PLANT BREEDING NEWS
EDITION
165
30 March 2006
An Electronic Newsletter of Applied Plant
Breeding
Sponsored by FAO and Cornell University
Clair H. Hershey,
Editor
Archived issues available at: http://www.fao.org/WAICENT/FAOINFO/AGRICULT/AGP/AGPC/doc/services/pbn.html
CONTENTS
1. NEWS, ANNOUNCEMENTS AND RESEARCH
NOTES
1.01 WARDA scientist Dr
Moussa Sié wins 2006 Fukui International Koshihikari Rice Prize
of Japan
1.02 Agricultural
Biotechnology Network in Africa (ABNETA)
1.03 Asian Development Bank funded
project to develop corn varieties suited for drought-prone areas
1.04 The Green
Revolution comes to Laos
1.05 African dryland farmers benefit from improved crop
varieties
1.06 Ethiopia enacts
laws for plant breeders' rights and biodiversity
1.07 Spying in the fields
1.08 'Terminator' GM
technology stays banned – for now
1.09 Slow progress at talks on access to
biodiversity
1.10 Agricultural
biotechnology critical for biodiversity protection
1.11 UCR researchers
design chip that can improve citrus varieties
1.12 Rhizosphere interactions to
influence variety selection
1.13 PhilRice researcher achieves breakthrough in bacterial leaf
blight resistance research for hybrid rice
1.14 Translational fusion hybrid Bt genes confer
resistance against yellow stem borer in transgenic elite Vietnamese rice
cultivars
1.15 Lowland rice can only get better
1.16 Tamil Nadu Agricultural University develop rice
cultivars with enhanced resistance to sheath blight
1.17 Scientists a step
closer to protecting world's most important crop
1.18 Engineering tomato for resistance
to tomato leaf curl disease using viral rep gene sequences
1.19 Novel approach
integrates fruit and whole plant analysis in tomato
1.20 Tastier tomatoes in the future?
1.21 Using a mix
of conventional breeding and biotechnology to address the tomato virus crisis in
West Africa
1.22 Selection of potato lines resistant to multiple pathogens
1.23 Strawberries by design
1.24 Ozone-resistant
crops 'may be needed by 2050'
1.25 Gene sequencing and the future of agriculture
1.26 Conceptual framework for the
interpretation of the structure, function and evolution of genomes of economically important plants
1.27 New DNA 'fingerprinting' technique
separates hemp from marijuana
1.28 Climate change: The rice genome to the rescue
1.29 Revealed: how
rice's worst enemy invades its cells
1.30 ABC-transporters for horizontal
gene transfer
2. PUBLICATIONS
2.01 How flowers
changed the world – a new book by Field Museum scientist
3. WEB
RESOURCES
3.01 A website ripe
with data from ARS tomato studies
4 GRANTS
AVAILABLE
(None submitted)
5 POSITION
ANNOUNCEMENTS
(None submitted)
6 MEETINGS, COURSES AND
WORKSHOPS
7 EDITOR'S NOTES
=========================
1. NEWS,
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND RESEARCH NOTES
1.01 WARDA
scientist Dr Moussa Sié wins 2006 Fukui International Koshihikari Rice Prize of Japan
Cotonou, Benin
Dr Moussa Sié,
Lowland Rice Breeder from the Africa Rice
Center (WARDA), has been chosen as one of the two laureates of the 2006
Fukui International Koshihikari Rice Prize of Japan in recognition of his
significant contributions to rice production in sub-Saharan Africa.
Dr
Sié, a Burkinabe national, is the first African to receive this important prize.
He has over 20 years experience in the selection and improvement of rice
varieties, with particular emphasis on rainfed systems.
Before joining
WARDA, Dr Sié was long associated with rice R&D at the Institut de l’environnement et des recherches
agricoles (INERA), Burkina Faso and is credited with the development of
several high-yielding and multiple stress-resistant rice varieties. He has been
actively involved in the coordination of rice research and technology transfer
at national and regional levels.
Dr Sié, in close association with
WARDA’s Irrigated Rice Breeder Dr Kouamé Miézan and national programs of West
African countries, was instrumental in extending WARDA’s upland NERICA rice
breakthrough to lowlandsone of the most complex rice ecologies in the
world.
NERICA refers to the successful crossing by WARDA researchers of
the Asian and African species of cultivated rice to produce plants that combine
the best traits of both parents. Dr Monty Jones, former senior scientist at
WARDA won the 2004 World Food Prize for his pioneering work on NERICA. The
NERICA name was trademarked by WARDA in 2004.
Dr Sié and his partners
used the NERICA technology to go beyond the original NERICA product, which has
been a remarkable breakthrough for upland rice ecologies, but has had little
impact in the lowland ecologies.
Given the high potential of the
lowlands for sustainably intensifying rice farming in Africa, the new rice
varieties developed by Dr Sié and his partners are poised to have an even bigger
impact than the original NERICAs, which unleashed the potential of the upland
ecology in sub-Saharan Africa.
Key to Dr Sié’s success was the unique
R&D partnership model forged between WARDA and the national programs of West
African countries through the ROCARIZ rice network, which facilitated the
shuttle-breeding approach to accelerate the selection process and achieve wide
adaptability of the Lowland NERICAs.
"The development of Lowland NERICAs
is another significant breakthrough from WARDA and its national partners. We are
delighted that Moussa Sié has won this prestigious international award from
Japan, which is one of the foremost NERICA champions," said Dr Kanayo
F. Nwanze, WARDA Director General.
“This recognition in addition to
the World Food Prize for NERICA shows that WARDA, which is both a research
Center and an Association for rice development in Africa, continues to deliver
world-class products for the benefit of resource-poor farmers in the poorest
region of the world,” Dr Nwanze added.
About 60 of the Lowland NERICA
varieties, with yield potential of 6-7 tonnes per ha and good resistance to
major lowland stresses, have already received the stamp of approval from farmers
in several African countries through the participatory varietal selection (PVS)
process. Four Lowland NERICA varieties were officially released in Burkina Faso
and two in Mali in 2005.
Dr Sié shares the 2006 Fukui International
Koshihikari Rice Prize of Japan with Dr Akihiiko Ando from Brazil, who has
contributed to rice breeding by using radiation-induced mutations. The Prize was
instituted in 1997 to commemorate the development of Koshihikari, one of the
most popular Japanese rice varieties. The award ceremony will be held on 15
April 2006 in Fukui City, Japan.
Former awardees include the World Food
Prize laureate Yuan Longping, Vu Tuyen Hoang, Choi Hae Chune, and two IRRI
scientists: the late Dharmawansa Senadhira, and Sant Singh
Virmani.
Source: SeedQuest.com
3 March 2006
(Return to Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++++
1.02 Agricultural Biotechnology Network in Africa
(ABNETA)
Recognizing the enormous potential of biotechnology in plant
breeding and therefore in food security, the Food and Agricultural Organization
of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with African Biotechnology
Stakeholders Forum (ABSF), is in the process of establishing an agricultural
biotechnology network for professionals and stakeholders in Africa. This
network, titled Agricultural Biotechnology Network in Africa (ABNETA)[1] will build a knowledge base in plant breeding and
associated biotechnology and facilitate accesses to authoritative data to
empower professionals and stakeholders with reliable information enabling them
to take advantage of the new technologies for agricultural production and
conservation in their decision making processes. Neither at the country
level nor at the continent level in Africa is such a system available for
exchanging information in plant breeding and associated
biotechnology.
ABNETA was launched on the 21st of March 2006,
followed by a coordinators meeting on the 22nd. FAO, through ABNETA, will enable
the plant breeding and biotechnology community in Africa to discuss, learn,
share and accept innovative views and concepts that would surely enhance the
appreciation of biotechnology as a way to improve sustainable crop production in
Africa. The two most novel features of ABNETA are the ability to collect and
disseminate information regarding related scientific equipments and techniques
as well the ability to converge all related websites, databases and networks
through the roadmap to one interface to facilitate the discussions and decisions
making processes. A range of partnerships needs to exist in order for ABNETA to
build its capacity effectively, its knowledge base to be used efficiently and
above all to assure its sustainability. While professionals in plant
breeding and biotechnology from universities and institutes within Africa
contribute and share their experience to build the knowledge base in ABNETA,
stakeholders from public and private sector also need to be involved in order to
assure the best use of the ABNETA knowledge base. Partnership with
International Organizations, including donors, with goals to achieve hunger free
Africa that would move towards food security and environmental safety is
critical for ABNETA for its sustainability.
