Dakota
According to Juan Osorno, NDSU dry edible bean breeder in the Department of
Plant Sciences, Stampeded was developed under the supervision of Ken Grafton,
former NDSU dry bean breeder and now dean of the College of Agriculture, Food
Systems, and Natural Resources and director of the North Dakota Agricultural
Experiment Station.
The NDSU Research Foundation will apply for plant variety protection with Title
V and collect research fees on this variety. The NDSU dry bean breeding program
is able to release this pinto line thanks to the support of several people and
institutions, including Dr. Ken Grafton, previous dry bean breeder, the program
staff, and other bean breeding programs for allowing germplasm exchange and
field and disease testing. Especial acknowledgements for all the long term support
given by Northarvest Bean Growers Association, and the North Dakota Dry Edible
Bean Seed Growers Association (NDDEBSGA).
NDSU Agriculture Communication
Source: Al Schneiter, albert.schneiter@ndsu.edu
Source: Juan Osorno, juan.osorno@ndsu.edu
Editor: Rich Mattern, richard.mattern@ndsu.edu
Contributed by Juan M Osorno
Juan.Osorno@ndsu.edu
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1.15 NDSU releases Lariat, a new
pinto bean variety
The North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station at North Dakota State University
announces the release of Lariat, an upright pinto bean variety for use in the
northern Great Plains.
According to Juan Osorno, the new dry edible bean breeder in the Department
of Plant Sciences at NDSU, Lariat was developed under the supervision of Ken
Grafton, the former NDSU dry bean breeder and now dean of the College of Agriculture,
Food Systems, and Natural Resources and North Dakota Agricultural Experiment
Station director.
Starting in 1996, Lariat was derived from numerous crosses that included Maverick,
a popular variety released by NDSU, Aztec and Winchester. The parentage in Lariat
also includes several experimental lines from the NDSU and Michigan State University
breeding programs. The final cross to develop Lariat was made during the 1998
greenhouse season. Selections from the cross were made in New Zealand and Puerto
Rico, where the bean breeding project has winter nurseries. Additional selections,
evaluations and increases were made at numerous sites in east-central North
Dakota (Forest River, Hatton, Johnstown and the NDSU Carrington Research Extension
Center). Additional evaluations were made at other NDSU Research Extension Centers
and the Midwest Regional Performance Nurseries in Michigan, Nebraska, Colorado
and North Dakota.
Averaged across numerous locations, Lariat has out-yielded Buster and Maverick
by almost 4 percent and 14.5 percent, respectively. Lariat has resistance to
bean common mosaic virus and local races of leaf rust. Lariat matures
an average of five days later than Maverick and has excellent seed size, shape
and appearance. The seed is very uniform in size, has a lighter background color
and is slightly larger than Maverick.
Lariat has an upright, short vine with good lodging resistance. It exhibits
very good uniform dry down of both pods and plants. The improved plant structure,
combined with its uniform dry down, suggests that this line may be suitable
for direct combining using the appropriate equipment and operator care.
The NDSU Research Foundation will apply for plant variety protection with Title
V and collect research fees on this variety. The NDSU dry bean breeding program
is able to release this pinto line thanks to the support of several people and
institutions, including Dr. Ken Grafton, previous dry bean breeder, the program
staff, and other bean breeding programs for allowing germplasm exchange and
field and disease testing. Especial acknowledgements for all the long term support
given by Northarvest Bean Growers Association, and the North Dakota Dry Edible
Bean Seed Growers Association (NDDEBSGA).
#####
NDSU Agriculture Communication
Source: Al Schneiter, (701) 231-8137, albert.schneiter@ndsu.edu
Source: Juan Osorno, (701) 231-8145, juan.osorno@ndsu.edu
Editor: Rich Mattern, (701) 231-6136, richard.mattern@ndsu.edu
Contributed by Juan M Osorno
Juan.Osorno@ndsu.edu
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1.16 Research and field monitoring on transgenic crops
by the Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz yTrigo (CIMMYT)
David Hoisington · Rodomiro Ortiz
Euphytica
DOI 10.1007/s10681-007-9633-x
123Received: 7 January 2007 / Accepted: 10 December 2007
© Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2007
Abstract The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) aims
to genetically enhance both crops and generate public sector-provided products
for the resource poor, e.g., drought tolerant wheat and insect resistant maize,
and through international–national partnerships facilitate the acquisition of
improved germplasm for non-mandate crops in the cropping systems where maize
and wheat thrives; e.g., GM-papaya through a national food security undertaking
in Bangladesh. The Center also engages in public awareness campaigns in projects
such as Insect Resistance Maize for Africa (IRMA), which includes food, feed
and environmental safety, monitoring of resistance and establishment of refugia,
non-target eVects and gene Xow. Monitoring of genetic resources is a wide concern
among the centers of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research
(CGIAR), with an emphasis on the quality of gene banks. Decisions, policies
and procedures about monitoring should be science-based, and this requires education,
an area where CIMMYT and other CGIAR centers can play an important role.
There will be a need to continue to evaluate the need for, and type of monitoring,
as new (and unique) products are developed and released in the emergent economies
of the world.
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1.17 USDA/APHIS seeks public comment on genetically
engineered alfalfa
Washington, DC
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
is seeking public comment to shape the scope of an environmental impact statement
(EIS). The EIS is prepared to assist in the determination of the status of genetically
engineered (GE) Roundup Ready (RR) alfalfa under APHIS biotechnology regulations.
Due to a court order, APHIS will prepare the EIS to evaluate potential environmental
effects of deregulating the GE alfalfa. APHIS has identified 18 issues that
will be studied in the EIS, which include impacts on food and feed, U.S. trade
and threatened and endangered species. APHIS is seeking public comment to identify
other issues that also should be addressed in the EIS.
In 2003, the Monsanto Company and Forage Genetics International submitted a
petition to APHIS requesting nonregulated status for RR alfalfa lines J101 and
J163. APHIS prepared an environmental assessment (EA) to determine whether deregulating
the alfalfa, genetically engineered to resist the herbicide glyphosate (known
commercially as Roundup), could have a significant impact on the environment.
After a thorough review of the scientific evidence APHIS issued a finding of
no significant impact and deregulated the lines on June 14, 2005. APHIS makes
a determination of nonregulated status only when it can conclude that the organism
does not pose a plant pest risk.
To comply with a judgment and order by the United States District Court for
the Northern District of California, APHIS now must prepare an EIS in support
of its 2005 decision to deregulate RR alfalfa. The court did not overturn federal
conclusions regarding the safety of the crop for food and feed purposes, but
rather concluded that APHIS had not adequately documented potential, or lack
of potential environmental impacts. On March 23, 2007, APHIS published a Federal
Register notice announcing that RR alfalfa was once again a regulated article.
A future decision regarding the deregulation of RR alfalfa will be issued only
after the completion of the appropriately documented EIS.
For more information on RR alfalfa, go to www.aphis.usda.gov/biotechnology/alfalfa.shtml.
Notice of this action was published in the Jan. 7 Federal Register. Consideration
will be given to comments received on or before Feb. 6. Send an original and
two copies of postal mail or commercial delivery comments to Docket No. APHIS-2007-0142,
Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River
Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Comments also can be submitted on
the Federal eRulemaking portal at
http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=DocketDetail&d=APHIS-2007-0142
.
Click on “Add Comments” to view public comments and related materials available
electronically.
Comments are posted on the Regulations.gov Web site and also can be viewed at
USDA, Room 1141, South Building, 14th St. and Independence Ave., S.W., Washington,
D.C., between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.
To facilitate entry into the comment reading room, please call (202) 690-2817.
Source: SeedQuest.com
7 January 2008
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1.18 UBC discovery unlocks tree genetics, gives new hope for pine
beetle defense
UBC researchers have discovered some of the genetic secrets that enable
pine and spruce trees to fight off pests and disease, uncovering critical new
information about forests’ natural defense systems.
Assoc. Prof. Joerg Bohlmann says this genetic analysis will allow forest stewardship
programs to reinforce a forest’s inherent strength, breeding trees that could
in time repel insects such as British Columbia’s notorious mountain pine beetles.
Bohlmann and his research associate Christopher Keeling explored the genetic
makeup of oleoresin within spruce, discovering a sophisticated ability to produce
complex blends of chemicals that continuously evolve to protect the tree from
changing conditions and challenges.
“Conifers are some of the oldest and longest living plants on the planet,” says
Bohlmann. “We’ve opened the book to understanding how they can survive in one
location for thousands of years despite attacks from generations of insects
and diseases.”
Their study examines the molecular biochemistry of conifers interacting with
genomes of bark beetles and bark beetle-associated fungal pathogens. Bohlmann’s
study appears in today’s edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy
of Sciences.
“Figuring out how these naturally occurring defenses work has important implications
for the long-term sustainability and health of our forests,” says Bohlmann,
who’s working with the B.C. Ministry of Forests and Range, the forestry industry
and the Canadian Forest Service.
Bohlmann is also co-leader of the recently announced $4-million project that
Genome BC and Genome Alberta is funding to investigate the mountain pine beetle
infestation at the genomic level.
Insect pests and pathogens cause annual losses of billions of dollars to conifer-based
forest economies in North America and Europe. In B.C., the mountain pine beetle
epidemic has killed about 40 per cent of the pine forests since its first appearance
in the mid 1990s.
This is the largest recorded bark beetle outbreak in Canada, leaving B.C. with
13 million hectares of grey and red dead pine – an area four times the size
of Vancouver Island and a volume of dead timber equivalent to 530 million telephone
poles.
Bohlmann is leading UBC’s and international research programs on forest health
genomics. In 2006, Bohlmann and a team of international scientists completed
the world’s first physical map and sequencing of a tree genome – the third plant
ever sequenced.
He is based at UBC’s Michael Smith Laboratories, a multidisciplinary research
facility. Bohlmann also holds teaching appointments in the departments of Botany
and Forest Sciences and is an associate at UBC’s Wine Research Centre.
###
Bohlmann and study co-authors are members of the Treenomix project, Canada’s
first large-scale forestry genome project. Their work received support from
the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), Genome
BC and Genome Canada.
Contact: Lorraine Chan
lorraine.chan@ubc.ca
University of British Columbia
Source: EurekAlert.org
14 January 2008
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1.19 Genetically modified carrots
provide more calcium
Genetically modifying carrots to express increased levels of a gene that
enables the transport of calcium across membranes of plant cells can make the
vegetables a better source of calcium, said researchers at Baylor College of
Medicine in Houston and the Vegetable and Fruit Improvement Center at Texas
A&M University in a report that appears today in the Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences.
“Slightly altering the gene (sCAX1) to make it a more active transporter allows
for increased bioavailable calcium in the carrots- ,” said Dr. Kendal Hirschi,
professor of pediatrics-nutrition and principal investigator of the study conducted
at the USDA/ARS Children’s Nutrition Research Center at BCM in cooperation with
Texas Children’s Hospital.
In an initial study in mice, researchers found that those who were fed the carrots
with the altered gene could get the same amount of calcium as those who ate
twice the amount of normal carrots. In a study in 30 human adults, those who
ate the modified carrots absorbed 41 percent more calcium than did those who
ate the unmodified carrots.
“These carrots were grown in carefully monitored and controlled environments,”
said Hirschi. “Much more research needs to be conducted before this would be
available to consumers.”
Hirschi emphasizes that there is no magic food that will solve all nutritional
problems, and that proper food and exercise are still necessary. However, further
developments in this area of research could allow for more nutrients in fruits
and vegetables and lead to improved health.