[1]
Additional information about the Agricultural Biotechnology Network in Africa
can be found at the website www.abneta.org
Submitted by Dr. Roopa
Rajah
UN consultant
Agricultural Science for Kids (ASK)
Food Safety and
Biotechnology Essentials for Everyone (FSBEE)
(Return to Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++++++
1.03 Asian Development Bank funded
project to develop corn varieties suited for drought-prone areas
Los
Banos, The Philippines
An Asian Development
Bank (ADB)-funded project that aims to develop corn varieties suited for
drought-prone areas is now being undertaken in five Asian countries, including
the Philippines.
The project, titled "Improving farmers' income through
enhanced maize productivities in drought-prone environments in East and South
East Asia," is being implemented regionally by the Mexico-based Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maize y
Trigo (CIMMYT) and in the Philippines by the University of the Philippines Los Baños -
Farmers' Scientists Training Program (UPLB-FSTP).
The project's local
component is being administered by the UPLB-based National Corn Research,
Development and Extension (RDE) Network.
It is being supported by the
Cebu provincial government headed by Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and the local
government units (LGU) of the Cebu towns of Dalaguete, Liloan, and Medellin,
where the development component of the project has initially been launched.
The research component is being implemented by UPLB; the University of
Southern Mindanao (USM) in Kahacan, North Cotabato; and the Central Mindanao
University (CMU) in Musuan, Bukidnon.
Aside from the Philippines,
covered by the project are Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, and the People's
Republic of China (southern part).
Dr. Artemio M. Salazar, team leader,
said the project aims to enhance the capacity of national agriculture research
systems (NARS) ! to develop and effectively deliver stress-tolerant,
high-yielding varieties suitable for drought-prone areas.
It addresses
the major factor in the stabilization of crop performance in water-stressed
environments and involves activities on breeding of drought-resistant varieties,
as well as effective distribution strategies of new varieties to the farmers.
Cebu City has been selected as the site for distribution because Central
Visayas (Region 7) has the lowest rainfall in the country, as shown by 30-year
rainfall data of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical
Services Administration (PAGASA).
In preparation for the implementation
of the project, a refresher course concerning on-farm trial was held.
The course was attended by representatives of the Department of
Agriculture-Regional Field Unit 7 (DA-RFU 7) and provincial and municipal
agriculture offices of Cebu, particularly those of Dalaguete, Liloan, and
Medellin.
Among the speakers at the course were Dr. Eduardo Lecciones
Jr., DA-Region 7 executive director; Dr. Eduardo Alama, regional technical
director for RDE; Dr. Necias Vicoy Jr., Cebu provincial agriculturist; Dr.
Tomasita Cadungog, Central Visayas Integrated Agricultural Research Center
(CENVIARC) manager; and Marina Hermosa, Regional GMA (Guinintuang Masaganang
Ani) corn coordinator.
The UPLB researchers were led by Dr. Salazar and
Dr. Romeo Labios, National Corn RDE Network assistant team leader.
"I am
glad that FSTP is creating some waves in Cebu," Lecciones said.
He also
thanked Dr. Salazar for his interest in trying out more drought-resistant corn
varieties in the province. He stressed that application of research outputs that
will benefit more farmers should be the project's focus.
"The donor
(ADB) is interested in making a direct impact on the lives of small farmers," Lecciones said.
The resource speakers in the course included Dr. Labios,
Guillerma Valencia of the UPLB College of Agriculture, CENVIARC assistant
manager Dr. Fabio Enriquez, and other technical personnel members of DA-RFU 7.
Dr. Salazar said output of the project will be used not only in Cebu but
also in other parts of the country where drought is a problem.
By Rudy
A. Fernandez
Source: The
Philippine STAR via SeedQuest.com
26 February 2006
(Return to Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++++
1.04 The Green Revolution comes to
Laos
International Rice Research
Institute
The Green Revolution has finally arrived in Laos, almost 20
years after benefiting the rest of Asia. It's provided the tiny nation – one of
Asia's poorest – with the food security foundation it needs for future economic
development
The Green Revolution has finally arrived in Laos, almost
20 years after benefiting the rest of Asia. It's provided the tiny nation – one
of Asia's poorest – with the food security foundation it needs for future
economic development.
But the spark for this revolution came from half a
world away, from the government of another small, mountainous land-locked
country – Switzerland.
It was the Swiss Agency for Development and
Cooperation (SDC) that provided the financial resources needed for a 16-year
effort – led jointly by the Lao national rice research system and the
Philippines-based International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). The
accomplishments of the project, which effectively closes in September, were
celebrated during a completion workshop in Laos this week.
Between 1990
and 2004, rice production in Laos increased from 1.5 million to 2.5 million tons – an average annual growth rate of more than 5%, making the small underdeveloped
nation one of Asia's star performers in rice research and development.
This increase in production – largely attributed to the adoption of Lao
modern varieties – has been valued at $8 million to $19 million per year, with
households adopting these varieties having more than triple the cash income of
households growing traditional varieties. A third of Laos' lowland rice area is
planted with these improved varieties today, pushing average rice yields up 35
percent from 2.3 tons/ha in 1989 to 3.1 tons/ha today – well above the average
yields of bigger neighbors such as Thailand.
"What's particularly
impressive about these achievements is the commitment of the SDC in providing
such long-term support, and the hard work and dedication of Lao rice researchers
and government officials," said Robert S. Zeigler, IRRI director general.
"Seventeen of the 18 modern varieties now being used in Laos were developed
inside the country."
Since 1990, more than 4,000 training opportunities
involving Lao personnel have extensively boosted Laos's rice research and
training capacity and played a key role in establishing a rice research network
covering the entire nation. "IRRI is very proud of the role it has played in
supporting this achievement, but the real credit must go the Lao rice research
community and the Swiss government for providing the financial support," Dr.
Zeigler added.
"Fifteen years ago, most Laotians were subsistence rice
farmers and Laos was a net importer of rice," Dr. Zeigler said. "Now the country
is in the second stage of rice-based economic development, where the
intensification of production is enough to meet local market demands. With
further research and development, Laos can move into the third stage, where
lowland rice exports create a sustainable source of revenue and help fuel
economic growth, as has happened already in Vietnam and Thailand."
Although the Swiss-financed Lao-IRRI Project is nearing its end, much
work remains to be done. IRRI is to base its Greater Mekong Regional Office in
Laos. "We foresee that Laos will reap substantial benefits from increased
involvement in regional rice research initiatives, and will play an important
role in the overall development of the Greater Mekong Region," Dr. Zeigler
concluded.
Contact: Duncan Macintosh
d.macintosh@cgiar.org
Source:
EurkeAlert.org
15 March 2006
(Return to
Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++
1.05 African dryland farmers benefit from improved crop
varieties
Many wonder if plant breeding can achieve much in the
African drylands because the growing conditions there are so harsh.
Historically, most breeding successes have occurred where water is ample, as for
irrigated wheat and rice.
But too many lives are at stake to shun the
challenge. In 1972 the CGIAR created the International Crops Research Institute
for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), which has since worked closely with
national partners across the developing world to improve and disseminate the
dryland cereal crops sorghum and millet and the legume crops chickpea, groundnut
(also called peanut) and pigeonpea.
As a result, farmers now grow
improved varieties on about a million hectares across Africa. Particularly
remarkable are the adoption rates across southern Africa for improved millet
(34%) and sorghum (23%). Also with high adoption rates are sorghum in southern
Chad and adjacent parts of Cameroon (30%), millet in Namibia and Zimbabwe (50%
or more), and pigeonpea in the Babati district of Tanzania (35% or more).
Seasonal hunger, as occurred in Niger in 2005, is a perennial plague of
the drylands, which have only one short cropping season per year. Plant breeding
has helped ease the hungry period by developing varieties that mature weeks or
even months sooner than traditional varieties. Not only does this put food in
hungry bellies, but farmers of early maturing varieties benefit by getting the
year’s highest prices. Another crucial advantage of early maturity is that it
reduces farmers’ risk in years when rains end early.
The millet variety
Okashana 1 in Namibia, selected largely by farmers themselves, matures 4-6 weeks
earlier than previous varieties. It was so popular that it spread in just a few
years in the late 1990s to cover half of the country’s millet-growing area. The
sorghum variety Macia is currently spreading across East Africa for the same
reason.
Some of the largest dryland breeding gains have come from
developing resistance to devastating diseases. The wilt-resistant pigeonpea
variety Mali is now saving the livelihoods of East African dryland farmers, and
resistance to groundnut rosette virus, a scourge that the native Hausa people of
Nigeria tellingly call “groundnut leprosy,” is raising hopes for a revival of
this huge income-earning crop.
Studies of return on investment suggest
that the effort has been well worth it. The $3 million effort to create and
disseminate Okashana 1, for example, is returning net annual benefits worth 50%
of the investment year after year. This rate of return that far outstrips what
can be earned from bank deposits or the stock market, while directly helping
society’s poorest. Of course, cash value is only one measure of success, dwarfed
by the priceless good of alleviating human suffering.
http://www.cgiar.org/enews/march2006/story_08.html
Source:
CGIAR News
March 2006
(Return to Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++++++
1.06 Ethiopia
enacts laws for plant breeders' rights and biodiversity
Addis-Ababa,
Ethiopia
Ethiopia’s House of People’s Representatives endorsed two bills
providing for the Plant Breeders' Right as well as Genetic Resources and
Community Knowledge and Rights.
In its 11th regular session on Tuesday,
the House endorsed the bills after deliberations on the report presented by the
Rural Development and the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection
Standing committees of the House.
The report presented by the committees
indicated that the proclamation providing for Plant Breeders' Rights would
enable the private sector play its role in releasing new plant varieties
suitable for various ecosystems in the country.
Members of the Standing
Committees also said the proclamation would encourage farmers and pastoralists
use their genetic resources.
Moreover, the proclamation would encourage
investment and paves the way for the utilization of new plant varieties released
abroad.
As Ethiopia is on the way to be admitted as member of the World
Trade Organization, the Standing Committees pointed out that it became necessary
to issue the plant breeders' rights proclamation in tune with the existing
realities in the country.
They said the proclamation, which conforms to
the rural development policies and strategies as well as the free market policy
of the country, would be instrumental to speed up development.
Following
the deliberations, the house endorsed the bill with 368 votes and 22
abstentions.
Similarly, the House discussed on the Bill Providing for
Genetic Resources and Community Knowledge and Rights after hearing the report
presented by the Rural Development, Legal, Information and Cultural Affairs
Standing Committees.
The committees indicated in their report that the
bill will have a significant importance for the protection of the country's
genetic resources as well as the equitable distribution of the benefits of the
resources.
The bill would also facilitate the expansion of investment and
the realization of the rural development strategy.
The standing
committees said the proclamation is indicative of Ethiopia's commitment to
implement international conventions signed on genetic resources.
It was
indicated that community knowledge and recognition given for community resources
would have immense contribution for the protection and preservation the genetic
resources of the country.
The House endorsed the proclamation with 375
votes and 16 abstentions.
Some 365 members of the House attended the 11th
Regular Session.
Original news release: http://www.ena.gov.et/default.asp?CatId=6&NewsId=191992
Source:
Ethiopian News Agency via SeedQuest.com
1
March 2006
(Return to Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.07 Spying in the fields
Translated by Mark Hucko,
Checkbiotech
Using genetic engineering, researchers at the Max Planck
Institute have started to decipher the chemical vocabulary of inter-plant
communication.
As an answer to an insect attack, plants release
volatile scents. Scientists at the Max-Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in
Jena, Germany have been investigating chemical-scent exchange between
neighboring plants.
Preliminary laboratory research hinted at the first
evidence, however these lab results did not necessarily reflect field
conditions. Thus, the Max-Planck researchers have investigated (with field
trials as well) the defense reaction of the wild tobacco plant (Nicotiana
attenuate) to an insect pest attack, after it had received scent-signals from a
neighboring and wounded plant - the Great Basin Sage Brush (Artemisia
tridentata).
They found that the tobacco plants that had the opportunity
to eavesdrop on the Great Basin Sage Brush, could quickly and efficiently fight
off the insects, when compared to other tobacco plants which did not have this
opportunity (Oecologia, February 2006). This phenomena is called “priming.”
With the help of genetically modified plants, the Jena scientists have
started to identify the scents that allow neighboring plants fight off an insect
attack. With their studies, the researchers were able to show that tobacco
plants were able to increase their defenses only after they had been actually
attacked, and not right after they had received the signals from wounded,
neighboring plants.
This behavior makes sense for the plant. If it had
reacted to the scent-signal to convert its valuable resources into
defense-molecules, this would put the plant at a disadvantage, because it would
have invested energy into defense mechanisms that might not be needed since it
had not actually been attacked.
One of the defense-substances are the
so-called proteinase-inhibitors (TPIs), which hamper the digestion of
caterpillars. One question that remains to be answered is to which extent does
this communication between tobacco and sage brush play a role in the ecology of
both species.
Scientists at the Max-Planck Institute in Jena now want to
explain the details of inter-plant communication within one single species. A
first interesting result materialized, when the researchers were able to
demonstrate that wild tobacco plants (Nicotiana attenuate) could “smell” and
recognize the entire scent-bouquet of other tobacco plants of the same species.
These scents are made up of various volatile chemicals.
With the help of
genetically altered plants (or a so-called “silent” plant), which could no
longer produce selected scents, the researchers showed that the scent
composition is very important. With the absence of certain substances in the
scent of the silent, “broadcasting” plants, the neighboring receiver-plants
reacted differently than if the scent-bouquet were complete.
During their
investigation the biologists made an effort to combine laboratory and field
experiments in order to make all laboratory experiments as realistic as
possible. Traditionally, the plants were enclosed in relatively confined glass
containers during the scent-analysis in the laboratory. This artificially
increased the concentration of gas-forming molecules from the plants. In
addition, after the plants had been enclosed in these glass containers, they
suffered from CO2 deficiency.
“To compensate for this
deficiency, the plant opens up its stomata, through which CO2 and
more scent-molecules can pass into the interior of the plant. Due to this, the
receiver-plant’s reaction can be artificially amplified or distorted,” explains
Dr. Anja Paschold.
In her work, Dr. Paschold had researched the
scent-communication between tobacco plants under “realistic” conditions on the
one hand, and then she also used the help of “silent” transgenic plants as a
contrast. She found that neither the complete scent-profile of wild-type plants,
nor the partially reduced profile of genetically engineered plants influenced
the defense mechanisms of the receiver-plants. She also noticed that nicotine,
jasmonic-acid, and proteinase inhibitors were practically unchanged and that the
priming effect could not be determined.
However an analysis of the gene
expression showed that clearly more genes in the receiver-plants were turned on
when the scent-bouquet lacked leaf-alcohols and aldehydes, which for example
produce the well known scent of freshly mowed grass. When the partial
scent-bouquet again was complemented with synthetic leaf-alcohols and
leaf-aldehydes, then the genes were turned off.
Apparently, at least in
one species, various groups of genes could be turned on and off as a result of
inter-plant scent signals. The function of the majority of these genes is not
yet clear, and is now being further investigated.
With the example of
wild tobacco, the scientists under Dr. Ian Baldwin’s direction want to
eventually systematically research the “chemical language” that plants use for
communication. Beside using “silent” broadcasting-plants, further tests will
look at “deaf” receiver-plants, which cannot recognize certain scent molecules,
because they lack the corresponding receptor. The researchers note that this
ground-breaking research would not be possible without biotechnology.