Osteoporosis, one of the world’s most prevalent nutritional disorders, is a
disease that reduces bone mineral density in the body. Doctors usually prescribe
more calcium and better calcium uptake as one solution to treat the disease.
Increasing levels of calcium absorption from foods would have a significant
global impact on this disease.
With physicians and nutrition experts recommending a vegetable-based diet for
health, increasing the calcium that can be absorbed from plant-based food will
become increasingly important, Hirschi said.
###
Others who participated in the study included Jay Morris, Keli M. Hawthorne,
Tim Hotze and Dr. Steven A. Abrams, all of BCM.
Funding for this research came from the National Institutes of Health, the Vegetable
and Fruit Improvement Center at Texas A&M University and the USDA/ARS Children’s
Nutrition Research Center at Baylor College of Medicine.
This study is available on line at www.pnas.org.
Contact: Dipali Pathak
pathak@bcm.edu
Baylor College of Medicine
Source: EurekAlert.org
14 January 2008
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1.20 Testing program for glufosinate-tolerant cotton varieties paves the way for industry's first three-way
stack of herbicide-tolerant technologies
Nashville, Tennessee
Monsanto announced today that it is working
with glufosinate-tolerant traits in its cotton technology programs. The company’s
work with glufosinate-tolerant traits paves the way for the development of the
industry’s first three-way stack of herbicide-tolerant technologies across its
cotton business including Roundup Ready Flex, Dicamba-tolerance and Glufosinate
tolerance. The glufosinate trait is under license from Bayer CropScience and
reflects the company’s multi-partner stacking strategy.
“Our research and development programs are focused on developing technologies,
both through in-house discovery and through licensing, that can offer benefits
to cotton producers,” said Rich Voth, Monsanto’s market development manager
on the project. “By adding glufosinate tolerance to our pipeline, we will be
working with traits for three different active ingredients and a series of technologies
that can broaden the modes of action available to producers.”
Cotton growers have found herbicide-tolerant varieties work well on their farms.
In fact, the USDA estimates that more than 80 percent of the cotton acres planted
in 2007 included the Roundup Ready or Roundup Ready Flex traits. A limited number
of glufosinate tolerant varieties are marketed under the LibertyLink trade name.
“The established Roundup Ready traits will ultimately be joined by dicamba and
glufosinate tolerance,” Voth adds. “Producers can look forward to having several
options in the same field, letting them choose the best means of control for
the particular weeds and conditions they face. We will be able to offer multiple
weed management options in season and the breadth of herbicides will be a key
component in mitigating weed resistance.”
Kevin Eblen, Delta and Pine Land business lead, said the combination of Deltapine’s
elite genetics with the traits offers cotton producers even greater benefits.
“The Deltapine legacy has been built on market leading genetics and service,”
Eblen says. “And our technology and breeding programs have proven records. We
look forward to pairing our elite germplasm with these additional technologies
in the future to offer our customers even more potential.”
Monsanto has numerous traits in development for the company’s focus crops. The
two herbicide tolerance traits – dicamba and glufosinate are in phase 1 of a
five phase process or early development, along with drought tolerance and lygus
protection. Bollgard III is in phase 2 and has the potential to increase in-plant
insect protection.
Monsanto Company is a leading global provider of technology-based solutions
and agricultural products that improve farm productivity and food quality.
Source: SeedQuest.com
10 January 2008
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1.21 Disease resistant crop varieties head the ‘most wanted’
list for Australian graingrowers
Australia
With pathogens capable of downgrading quality and slashing yields, disease resistant
crop varieties head the ‘Most Wanted’ list for most graingrowers.
While breeding for disease resistance is the most environmentally favourable
solution, most sources of resistance to most pathogens are only partial.
The question is: “How do plant pathologists and breeders accurately and reproducibly
measure resistance in different cultivars?”
According to Grains Research and Development Corporation
(GRDC) Western Panel member, Professor Richard Oliver (photo), Director of the
GRDC supported Australian Centre for Nectrotrophic Fungal Pathogens at Murdoch
University, traditional visual and microscopic disease assessments are time
consuming, require rare, specialised skills and the results can be subjective.
He has therefore tested a protocol to identify robust, resistant crop cultivars
based on a quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) that measures pathogen
biomass by duplicating sequences in the pathogen’s DNA.
The pathogen used was the fungus Staganosporum nodorum, a major disease-causing
agent of wheat in WA. It causes S. nodorum blotch and Glume blotch of wheat
and related cereals and has a simple, short lifecycle, making it a model pathogen
to study direct connections between biomass, symptoms and yield.
Professor Oliver compared four disease assessment methods to determine levels
of correlation between them. His baseline was the reduction in the weight of
100 grains of wheat after inoculation with the pathogen in a range of wheat
cultivars. Seven wheat lines, previously assessed on a nine point resistance
score, were used.
He concluded that qPCR was a versatile tool for disease risk assessment.
“The protocol compared favourably with other visual and microscopic techniques
and although the relative expense of qPCR was not evaluated, I believe that
with automation the cost would be very competitive,” he said.
Data from disease risk assessment using the qPCR protocol would have several
uses, including objective pre-harvest measurement of disease and assessing disease
development to optimise fungicide application.
“Most fungicides work best if applied early in the infection cycle before symptoms
can be observed. We expect qPCR to give growers vital early warning of diseases,”
he said.
Further, the protocol could be used to predict the potential for yield loss
from diseases which could not be visually identified until plant maturity. A
major strength of qPCR was its specificity, which allowed numerous diseases
to be assayed simultaneously, something that is very hard to do by traditional
methods.
Source: SeedQuest.com
10 January 2008
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1.22 Transgenic potatoes with multiple
stress tolerance
When plants are exposed to abiotic stresses, like extreme temperatures,
salinity and heavy metal toxicity, production of reactive oxygen species (ROS)
are induced in the cell. ROS can damage organelles as well as the cell membrane.