Source: Max-Planck Gesellschaft via
CheckBiotech.org
15 February 2006
Contributed by Robert
Derham
Editor, Checkbiotech.org
Robert.Derham@unibas.ch
(Return to Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.08 'Terminator' GM technology stays
banned – for now
Opponents say terminator seeds could make farmers
dependent on multinational companies
Calls for the UN Convention on
Biological Diversity (CBD) to end its six-year moratorium on the planting of
infertile genetically modified (GM) crops have been rejected.
On Friday
(24 March), a CBD working group rejected a proposal to allow field trials of the
crops, which produce sterile seeds, on a "case-by-case" basis.
Australia,
Canada and New Zealand had backed the proposal, arguing that the so-called
'terminator' technology could be used to prevent genes from GM crops getting
into non-GM plants growing nearby.
Companies behind terminator seeds say
the approach is necessary to stop farmers using GM varieties that they have not
paid for.
Opponents of the technology say, however, that it could make
poor farmers in developing countries dependent on multinational companies for
seed supplies. Their tradition of sharing seeds to improve crop varieties would
also be impossible if they adopted the technology.
Tilahun Zeweldu,
biotechnology advisor to Uganda's Agricultural Productivity Enhancement
Programme, says a ban need not cover all terminator technologies.
Zeweldu told SciDev.Net that while it is too early to use terminator
technologies in food crops, he would support their use in non-food GM crops used
to make products such as vaccines, drugs and biofuels.
According to Sue
Mayer, director of GeneWatch UK, a full ban on research and use of the
technology is necessary, as case-by-case assessments are unable to take account
of the technology's wider social and economic impacts.
She says that
although terminator technology might look 'safe' in a small-scale field trial,
it could jeopardise food security if it became widespread.
However,
Monsanto representative Roger Krueger says a case-by-case assessment could
include the potential impact on the environment, human health, and traditional
agriculture and knowledge.
The decision to maintain the moratorium was
made at the ongoing conference of parties to the CBD, taking place in Curitiba,
Brazil. It will not be made final until it is adopted at the conference's
plenary session on Friday.
The issue will be on the agenda again when the
next conference of parties takes place in 2008.
Christine Gould of
CropLife International, which represents major multinational seed companies,
says an outright ban on the technology would "not serve the best interests of
society or the environment".
"Discussions must be informed by science and
should not create obstacles to important research activities under way," she
says.
"Only then can we ensure continued innovation, development and
capacity building for agricultural technologies that are necessary for achieving
the dual goals of sustainable agriculture and biodiversity
protection."
Ochieng' Ogodo and Wagdy Sawahel
Source: SciDev.Net
27 March 2006
(Return to Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.09 Slow
progress at talks on access to biodiversity
[CURITIBA] Delegates at a
major UN conference on biodiversity are struggling to reach a consensus on rules
concerning access to genetic resources and traditional knowledge, and the
sharing of any subsequent benefits.
Representatives of countries that are
party to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) are meeting in Curitiba,
Brazil, until 31 March to debate the issues.
On the table are proposals
to set up an international certification scheme that would ensure that any
genetic material used in research can be traced to its country of origin.
Also under discussion is the possibility of setting up a system through
which countries would need to give their informed consent before allowing any
exploitation of their genetic resources.
Australian delegate Tony Slatyer
says it is too early to predict the debate's outcome.
"We want a
realistic process allowing time for these issues to be discussed among parties,"
he says. "It is unrealistic to think that everything can be sorted out in
Curitiba or that these issues are somehow just going to disappear."
A
key point of disagreement is whether an international regime should include
products derived from genetic resources in addition to unprocessed
resources.
Tewolde Egziabher, representative of Ethiopia and the Africa
group, says it should, and that benefits arising from the sale of products based
on traditional knowledge should also be shared with the countries and
communities of origin.
"If we have a contract, we can use it to ensure
that no one is cheating," he says, though he accepts that it would not always be
possible to know whether foreign companies broke the rules.
The text of
a draft agreement on the issues prepared by a CBD working group that met
in Spain earlier this year is set almost entirely in parentheses,
indicating a lack of consensus.
According to Venezuelan delegate Cesar
Molina Rodríguez, however, "at least the Granada meeting provided a
concrete document on which to work, instead of the messy storm that we had in
Bangkok [in 2005], when negotiations began".
Representatives of 173 of
the 187 countries that are party to the CBD are attending the ongoing meeting in
Brazil.
Luisa
Massarani
Rules on access and benefit-sharing drafted at CBD meeting in
Spain (see annexe)[280Kb]
Source: SciDev.net
24 March
2006
(Return to Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.10 Agricultural biotechnology critical for biodiversity
protection
Curitiba, Brazil
Agricultural biotechnology is
necessary for the conservation and enhancement of biodiversity. As
officials from 132 nations meet in Brazil this week for a UN meeting under the
Biosafety Protocol, the plant science industry reminds governments of the vital
role biotech innovations play in achieving sustainable agriculture and
development:
1.Biotech crops are essential to conservation and
sustainable use of biodiversity - the overall objective of the Biosafety
Protocol. They enable more efficient use of water in agriculture, reduce
soil erosion, prevent loss of biodiversity, and increase air quality. By
making farming more efficient on limited land area, they are critical for
preventing habitat destruction - the biggest single threat to
biodiversity.
2. Biotechnology is an established technology, having been
used in research for more than 30 years, and with biotech crops commercially
available for more than 10 years. In this time, there has been no proven
harm to humans or the environment.
3. These crops are delivering major
benefits to farmers and society, through increased yields, higher incomes,
simplified crop management, and, in some cases, reductions in the use of
pesticides.
4. Global planted area of biotech crops
has soared by more than fifty-fold from 1.7 million hectares in six countries in
1996 to 90 million hectares in 21 countries in 2005. Last year, some 8.5 million
farmers planted biotech crops - mostly in developing countries. This
is because small scale farmers tend to benefit most from biotech crops, as
insect and disease protected crops provide new and previously unavailable tools
to combat pest problems.
5. A study by PG Economics released
last October showed that farmers using biotechnology increased their incomes by
US$27 billion during the period 1996 to 2004 with significant environmental
benefits delivered. Importantly, the accumulative economic benefits during
the nine years to developing countries ($15 billion), exceeded enefits to
industrial countries ($12 billion).
As the biotech debate takes place in
Curitiba, Brazilian farmers will be reaping their first legal harvest of biotech
soybeans, having been given the green light from regulators in 2005. Brazil is the third largest country user of biotech crops (behind the USA and
Argentina) and the largest user of all Parties to the Biosafety
Protocol.
"Given the important economic, environmental and human health
benefits of biotechnology, we simply cannot understand why many activists are
trying to use the Biosafety Protocol to deny farmers and consumers around the
world the ability to use these products for years to come," stated Christian
Verschueren, Director General, CropLife
International.
"Let's hope that farmers' voices, safety, and
consumer interests will be taken into consideration this week so that decisions
are taken on key issues - including documentation requirements, risk assessment
and capacity building - that will ensure those who want to provide for the
future sustainably, can continue to use this technology," he continued.
CropLife International has recently made available an online database of
peer-reviewed scientific studies on the benefits and safety of biotech
crops. This can be accessed at http://croplife.intraspin.com/BioTech/.
Source:CropLife International via
SeedQuest.com
14 March 2006
(Return to Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.11 UCR
researchers design chip that can improve citrus varieties
University of California - Riverside
GeneChip Citrus Genome Array launched by Affymetrix, Inc.
UC
Riverside researchers, in partnership with Affymetrix, Inc., have designed a
chip – the GeneChip® Citrus Genome Array – that can improve citrus varieties and
suggest ways to better manage them. By helping determine which genes are turned
on in a tissue of citrus – genes that are associated with taste, acidic content
and disease, for example – the chip provides information useful to researchers
for rectifying existing problems and making improvements to the fruit.
The citrus array will be used to develop new diagnostic tools for the
improvement of citrus agriculture and post-harvest fruit handling, as well as to
understand mechanisms underlying citrus diseases. Researchers will study traits
pertinent to the citrus industry such as easy peeling, seedlessness, flavor
components, pest and disease control, nutritional characteristics, and
reproductive development.