The cell employs several mechanisms to help minimize the effect of ROS, like
the increased expression of enzymes with antioxidant properties. Nucleoside
diphosphate kinase 2 (NDPK2) is an example of such enzyme. Although important
in basic cell processes like signal transduction and maintenance of certain
biomolecules, expression of NDPK2 gene was found to mediate stress tolerance
responses in the model plant Arabidopsis.
By inserting the gene coding for NDPK2, a group of Korean scientists successfully
obtained transgenic potato lines exhibiting increased tolerance to high salinity,
increased temperature and chemical toxicity. The gene was specifically expressed
in the cytosol (internal cell fluid). The transgenic potato developed by the
researchers may prove to be suitable for cultivation in marginal soils. Further
characterization of potato lines is under investigation in terms of multiple
stresses including drought and cold stress.
The abstract of the paper, including links to the full article, is available
at http://www.springerlink.com/content/w30567gr1314u276/?p=911022bfde3240babb0fb64bb0b5136d&pi=7
Source: CropBiotech Update via
SeedQuest.com
18 January 2008
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1.23 Research on how plants transport sugars could be of critical
importance in era of global warming
How do many plants ship sugars from their leaves to flowers, roots, fruits
and other parts of their structure? Using genetic engineering techniques, Cornell
researchers have finally proven a long-standing theory of how this occurs.
The findings not only deepen understanding of basic plant biology but could
one day allow researchers to genetically engineer plants with increased photosynthetic
rates, yields and carbon dioxide intake. This might be critically important
in an era of climate change.
The theory of transporting sugar, the polymer trap model, was first proposed
in 1991 by Robert Turgeon, Cornell professor of plant biology. He is also the
senior author of the latest research published in the Dec. 4 issue of the Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences. Ashlee McCaskill, Ph.D. '07, who worked
in Turgeon's lab, is the paper's lead author.
Turgeon's theory suggested that as sucrose, a form of sugar, accumulates in
leaves as a product of photosynthesis, it diffuses into the plant's tubelike
transport tissue, called phloem, along with other nutrients to move to other
areas of the plant. Once in the phloem, small molecules of sucrose polymerize,
or combine, to form larger, more complex sugars, which become too large to flow
back into the leaf. The polymerized sugars are then forced to move away from
the leaf to parts of the plant where they may be used or stored.
To prove the theory, Turgeon and McCaskill genetically engineered a plant closely
related to a member of the figwort family, purple mullein (Verbascum phoeneceum
L.), so that two genes involved with polymerizing sucrose into larger molecules
were silenced. When they did so, sugars backed up in the leaves.
In normal plants, when sugars (made from water and carbon dioxide during photosynthesis)
accumulate in the leaves, photosynthesis slows down, and the plant does not
take in as much carbon dioxide from the air. Likewise, when the sugars move
out of the leaves, the rate of photosynthesis and carbon intake increases, McCaskill
said.
"If we could increase the plant's phloem-loading rate, the potential would be
to increase photosynthetic rate and yield, but that is theoretical right now,"
said McCaskill.
A 2006 article in the journal Science, McCaskill said, showed that when atmospheric
carbon dioxide increases, plants do not take in the excess due to a series of
feedback loops that constrain the plant.
"Phloem loading is one of these feedbacks that have an effect on the ability
of plants to intake carbon dioxide at the highest level," said McCaskill. Carbon
dioxide, which is increasing in the Earth's atmosphere, is the major greenhouse
gas that traps heat and warms the planet, McCaskill noted.
By Krishna Ramanujan
Source: EurekAlert.org
20 December 2007
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1.24 Plant geneticists find veritas in
vino
Viticulture, the growing of grapes (Vitis vinifera) chiefly to make wine,
is an ancient form of agriculture, evidence of which has been found from the
Neolithic and Early Bronze Ages. We have a detailed understanding of how nurture
affects the qualities of a grape harvest leading to the concept of terroir (the
range of local influences that carry over into a wine). The nature of the grapes
themselves has been less well understood but our knowledge of this is substantially
increased this week by the publication in the open-access journal PLoS ONE of
a high quality draft genome sequence of a Pinot Noir grape by an Italian-based
multinational consortium.
The genome of the grape is spread over 19 pairs of chromosomes and is around
504.6 megabases in length. The team of researchers, led by Dr Riccardo Velasco
of the Istituto Agrario di San Michele all'Adige, used a shotgun sequencing
approach, which has resulted in 10.7X coverage, 4.2X using pyrosequencing and
6.5X by Sanger sequencing. At the same time, the genome of the grape chloroplast
was also sequenced and, remarkably, this was found to be identical to an independently
determined sequence from a different strain of Pinot Noir that was published
last year.
The grape, therefore, has a relatively small genome for a crop plant, similar
to that of rice or poplar trees and much smaller than that of wheat or maize.
Nevertheless, sequencing the genome was complicated by the degree of heterozygosity
between pairs of chromosomes, some 11.2% of the sequence differing between homologous
regions. There was so much variation, in fact, that Velasco describes it as
like being “in the presence of two genomes.”
Moreover, the team discovered more than two million single nucleotide polymorphisms
(individual letter changes in the grape’s genetic blueprint) in 87% of the 29,585
identified genes. While this made sequencing the genome difficult, it now provides
a massive library of inherent variation with which to investigate which genes
influence which characteristics of the growing plant and in what ways. “It is
a treasure trove,” says Brian Dilkes of the University of California, DavisGenomeCenter,
“as detailed a description of a plant genome sequence as I have seen in a ‘first’
paper”.
The genome can also provide clues to the evolution of grapes. Many plant genomes,
especially those of crop plants, have been produced by at least one duplication
of a smaller ancestral genome. Whether this was true for grapes had been controversial
but this study clearly shows that ten of the 19 chromosomes resulted from a
duplication that occurred shortly after the lineage of grapes diverged from
that of the model plants Arabidopsis and poplar.