"The citrus array helps us quickly examine a
certain trait in citrus," said Mikeal Roose, a professor
of genetics in the Department of Botany and Plant Sciences at UCR and a leader
of the three-year research project. "For a trait posing a problem for the
consumer, such as an undesirable flavor, we can identify genes associated with
the trait and target these for correction to improve the flavor. The chip also
helps us address citrus diseases by helping us see what happens in cells when a
citrus plant is under attack from a virus. And with this chip we can better
understand what happens at the cellular level when oranges are put in cold
storage after they are harvested, leading eventually to better methods of
storage that improve fruit flavor."
Manufactured by Affymetrix, Inc.,
the GeneChip® Citrus Genome Array is made up of a glass wafer on to which nearly
one million different pieces of citrus DNA are deposited on a grid or microarray
using methods similar to those used to produce computer chips. The glass wafer
is encased in a plastic container somewhat smaller than the size of a credit
card.
To use the chip, researchers purify total RNA (which reflects the
genes expressed in the tissue) from plant tissue, make a copy of these molecules
with a chemical tag added, and then "wash" the chip with the RNA sample. If a
gene is being expressed in the tissue, its corresponding RNA will be present and
bind to the complementary DNA sequences on the chip. The locations of the bound
RNA have a visible signal because of the tag, rather like bright and dim pixels
on a computer screen. Analysis of which pieces of DNA on the chip have signals
indicates which genes are expressed in the tissue.
The chip is the first
commercial citrus microarray and allows analysis of expression of more than
20,000 different genes. The array will also be used to develop a detailed
genetic map of citrus that will help researchers locate many genes. The map
location information will be used to make the development of new varieties more
efficient.
"This industry-supported effort both added to and made use of
publicly available citrus sequences to develop an entirely new tool that will
benefit all citrus researchers and help sustain the citrus industry locally and
worldwide," said Timothy
Close, a professor of genetics at UCR and a co-leader of the project. "We
owe a special thanks to colleagues in the citrus community: Abhaya Dandekar at
UC Davis, Bob Shatters, Jose Chaparro and Greg McCollum at the USDA
Horticultural Research Lab, and Avi Sadka at Volcani Institute in Israel for
sharing the full content of their citrus sequence data.
"Other
colleagues in the United States, Japan and Spain who deposited sequences to the
public repository maintained by the National Center for Biotechnology
Information also made valuable contributions. The use of all available public
data resulted in very nice coverage of the citrus genome. We are pleased with
the outcome – the initial data from the citrus GeneChip have fulfilled our
highest expectations."
Contact: Iqbal Pittalwala
iqbal@ucr.edu
Source: EurekAlert.org
2
March 2006
(Return to Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
1.12 Rhizosphere interactions to influence variety
selection
Australia
Australian scientists are only just coming to
terms with what's going on under the ground or, more to the point, what's
happening in that all important layer of soil in contact with plant roots -
otherwise known as the rhizosphere.
It's been only a few years since
scientists identified an interaction between bacteria and the roots and the soil
structure as a reason for lack of vigour in direct drilled crops. Roots
naturally tend to grow more slowly through compacted soil and the slower the
growth, the greater the opportunity for microbes to gather around the root tips
and slow the rate of root and shoot growth.
Minimum tillage is rapidly
becoming the preferred farming system in cropping areas right across the country
so it's important to understand more about the reactions going on in the
rhizosphere and, if possible, get them working in our favour.
Reporting
on GRDC-supported research over the past
four years, CSIRO researcher Dr Michelle Watt says that it's now established
that the seminal root - the first out of the seed - is the fastest growing but
all roots play a role in shaping the environment around them. They exude sugars
that feed the microbes in the rhizosphere and they send out chemical messages
that influence the rate of development of particular microbes. There is
variation between breeding lines in this level of interaction between roots and
their environment. This is being exploited to develop more productive direct
drilled crops.
It seems that the rhizosphere is anything but a passive,
'take it or leave it' zone. Dr Watt talks about signals initiated by the roots
that can switch on particular types of bacteria and even produce a pathogenic
response in some colonies. We're all familiar with the signals between the roots
of legumes and the bacteria in the soil that lead to nodulation and the ability
of those legumes to fix nitrogen. These are being used as a model to study the
interaction between the roots of cereal crops and soil bacteria.
Dr Watt
says that in the past four years well over 100 conventional wheat varieties and
breeding lines have been screened for fast early root growth and selections are
still being made. Those roots even have differing reactions to gravity - it's
obvious when you think about it that gravity would have an impact on root
growth, but she says the team is now working with some Japanese material that's
sensitive to gravitational effects.
It's not simply a matter of giving a
plant a good start. Growers who've survived four drought years and watched
potentially good crops hay-off and fail to finish would like to know the
varieties they're sowing have the ability to chase moisture down into the
soil.
However Dr Watt says that while it's relatively easy to study roots
in hydroponic systems or in sand in the glasshouse, it's a very different matter
in the paddock. Only recently the CSIRO group found that the first out, fast
growing seminal roots end up the deepest.
Dr Watt says researchers are
still not sure how shoot characteristics affect the root system. Conventional
wisdom has it that the time of flowering influences root growth and that early
flowering varieties don't put their roots down as deeply as later flowering
varieties but that, she suggests, is being revisited.
Acknowledging that
minimum or no till systems are the way of the future, Dr Watt says that the good
news is that there is significant variation in the way different cultivars and
breeding lines handle the environment and that selections of more vigorous lines
with faster, deeper roots is underway.
The Crop Doctor is GRDC
Managing Director, Peter Reading
The
Crop Doctor, GRDC
Source: SeedQuest.com
3 March 2006
(Return to Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
1.13 PhilRice researcher achieves breakthrough in bacterial leaf
blight resistance research for hybrid rice
Manila, The
Philippines
Better and more productive times now await the country's
fast-expanding hybrid rice industry.
Auguring well for this optimistic
outlook is a headway achieved in hybrid rice research chalked up by a scientific
study done with the support of the Department of Agriculture - Philippine Rice Research Institute
(DA-PhilRice), DA-Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR), and International Rice
Research Institute (IRRI).
The study, titled "Marker-aided selection for
bacterial blight resistance genes and against fertility restoring genes in
Mestizo hybrid rice (Oryzae sativa L.) maintainer and cytoplasmic male sterile
lines", was conducted by Joan Marie Agarcio, PhilRice senior science research
specialist.
The study was Agarcio's thesis for her Master of Science in
Genetics at UP Los Baños where she earned her MS degree in 2005 as a DA-BAR
scholar.
For some time, PhilRice and IRRI have faced some challenges in
promoting the Mestizo hybrid variety because of its susceptibility to bacterial
leaf blight (BLB), a destructive rice disease caused by a bacteria (Xanthomonas
oryzae pv. Oryxae (Xoo).
Bacterial leaf blight has hitherto posed
threats to the success of hybrid rice seed production.
But Agarcio's
research work could change this as she was able to introduce genes into Mestizo
parentals that confer resistance on bacterial plant.
The study earned
for the young and promising researcher the 2005 Best Master of Science Thesis
Award (Biotechnology category) given by the Department of Science and
Technology-Philippine Council for Advanced Science and Technology Research and
Development (DOST-PCASTRD).
PCASTRD has cited the thesis for its "imminent impact on ! hybrid rice farmers."
Results of the ongoing
research have been discussed in international, regional, and national
conferences where Agarcio was invited to present her study's findings.
Agarcio told this writer that the study is expected to be completed this
year.
By Rudy A. Fernandez
Source: The Philippine STAR via
SeedQuest.com
February 26, 2006
(Return to
Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.14 Translational fusion hybrid Bt genes confer resistance against yellow stem
borer in transgenic elite Vietnamese rice cultivars
Rice is an
important cereal grain crop worldwide. In Vietnam, it is cultivated on 5.9
million hectares, and provides 80% of the carbohydrate and 40% of the protein
intake of the average Vietnamese. Rice production has increased in the country,
but insect pests, such as the yellow stem borer, lead to severe crop losses.
Pest control measures using pesticides are largely ineffective, since the insect
larvae feed inside the rice stem. Attempts to incorporate resistance to yellow
stem borer to rice by conventional breeding methods have failed due to lack of
suitable genes in the rice gene pool. The transfer by genetic engineering of the
Bt toxin gene (cry) from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis
offers therefore an alternative solution. Bt toxins are highly specific to
certain insect species larvae.
Scientists are now developing two-toxin Bt
crops to slow down any resistance insects may have to the Bt toxin. This “pyramiding” technique also results in hybrid toxins with increased potency.
In the latest issue of Crop
Science, researchers find out that “Translational Fusion Hybrid Bt Genes
Confer Resistance against Yellow Stem Borer in Transgenic Elite Vietnamese Rice
(Oryza sativa L.) Cultivars.”
The group, led by N.H. Ho, is
composed of scientists from Vietnam’s
Institute of Tropical Biology, the Louisiana
State University AgCenter, the International
Rice Research Institute (IRRI), and INRA's Campus International de
Baillarguet, France.
Scientists used a Bt fusion gene, which
translates a single Cry1Ab-Cry1B fusion protein, and they introduced the
transgene into cells of Vietnamese rice cultivars. They then confirmed the
presence of the fusion protein in transgenic plants, analyzed the progenies for
the presence and stability of the transgene; and assessed the efficacy of the
transgenic plants against yellow and striped stem borers. The authors report
that the Bt fusion gene confers 100% mortality of yellow and striped stem borer
larvae within one week of infestation with no negative effects on
yield.
Subscribers to Crop
Science can read the complete article at http://crop.scijournals.org/cgi/content/full/46/2/781.
Source:
CropBiotech Update via SeedQuest.com
17
March 2006
(Return to Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++
1.15 Lowland rice can only get better
Cotonou,
Benin
When are we going to get the lowland NERICAs? That was the question on
everyones lips as the success of the original NERICA varieties for the uplands
grew to take in country after country in sub-Saharan Africa, and word spread to
the lowlands of how yields were being transformed. Even with the startling
success of the upland NERICAs as proof of what sceptics said could not be done,
Africa Rice Centers breeders still wanted to deploy the traditional caution of
the scientist before unveiling the new generation of rice varieties that could
bring hope to resource-poor farmers cultivating in the lowland
ecology.
Of course, WARDAs insistence in involving the NARS and other
partners in research projects meant that the word was already out that lowland
types were already under development long before the first official lowland
NERICAs were released in Mali (2) and Burkina Faso (4) in 2005.
In fact,
about 60 of the new varieties for the lowlands have already received the stamp
of approval from farmers in several African countries through the participatory
varietal selection (PVS) process an approach that was used successfully in
accelerating the dissemination of the upland NERICAs. Scaling-up took place in
both 2004 and 2005 to ensure that farmers get the seeds for which they have been
clamoring since Dr Monty Jones first NERICAs unleashed the potential of the
uplands five years earlier.
Another scientific breakthrough for the
Africa Rice Center, with yield potential of 6-7 tonnes per ha and good
resistance to major lowland stresses, the lowland NERICA varieties have been
developed for the African lowlands, one of the most complex rice ecologies in
the world. Eventual impact is expected to be even greater than for the upland
NERICA varieties that are vastly outyielding the disease- and pest-susceptible
local varieties previously grown.
From the outset, the scientists
involved including Sahel Station team leader Dr Kouamé Miézan and Dr Moussa Sié (then a visiting scientist with WARDA in St-Louis but now WARDAs lowland rice
breeder) wanted to ensure selections were carried out in countries other than
Senegal where many of the early crosses were made.
The search for new
varieties of rice adapted to the lowland ecology is necessary because of the
multiple constraints that slow down the development of rice cultivation in this
environment, says Dr Sié. To get suitable varieties quickly, a program of
varietal selection was initiated with intra- and interspecific crosses available
in the WARDA germplasm collection. Initial NARS partners were INERA in Burkina
Faso for early identification of promising material, then Togos ITRA, with Malis
IER and the ARI coordinator coming on-board for collaborative selection of
promising lines in visits to each others countries.
A study at the
Banfora Research Station in Burkina Faso to which Dr Sié had returned as head of
INERAs rice improvement division identified ideotypes suitable for lowland
conditions, starting with the agromorphological characterization of more than
400 interspecific lines (O. glaberrima x O. sativa) or NERICAs. They were tested
in valley bottom conditions in the Banfora lowland during the 2000 and 2001 wet
seasons. From the first year trial, 96 lines were retained (14 intraspecifics
and 77 interspecifics) for assessment under the same conditions in the 2001 wet
season. Actual selection was carried out over two years following a
collaborative approach in the first year and a multi-site approach in the second
year in the Plateau area in the west of Togo and in Burkina Faso.
In
Togo, we started in 2002 with 205 descendants and selected 29 lines with
characteristics of interest for lowland rice cultivation, adds Dr
Sié.
PCR analysis with 10 variables gave an agromorphological evaluation
of the material. Two types of lines were identified: the strictly upland type
(O. glaberrima x O. sativa japonica or upland NERICA) and the rainfed lowland
type (O. glaberrima x O. sativa indica or lowland NERICA and O. sativa x O.
sativa).
The lines showed the low susceptibility to disease and insect
attack, which is vital if they are to succeed in the hard-pressed lowland
ecology. The scores obtained in the 2000 wet season at Banfora for the lines
were mostly lower than 5 for leaf blast and yellow mottle virus on a 19
scale.
The new NERICAs exhibited less than 2% damage from insects (onion
tubes, dead hearts and white panicles) for the two sites (valley fringe and
valley bottom). Although the interspecific O. glaberrima x O. sativa indica
crosses proved to provide the best Lowland NERICAs suited to irrigated or
lowland conditions, they also seemed to be more susceptible to some pest attacks
(more than 2% of attack for silver shoot) but still at much improved levels over
varieties currently in use in these environments.
The potential of these
new crosses was not lost on the NARS partners, whose breeders took part in the
selections that led to the official release of two lowland varieties (WAS
161-IDSA-1-WAS-B-FKR-B-IER-2-4 as N1, WAS 122-IDSA-1-WAS-B-FKR-B-IER-18-B as N2)
in Mali, and four varieties in Burkina Faso (WAS 122-IDSA-1-WAS-B-FKR-1 as FKR
60N2, WAS 122-IDSA-1-WAS-6-1-FKR-B-1 as FKR 62N3, WAS 161-B-9-3 as FKR 56N4, and
WAS-191-9-3-FKR-1 as FKR 58N0).
Of course, this is only the beginning of
the Lowland NERICA story, says Dr Sié whose detailed studies into what makes the
Lowland NERICAs tick are continuing at the same time as PVS involving farmers
speeds the introduction of the new types in a number of countries. The typology
of the new lines was examined in 2003 and 2004 with a study of 61 interspecific
(O. sativa glaberrima x O. sativa indica) and nine intraspecific (O. sativa
indica x O. sativa indica) lines. All were multiplied in the 2003 wet season at
Banfora and planted in the 2004 wet season in nine countries (Benin, Burkina
Faso, Côte dIvoire, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Togo). Depending on
the country, the lines were planted in a range of environments (valley slope,
valley bottom and irrigated).
In the analysis of the results from this
study, the varieties were placed in three groups according to their performance.
This demonstrated clearly that the interspecific crosses of the African
glaberrima rice with Asian japonica rice far outstripped the intraspecifics in
their earliness, tillering, yield and better height characteristics.
Dr Sié explains there is much more to do as the Lowland NERICAs extend into WARDA
member countries and others in Eastern, Central and Southern Africa. This
includes evaluating the interspecifics for different water regimes, in different
integrated crop management scenarios, characterizing more glaberrima germplasm
in lowland ecosystems to allow better targeted crosses, and molecular
characterization of elite and promising characteristics.