The breeding of grape vines is difficult because they take several years to
grow to maturity and domesticated grapes tend to have very low fertility. For
this reason, grapes are usually propagated by cuttings or graftings so that
vineyards are filled with hundreds of thousands of genetically identical clones.
This leaves grapes highly susceptible to the emergence of aggressive microrganisms,
such as phyloxera, which devastated European grape production in the 19th and
early 20th century, and powdery mildew, which continues to threaten American
harvests to this day.
The Pinot Noir genome will provide an invaluable tool for creating grape varieties
resistant to such diseases without altering the quality of the resulting wine.
Velasco and his colleagues have identified a large number of genes related to
disease–resistance, 289 of which contain one or more SNPs. In spite of this,
Pinot Noir remains susceptible to several fungi, bacteria and viruses possibly
due to a defective system for recognition pathogen. Many of these disease-resistance
genes are present in clusters whose associations with resistances or tolerances
of different grape varieties to specific diseases can now be investigated. Also
Pinot Noir can be crossed with many wild grapespecies providing a large reservoir
of disease-resistancegenes, which can be exploited with the aid of this genome
road map.
“This description of the grape genome presents an opportunity to direct genetic
improvement or disease resistance,” says Brian Dilkes. “The genome sequence
simultaneously identified hundreds of genes, which correspond to enzymes that
produce flavor and aroma compounds. This will allow breeding for diseases resistance
to proceed without disturbing the biochemistry of taste and grape quality. When
I told sommelier Andrew Meadows about this recently, his reaction was, ‘Good!
I would love to offer a decent Pinot for less than $30’.”
This grape genome may also have implications beyond viticulture. Grapes can
be both genetically transformed and micropropogated to produce hundreds of identical
clones. With the sequencing of its relatively small genome, it is well placed
to become a model organism for fruit trees in general. It is, however, in the
safeguarding and improvement of grape stocks that the effects of this genome
will be felt most strongly. “The sequence of the grape genome,” says Velasco,
“together with the large arsenal of SNP loci, now offers a tool to open a new
era in the molecular breeding of grapes.”
###
Contact: Riccardo Velasco (corresponding author)
Istituto Agrario di San Michele all'Adige, Italy
riccardo.velasco@iasma.it
Rebecca Walton
Public Library of Science
rwalton@plos.org
Citation: Velasco R, Zharkikh A, Troggio M, Cartwright DA, Cestaro A, et al
(2007) A High Quality Draft Consensus Sequence of the Genome of a Heterozygous
Grapevine Variety. PLoS ONE 2(12): e1326. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0001326
Source: EurekAlert.org
18 December 2007
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1.25 Jumping genes to remove markers from GM plants
Over the past few years, consumer and environmental groups have expressed
concern about the use of markers in genetic improvement of crops. Marker genes
are used in plant transformation systems to select transgenic events. However,
they are no longer needed after the transgenic plants are regenerated. Until
recently, scientists have devised several ways to produce marker-free transgenic
crops. One such strategy is the use of jumping genes. Jumping genes or transposons
are so called because they have the ability to move around to different positions
within the genome in a cell.
Using the maize transposon Ac system, scientists from the National Taiwan University
have developed a strategy for efficiently removing the marker genes from transgenic
plants. The scientists modified the selectable marker esps gene (for glyphosate
tolerance) for expression in rice by introducing it to a gene carrier with the
salicylic acid inducible jumping genes attached to it. After rice transformation,
glyphosate-tolerant rice lines were selected and exposed to salicylic acid.
Since the marker gene is attached to the transposon, the activation of the jumping
gene resulted to the truncation of the selectable marker gene.
An inducible transposon system to terminate the function of a selectable marker
in transgenic plants
Journal Molecular Breeding
Publisher Springer Netherlands
ISSN 1380-3743 (Print) 1572-9788 (Online)
The abstract of the paper published by Molecular Breeding is available at http://www.springerlink.com/content/6720mj4607787451/?p=3c79ad37742f4e4fa77130f361884de7&pi=4
Subscribers can read the full text at http://www.springerlink.com/content/6720mj4607787451/fulltext.pdf
Source: CropBiotech Update via
SeedQuest.com
21 December 2007
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1.26 Plant genome sequencing continues
to progress
Washington, DC
The first 10 years of the National Plant Genome Initiative have seen revolutionary
breakthroughs in genome sequencing for various plants and their pathogens, but
this is only the first step to understanding how plants work and ultimately
producing plants that can overcome environmental limitations, says a new report
by the National Research Council.
Achievements of the National Plant Genome Initiative and New Horizons in Plant
Biology
Plant genome sciences, and plant biology as a whole, contribute significantly
to human health, energy security, and environmental stewardship. The National
Plant Genome Initiative (NPGI) has been funding and coordinating plant genome
research among agencies successfully for nine years to understand how plants
function and how to
develop desirable plant characteristics. Research breakthroughs from NPGI and
the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Arabidopsis 2010 Project, such as how
the plant immune system controls pathogen defense, demonstrate that the plant
genome science community is vibrant and capable of driving technological advancement.
Therefore, these programs should continue in order to increase the contribution
of plant science to vital areas of national interest.
Report in brief: http://dels.nas.edu/dels/rpt_briefs/plant_genome.pdf
To purchase the full report: http://www.nas.edu/morenews/20080109.html
Source: The National Academy via SeedQuest.com
9 January 2008
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1.27 Cornell University research sheds light on the mechanics of gene
transcription
Ithaca, New York
The molecular machinery behind gene transcription -- the intricate transfer
of information from a segment of DNA to a corresponding strand of messenger
RNA -- isn't stationed in special "transcription factories" within a cell nucleus,
according to Cornell researchers. Instead, the enzyme RNA polymerase II (Pol
II) and other key molecules can assemble at the site of an activated gene, regardless
of the gene's position.