We must place
the accent on quality traits because we should never forget that glaberrima is
an African rice, appreciated for its quality, and no progress can be made if we
lose that quality as a result of our varietal creations, he adds. Concentrating
on post-harvest quality for the new rices will direct the benefits of improved
varieties towards women who are key participants in the post-harvest markets. It
is also important to enlarge the genetic base of new varieties by using more
glaberrima and sativa parents and by bringing in other African rice species such
as O. barthii and O. longistaminata.
Link to complete Annual Report: http://www.warda.org/publications/AR2004-05/index.htm
Africa Rice Center (WARDA) Annual Report
2004-2005
Source: Africa Rice Center
(WARDA) Annual Report 2004-2005 via SeedQuest.com
March 2006
(Return to Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.16 Tamil Nadu Agricultural University develops rice
cultivars with enhanced resistance to sheath
blight
Tamil Nadu, India
Sheath blight is a disease of rice that
afflicts the crop in most rice-growing areas of the world. Caused by the fungus
Rhizoctonia solani, sheath blight is controlled by fungicides, a practice
which is neither practical nor sustainable, and causes damage to both human
health and the environment. Genetically engineering R. solani resistance
into rice is thus a promising approach for the management of sheath blight
disease.
Krishnan Kalpana and colleagues of Tamil Nadu Agricultural
University, India, take the steps toward this goal as they undertake “Engineering sheath blight resistance in elite indica rice cultivars using genes
encoding defense proteins.” Their work appears in a recent issue of Plant
Science. The authors aimed to develop rice cultivars with enhanced resistance to
sheath blight by genetically transforming high yielding indica rice cultivars,
ADT38, ASD16, IR50, and Pusa Basmati1 (PB1), with the rice tlp gene,
which encodes a pathogenesis-related (PR) protein. PR proteins can enhance plant
resistance to pathogens when over-expressed.
The researchers report that
the engineered rice had increased resistance to R. solani when compared
with non-transformed plants; and that resistance was enhanced when tlp
was co-transformed with rice chi11, a gene encoding a chitinase, another
anti-fungal protein. In addition to sheath blight resistance, the tlp or
chi11 transgenic lines were also resistant to the rice sheath rot
pathogen, Sarocladium oryzae.
Subscribers to Plant Science can
read the complete article at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.plantsci.2005.08.002
Source:
CropBiotech Update via
SeedQuest.com
10 March 2006
(Return to
Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.17 Scientists a step closer to protecting world's most
important crop
Fighting the fungus that wipes out rice - scientists a
step closer to protecting world's most important crop
Rice is the
globe's most important crop but its production is constantly threatened by
disease. Now scientists at the University of Exeter have shown for the first
time, in a paper in the prestigious journal Nature, how the world's most
destructive rice-killer hijacks its plant prey.
In order to infect
plants the fungus has to inject its proteins into the plant's own cells where
they overcome the plant's defences allowing a full scale invasion by the fungus.
Until now it's not been known how the fungus delivers that weaponry, but
researchers from the School of Biosciences have identified a single gene that
appears to be important in the process.
Professor Nick Talbot, who led
the research, said: "We have identified a secretion system that we think is
responsible for delivering the fungal weaponry that causes rice-blast disease.
We were able to generate a strain of the rice blast fungus which lacks this
secretion system and it was completely unable to cause disease. The discovery is
significant because it will allow us to identify the fungal proteins which bring
about this devastating disease and cause rice plants to die."
He
continues: "It's estimated that half of the World's population relies on rice to
survive and in one year alone this disease kills enough rice to feed 60 million
people, so we hope this discovery will help develop chemicals to inhibit the
disease. It's possible that more specific, environmentally friendly, compounds
to combat rice diseases could result from this research."
Last year
scientists from The University of Exeter helped to complete the sequence of the
rice blast fungus genome, which has aided the current research.
Contact:
Rachel Hoad-Robson
rachel.hoad-robson@exeter.ac.uk
University of Exeter
Source:
EurekAlert.org
22 March 2006
(Return to
Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++
1.18 Engineering tomato for resistance to tomato leaf curl disease
using viral rep gene sequences
Tamil Nadu, India
Tomato is an
important vegetable crop to many countries, but is plagued by a variety of viral
diseases. One of the most devastating viruses is a group with the generic name
Tomato Leaf Curl Virus (ToLCV), which are transmitted by whiteflies, and which
cause tomato leaf curl disease (ToLCD). Efforts to breed tomato varieties
resistant to the disease have hitherto been unsuccessful, since natural sources
of resistance are not available.
Genetically engineering resistance
remains a viable alternative to equipping tomato with protection against ToLCV.
One method is introducing pathogen-derived resistance (PDR), by either allowing
transgenic tomato to produce a shorter version of the viral protein
(protein-mediated resistance) or RNA (RNA-mediated resistance). Shelly Praveen
and colleagues of the Indian Agricultural
Research Institute investigate the possibility of “Engineering tomato for
resistance to tomato leaf curl disease using viral rep gene sequences” in a
recent issue of the Plant Cell, Tissue, and Organ Culture
journal.
Scientists transformed, via Agrobacterium¸ tomato cells
with replicase (rep) gene sequences of ToLCV. Transgenic plants were tested for
disease resistance by exposing them to a high population of whiteflies reared on
virus-infected plants. Researchers recorded a high level of resistance to ToLCV
and inheritability of the transgene, up to the T2 stage following challenge
inoculation with the virus. The mechanism of resistance, according to
researchers, appears to be RNA-mediated, since plants carried the untranslatable
anti-sense rep gene.
Subscribers to the journal can read the complete
article at http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11240-005-7858-8.
Source: CropBiotech Update via SeedQuest.com
10
March 2006
(Return to Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.19 Novel approach integrates fruit and whole plant analysis in
tomato
Tomato is an important food crop world-wide, with over 120000
metric tonnes produced in 2004. As with most other crops, the bulk of the
genetic variation lies within related wild relatives and landraces of cultivated
tomato varieties. The screening of genetic resources of wild relatives for the
introgression of desirable traits for crop improvement is therefore an important
goal of modern plant breeding. Although some agronomic traits are controlled by
a single gene and fall into discrete phenotypic classes, most natural variation,
including that underlying many important agronomic traits, is continuous rather
than discreet. Continuous variation is regulated by multiple genes, known as
Quantitative Trait Loci (QTLs). QTLs differentially influence the expression of
a phenotypic trait, and each segregates according to Mendel's laws.
Researchers at the Max-Planck-Institute
in Germany and at the Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, Israel, describe in the latest issue of Nature Biotechnology a novel
approach that integrates data from high throughput metabolic screening with data
derived from whole plant phenotype analysis. For the analysis the authors used
lines of the wild species Solanum penellii in which chromosomal regions defined
by genetic markers had been replaced by homologous regions of the cultivated
variety of Solanum lycopersicum. The approach identified novel and previously
known QTLs important for fruit metabolite production, and allowed to determine
associations between these QTLs and whole plant phenotype.
As many
biotechnology applications altering fruit composition also negatively affect
plant yield and reproductive fitness, an integrated analysis that allows the
selection of improved lines without compromising yield is of great agronomical
significance.
To view the abstract of: “Comprehensive metabolic profiling
and phenotyping of interspecific introgression lines for tomato improvement” visit: http://www.nature.com/nbt/journal/v24/n4/abs/nbt1192.html
Source:
CropBiotech Update via
SeedQuest.com
17 March 2006
(Return to Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++
1.20 Tastier tomatoes in the future?
German-Israeli
research team discovers DNA fragments in wild tomatoes which could allow the
development of better cultured tomatoes
Tomatoes are good for you. They
strengthen the immune system and can prevent heart and circulatory disease. Now,
researchers from the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, in
co-operation with Israeli scientists, have identified DNA fragments in tomatoes
that make their contents both healthy and tasty. The researchers crossed wild
tomatoes with cultured ones, then investigated the contents and genetic make-up
of the hybrid. The results could allow tomato growers to use wild tomatoes to
produce cultured tomatoes with the characteristics they desire (Nature
Biotechnology, March 12, 2006).
Tomatoes are a major nutrient for humans.