The findings, published in the Dec. 28, 2007, issue of the journal Molecular
Cell, are the result of an ongoing collaboration between the laboratories
of John T. Lis, the Barbara McClintock Professor of Molecular Biology and Genetics,
and Watt W. Webb, professor of applied physics and the S.B. Eckert Professor
in Engineering. Jie Yao, the paper's lead author, recently finished his Ph.D.
at Cornell under Webb.
Using multiphoton microscopy, a technique developed by Webb that allows high-precision
3D imaging in living cells, the researchers observed polytene chromosomes --
giant, multistranded chromosomes in the salivary gland tissue of fruit flies
that have hundreds of sets of the genome instead of the usual two sets in conventional
cells.
They activated heat shock genes, which protect cells from sudden rises in temperature,
and watched them in real time as they began to be transcribed. The researchers
also tagged Pol II with a fluorescent marker to track its movements within the
nucleus.
While some reports have suggested that activated genes move to a specific nuclear
location for transcription, the Cornell research supports the traditional view
that gene activation is not dependent on movement to special locations, or so-called
"transcription factories," said Lis.
"You see the genes decondense and fill up with polymerase, but they're not moving
anywhere -- they don't collect in a single place," he said. Instead, the transcription
machinery assembles at the called-upon locus, regardless of its position in
the nucleus.
To test the generality of the findings beyond polytene nuclei to common (but
much smaller and more difficult to test) diploid cells, the researchers used
a technique called fluorescence in situ hybridization, which allowed them to
detect the location of specific DNA sequences along a chromosome in fixed cells.
Looking at the location of co-regulated heat shock genes (genes that are transcribed
simultaneously), they found that co-regulated pairs that occupied distinct sites
before heat shock were no closer together after heat shock. As in the polytene
chromosomes, the genes did not move to a single site for transcription.
And using fluorescence recovery after photobleaching -- another method engineered
by Webb -- the researchers found that over time Pol II began to recycle itself
within newly formed "compartments" around the activated gene.
"At some point you accumulate enough polymerase that it feeds back, so in a
sense you've created a factory de novo" said Lis. "This is, to our knowledge,
the first demonstration of Pol II recycling at a specific gene in vivo."
Lis and colleagues are now looking at other molecules involved in transcription
to see if they behave similarly. "We're hoping to develop new ways to really
see, in vivo, how gene regulation works mechanistically," he said.
By Lauren Gold
SeedQuest.com
10 January 2008
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1.28 U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute
Releases Soybean Genome Assembly
To enable worldwide bioenergy research efforts
WALNUT CREEK, CA--A preliminary assembly and annotation of the soybean genome,
Glycine max, has been made available by the U.S. Department of Energy
Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI), to the greater scientific community to enable
bioenergy research.
The announcement was made by Eddy Rubin, DOE JGI Director, during his keynote
remarks Jan. 15 at the Plant and Animal Genome XVI Conference in San Diego,CA.
The preliminary data can be accessed at http://www.phytozome.net/soybean.
The soybean genome project was initiated through the DOE JGI Community Sequencing
Program (CSP) by a consortium led by DOE JGI’s Dan Rokhsar, Stanford’s Jeremy
Schmutz, Gary Stacey of the University of Missouri-Columbia, Randy Shoemaker
of Iowa State University, and Scott Jackson of Purdue University, with support
from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Science Foundation.
The large-scale shotgun DNA sequencing project began in the middle of 2006 and
will be completed in 2008. A total of about 13 million shotgun reads have been
produced and deposited in the National Center for Biotechnology Information
(NCBI) Trace Archive in accordance with the consortium’s commitment to early
access and consistent with the Fort Lauderdale genome data release policy.
The current assembly (representing 7.23x coverage), gene, set, and browser are
collectively referred to as "Glyma0". Glyma0 is a preliminary release, based
on a partial dataset. This is expected to be replaced with an improved, chromosome-scale
"Glyma1" version by the end of 2008. Early users of this data are encouraged
to track their favorite genes by saving local copies of the DNA sequences of
these loci, and not by identifier or sequence coordinate, as these will change
in future versions.
DOE JGI’s interest in sequencing the soybean stems from its role as a principal
source of biodiesel, a renewable, alternative fuel with the highest energy content
of any alternative fuel.
Detailed knowledge of the soybean genetic code will enable crop improvements
for more effective application of this plant for clean bioenergy generation.
Knowing which genes control specific traits, researchers are able to change
the type, quantity, and/or location of oil produced by the crop. Through utilization
of the sequence information generated by DOE JGI, it may be possible to develop
a customized biomass production platform for combining oil seed production for
biodiesel with enhanced vegetative growth for ethanol conversion--doubling the
energy output of the crop. In 2004, over 3.1 billion bushels of soybeans were
grown on nearly 75 million acres in the US, with an estimated annual value exceeding
$17 billio--second only to corn, and about twice that of wheat.
Several other individuals, projects, grants, and agencies have made this monumental
project possible. These included the four major projects: Public Expressed Sequence
Tags (ESTs), SoyMap (which includes BAC libraries, modern physical mapping,
and clone-based sequencing), and the Genetic Map with funding from USDA, NSF,
United Soybean Board (USB), and the North Central Soybean Research Program (NCSRP).
The Public EST Project, supported by USB and NCSRP, was led by Lila Vodkin of
the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Randy Shoemaker of the USDA-ARS,
Ames, Iowa; and P. Steven Keim of Northern Arizona University.
The original physical map development, funded by USB, was conducted by Jan Dvorak,
from the University of California, Davis, along with the Washington University
Genome Center in St. Louis, Missouri, and David Grant, USDA-ARS, Ames, Iowa.
The NSF SoyMap team, comprising principal investigator Scott Jackson, Gary Stacey
and Henry Nguyen, Jeff Doyle of Cornell University, William Beavis of the National
Center for Genome Resources (NCGR) in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Iowa State,
Gregory May (NCGR), Will Nelson and Rod Wing of the University of Arizona, with
Randy Shoemaker, anchored the map and conducted quality control.
The team devoted to genetic mapping and physical map anchoring, yielding several
thousand sequence-based markers, included USDA-Agricultural Research Service
(ARS) investigators, including Perry Cregan and Dave Hyten of Beltsville, Maryland;
Randy Shoemaker, David Grant, and Steven Cannon of USDA-ARS Ames, Iowa; along
with James Specht of the University of Nebraska, Lincoln.
The annotation of the soybean genome was carried out by a team of researchers
from the DOE JGI and the University of California Berkeley’s Center for Integrative
Genomics, with support from the DOE, USDA, NSF, and the Gordon and Betty Moore
Foundation.
The U.S. Department of Energy 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 missions
related to clean energy generation and environmental characterization and cleanup.
DOE JGI’s Walnut Creek, CA, 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
degilbert@lbl.gov
Source: EurekAlert.org
17 January 2008
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2 PUBLICATIONS
2.01 Proceedings of the 2006 International Plant Breeding Symposium
The Proceedings of the 2006 International Plant Breeding Symposium have
recently been published on-line. They can be accessed at http://crop.scijournals.org/content/vol47/Supplement_3/
Contributed by John Miles
CIAT, Cali, Colombia
J.MILES@CGIAR.ORG
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2.02 White
paper on the organic food industry in the United States and the European Union
White paper
on the organic food industry in the United States and the European Union
Prepared and presented by Genesis Seeds Ltd.
Source: SeedQuest.com; accessed 15 January 2008
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2.03 Biofortified food crops: progress
and prospects in developing countries
AgBioForum Volume 10 Number 3
Special issue
Columbia, Missouri
Guest edited by Laurian Unnevehr (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign),
Carl Pray (Rutgers University), Robert Paarlberg (Wellesley College), and Calestous
Juma (Harvard University)
Table of contents
1. Addressing Micronutrient
Deficiencies: Alternative Interventions and Technologies
Laurian Unnevehr, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Carl Pray,
Rutgers University Robert Paarlberg, Wellesley College
2. Patterns of Political
Response to Biofortified Varieties of Crops Produced with Different Breeding
Techniques and Agronomic Traits
Carl Pray, Rutgers University
Robert Paarlberg, Wellesley College
Laurian Unnevehr, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
3. Political Actors
on the Landscape
Robert Paarlberg, Wellesley College
Carl Pray, Rutgers University
4. Crop Case Study:
GMO Golden Rice in Asia with Enhanced Vitamin A Benefits for Consumers
David Dawe, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Laurian Unnevehr,
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champign
5. Biofortification for
China: Political Responses to Food Fortification and GM Technology, Interest
Groups, and Possible Strategies
Carl Pray, Rutgers University
Jikun Huang, Chinese Academy of Sciences
6. Biofortified Crops
and Biotechnology: A Political Economy Landscape for India
Bharat Ramaswami, Indian Statistical Institute
7. Socio-Economic and
Political Concerns for GM Foods and Biotechnology Adoption in the Philippines
Liborio S. Cabanilla, University of the Philippines at Los Banos
8. Assessing the Prospects
for the Adoption of Biofortified Crops in South Africa
Rosemary Wolson, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)
9. Biofortified Foods
and Crops in West Africa: Mali and Burkina Faso
Regina Birner, International Food Policy Research Institute Sanibe Abel
Kone, National Programme for Citizenship Education (PNEC) Nicolas Linacre, Independent
Consultant Danielle Resnick, Cornell University
10. Patterns of Political
Support and Pathways to Final Impact
Calestous Juma, Harvard University
Robert Paarlberg, Wellesley College
Carl Pray, Rutgers University
Laurian Unnevehr, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Link to AgBioForum homepage and link to archive: http://www.agbioforum.org/
Source: SeedQuest.com
January 2008
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2.04 S&G issues the 6th edition of S&G Peppers
Today, the newsletter for the world of peppers
Almeria, Spain
The multinational company Syngenta has
issued the 6th edition of S&G Peppers
Today through S&G, its horticultural
seed brand for vegetables in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. S&G Peppers
Today is a communication tool specifically centred around the world of peppers,
and it has been developed for all S&G clients in the business chain, with
information on production, processing and trading.
S&G Peppers Today is available in digital format at www.pepperstoday.com.
Source: SeedQuest.com
21 December 2007
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3. WEB RESOURCES
3.01 S&G launches www.melontoday.com, the
website about the world of melons
Almeria, Spain
This week, the multinational company Syngenta
will launch www.melontoday.com through
S&G, its horticultural seed brand
for vegetables in Europe, Africa and the Middle East (EAME). The www.melontoday.com website is a new communication
tool specifically centered around the world of melons.
Everyone involved in the melon business will find a selection of interesting
news and information, which will be updated every week. The news selection will
cover the melon business worldwide, with a clear focus on production, processing
and trading, and particular emphasis on the EAME region. The websit will also
include a comprehensive brochure with a special selection of S&G melon types,
an accurate description of the key varieties, and a production calendar by coutries
and areas. Events, interviews, recipes, interesting links, a trade fair calendar,
a news archive (consumption trends, market development, innovation...) and much,
much more will be available to visitors to www.melontoday.com.
Source: SeedQuest.com
December 2007
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4. GRANTS AVAILABLE
4.01 Funding opportunities posted
by the Global Facilitation Unit for Underutilized Species
This is a reminder that the Global Facilitation Unit for Underutilized Species
(GFU) maintains an extensive listing of current funding opportunities in a range
of biological fields, including plant breeding
Check for all
the Funding Opportunities here
( www.underutilized-species.org)
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4.02 Generation Challenge Programme: Call for proposals for competitive
research
We are pleased to announce our 3rd call for proposals for competitive
research
Submission deadline: 15 March 2008
Eligibility, partners and conditions:
-Principal Investigators (PIs) may come from any GCP Consortium member
institute, as well as from non-Consortium institutions such as non-profit research
institutions, developing country agriculture research programmes, and/or educational
institutions.
-Partners may be from any Consortium member or non-Consortium institutions.
Partnerships outside the Consortiumespecially with developing countriesare
strongly encouraged.
Grant Awards:
-Selection will be a two-step process:
1. Concept Note stage
2. Full Proposal stage for winning Concept Notes
-Grant amount: annual budget per project will be USD 300,000–400,000
More details on:
The
3rd competitive
call, including the process for submitting Concept Notes and selection criteria.
GCP’s Competitive
Research Programme
Source: GCP News Issue 27, 15 January 2008
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4.03 Ceres Bioenergy scholarships established at Texas
A&M
College Station, Texas
Ceres Inc., a plant biotechnology company, has
established two new scholarships in the soil and crop sciences department at
Texas A&M University in College Station.
The new scholarships are for junior and senior students who have a minimum overall
2.8 grade point average. Students in plant breeding, agronomy, plant physiology,
or molecular biology with strong interests in crop production relating to biofuels
will be given preference.
Ceres is developing crops needed by farmers and bio-refineries for a new generation
of biofuels, said company officials. Using advanced plant breeding and biotechnology,
they are creating dedicated energy crops as raw materials for biofuels made
from plant stems, stalks and leaves.
“We are excited about establishing a long-term scholarship relationship with
Ceres to expose our students to opportunities in bioenergy,” said Dr. David
Baltensperger, department head.
Dr. Charles Rodgers, a Ceres plant breeder based in College Station and the
first commercial switchgrass breeder in the country, said the scholarships will
encourage more students to consider careers in crop science.
“The expansion of biofuel production is creating new opportunities in agriculture
- many that simply didn’t exist just a few years ago,” Rodgers said. “New crops
are being domesticated and developed. There (are) new sources of funding from
government and industry, and for students, new career paths.”
Seniors Luke Manning (Columbus) and Scott Stanislav (Waco) are the first students
to receive the $2,500 scholarships. They both expect to graduate May 2008, with
bachelor’s degrees in agronomy.
For more information, visit http://ceres.net
and http://soilcrop.tamu.edu
Source: SeedQuest.com
18 January 2008
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5. POSITION ANNOUNCEMENTS
5.01 Tree fruit genomics at the Geneva campus of Cornell University
The Department of Horticultural Sciences and New Life Sciences at Cornell
University seeks candidates to fill a position as an assistant professor of
tree fruit genomics. This position creates a unique opportunity for a
scholar to develop a tree fruit genomics program at an institute with an extensive
portfolio of tree fruit research and extension. The Cornell New Life Sciences
Initiative coupled with extensive expertise in tree fruit breeding, physiology,
and management, and access to a rich collection of genetic resources create
a vibrant intellectual environment within which tree fruit genomics can be studied.
The incumbent will be expected to work with a University-wide team using genomic
approaches and, as appropriate, the latest techniques in biochemistry, genetics,
analytical chemistry, and molecular and cell biology.
Faculty Position: Assistant Professor of Tree Fruit Genomics
Tenure track; 70% Research, 30% Extension
Nine-month academic position
Starting date: August 1, 2008 or as negotiated
Responsibilities: 70% research and 30% extension. The ideal candidate is a geneticist
or a molecular biologist with expertise in functional genomics. Research will
involve discovery and characterization of genetic resources in apple. Examples
of appropriate research include, but are not limited to, plant growth and development,
including plant architecture, plant reaction to biotic and abiotic stress, and
fruit quality. The extension program will be focused on educating several constituencies
about the capabilities and benefits of genomics research for fruit production
and management. Constituencies will minimally include farmers, production specialists,
governmental officials and policy advisors.
Qualifications: A Ph.D. in plant genomics, plant molecular genetics, molecular
biology or closely related area in plant science. A demonstrated record
of excellence in genomics as evidenced by publication in peer-reviewed journals
is desired. Preferred qualifications include postdoctoral experience, commitment
to (and abilities in) team research, ability to communicate effectively with
students, colleagues and external stakeholders.
Salary: Competitive, commensurate with background and experience. An attractive
fringe benefits package is available.
Application procedure: Send a letter of application, curriculum vitae,
selected reprints, academic transcripts, statement of research goals and plans,
and names and addresses of three references to:
Dr. Susan Brown, Search Committee Chair
Department of Horticultural Sciences
630 W. North Street
NYSAES
Cornell University, Geneva NY 14456
E-mail: skb3@cornell.edu
Phone: 315-787-2224 Fax: 315-787-2216
The Department actively encourages applications from women and minority candidates.
Review of applications will begin March 1, 2008 and will continue until the
position is filled.
Department Affiliation: The successful candidate will be a faculty member of
the Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and will be
based in the Department of Horticultural Sciences at the New York State Agricultural
Experiment Station (NYSAES) in Geneva, NY ( http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/hort/).
A mentoring program for new faculty provides guidance and assistance.
Contributed by Lou Ann Rago
Administrative Assistant
Department of Horticultural Sciences
New York State Agricultural Experiment Station
Cornell University
lar38@cornell.edu
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5.02 Vegetable breeding position: Cornell
University
Position: Assistant or Associate Professor of Plant Breeding & Genetics
(tenure track) Vegetable Breeding and Genetics Research (60%) and teaching (40%)
Starting Date: To be determined
Location: Department of Plant Breeding & Genetics, New York State College
of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853-1901
Responsibilities: To lead an innovative research p