In 2004, 120,000 tonnes of tomatoes were harvested worldwide - and every year
this number increases. Numerous medical studies have shown the health value of
tomatoes. Lycopen, the pigment that makes tomatoes red, can for example prevent
heart disease. Tomatoes furthermore contain a lot of vitamins C and E,
indispensable for human nourishment. But after centuries of cultivation for
shape, colour, and other useful qualities, our cultured tomatoes today are of
small genetic diversity, in comparison with wild types. This has affected the
taste and health value of the fruits.
To cultivate tomato strains with
particular characteristics, researchers have to increase the genetic diversity
of cultured tomatoes. This can be done either by cross-breeding them with wild
tomatoes, or changing their genetic make-up technologically. Scientists from the
Max Planck Institute for Molecular Plant Physiology in Golm, and their Israeli
colleagues at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, chose the second option. They
investigated strains of tomatoes created from the crossing of cultured and wild
types. Their goal was to identify the biochemical composition of fruits and
determine which factors control their development. The German-Israeli research
team used a method of analysis developed at the Max Planck Institute for
Molecular Plant Physiology. The technique - a combination of mass spectrometry
and gas chromatography - analyzes the composition of biological samples. It can
be used to quickly and simultaneously look into a fruit’s amino acids, organic
acids, sugar and vitamins.
Dr. Alisdair Fernie, head of the Institute’s
"Central Metabolism" research group, discovered that there were 880 variations
in the content composition of descendants produced by crossing cultured tomatoes
and wild tomatoes. "On one hand, we measured higher amounts of essential amino
acids and vitamins, on the other hand the fruits showed an altered combination
of various sugars and organic acids," Fernie says. These contents have a great
influence on the taste of tomatoes.
The scientists used molecular
biological methods to identify parts of the tomato genomes responsible for
biochemical changes. The researchers’ findings could make it possible in the
future to cross-breed wild tomatoes with cultured tomatoes in a targeted way to
make them more nutritious.
This research was supported by the Max
Planck Society under the Agreement on German-Israeli Project Cooperation
(DIP).
Original work:
Nicolas Schauer, Yaniv Semel, Ute Roessner,
Amit Gur, Ilse Balso, Fernando Carrari, Tzili Pleban, Alicia Perez-Melis,
Claudia Bruedigam, Joachim Kopka, Lothar Willmitzer, Dani Zamir & Alisdair
Fernie
Comprehensive metabolic profiling and phenotyping of interspecific
introgression lines for tomato improvement
Nature biotechnology, March 12,
2006
Contact:Dr. Alisdair R. Fernie or Nicolas Schauer
Max-Planck-Institute
of Molecular Plant Physiology
Source: Max Planck
Society
for the Advancement of Science
Press and Public Relations
Department
via EurekAlert.org
12 March 2006
(Return
to Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.21 Using a mix of conventional
breeding and biotechnology to address the tomato virus crisis in West
Africa
There are several viral diseases that seriously limit tomato
production in West Africa but the spectrum of viral disease pathogens in the
region is complex and poorly described. A consortium of partners funded by
USAID and led by the Agricultural Biotechnology Support Project II (ABSPII) at
Cornell University is working to identify viruses that affect tomato production
in Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. Researchers from
Dr. Molly Jahn’s lab at Cornell University and Dr. Robert Gilbertson’s lab at
UC-Davis are currently screening West African tomato varieties for resistance to
West African strains of the Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl Virus (TYLCV). They are
supported in their work by AVRDC-Mali and local teams of scientists in each
participating country. Under this project, African researchers have received
training and gained experience in screening tomato germplasm and local lines for
resistance to viruses.
Potyvirus is another major family of viruses that
negatively impacts the vegetable industry in West Africa and it is anticipated
that the TYLCV-resistant varieties will be vulnerable to potyvirus infections.
In the second phase of this project, ABSPII plans to apply biotechnology to
address this problem. Researchers from Dr. Molly Jahn’s laboratory at Cornell
University have introduced into tomato a gene from pepper known to confer
resistance to potyvirus via genetic engineering. Expression of this gene
in the GE tomatoes prevents potyvirus infection and promises to be a valuable
tool for controlling the anticipated potyvirus infections. Locally
acceptable TYLCV-resistant tomato varieties identified from the screen described
above will be rendered resistant to potyvirus by backcrossing the GE tomatoes
with the TYLCV-resistant varieties. The end result of this project will be
the development of locally adapted tomato varieties with the necessary suite of
virus resistance genes and processing qualities for the food and processing
industry. For more information on this and other ABSPII projects, visit www.absp2.cornell.edu
Contributed
by Andrea Marshall Besley
Communication Coordinator
Agricultural
Biotechnology Support Project II (ABSPII)
Cornell University
(Return to Contents)
+++++++++++++++++++++++
1.22 Selection of potato lines resistant
to multiple pathogens
Potatoes rank number four in the list of world
food crops (after rice, wheat and maize), and are grown worldwide. Potatoes are
however affected by numerous diseases, which threaten potato crop production, in
particular by small-scale, resource-poor farmers in developing countries who
lack access to chemical controls and certified disease-free seeds. Classical
breeding for resistance to pathogens involves the identification of resistance
genes, often harboured by wild relatives of cultivated species. These genes are
introgressed into cultivars by crossing the “donor parent”, which carries the
resistance gene, to the “recipient parent” to be improved. The resulting progeny
is then repeatedly backcrossed to the “recipient parent” to remove unwanted
genes carried by the “donor parent”. Knowledge of the genetic position of the
desirable traits and of closely linked DNA-based markers allows the targeting of
specific genes for introgression, and provides a fast track to increase genetic
gain in crop breeding programs. This technique is known as marker assisted
selection.
Researchers at the Max-Planck Institute for Plant Breeding
Research have developed potato lines that harbor multiple resistance genes
by marker assisted selection, described in the report “Marker-assisted
combination of major genes for pathogen resistance”. The article is published in
the Online First section of the journal Theoretical Applied Genetics. The lines
generated are resistant to four important potato pathogens: the Potato Virus Y,
the soilborne fungus Synchytrium endobioticum (responsible for potato
wart), and the root cyst nematodes Globodera rostochiensis and
Globodera pallida. The selected plants can be used as sources of multiple
resistance, and they are available from the IPK (Institut für Pflanzengenetik
und Kulturpflanzenforschung) potato germplasm bank maintained at 18190
Groß-Lüsewitz, Germany.
Subscribers to Theoretical and Applied Genetics
may access the PDF file of the article
“Marker-assisted combination of major
genes for pathogen resistance” at: http://www.springerlink.com/media/99a0hcptrm6rtg4vkyvm/contributions/x/4/5/4/x45451t272267m25.pdf
Source:
CropBiotech Update via
SeedQuest.com
24 March 2006
(Return to
Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++
1.23 Strawberries by design
Researchers at the Virginia
Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) and the Department of Horticulture in the College
of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech have developed a new procedure
for the efficient transfer of specific DNA sequences into the genome of
strawberry. The scientists have used Agrobacterium tumefaciens, nature's genetic
engineer, to introduce DNA into the woodland or alpine strawberry Fragaria
vesca.
The method takes advantage of Agrobacterium's circular DNA
molecule (T-DNA) to deliver DNA to the plant. By helping researchers establish
the function of large numbers of strawberry genes, this method could, in the
long term, be extremely useful in enhancing the nutritional value of these
plants as well as the amount of health-enhancing antioxidants that they may
contain.
Jerzy Nowak, professor and head of the Department of
Horticulture at Virginia Tech, commented: "Over the years, scientists have
worked hard to find a system that would enable the efficient transformation of
strawberry. However, these efforts have fallen short of the requirements to
support large-scale studies of gene function in fruit crops." He added: "What
sets this work apart is the concerted approach adopted by the researchers to
combine different parameters that boost the efficiency by which foreign DNA is
introduced into this economically important crop."
Herb S. Aldwinckle,
professor in the Department of Plant Pathology at Cornell University, Geneva,
New York, who has developed highly efficient techniques for transforming apple,
remarked: "The commercial strawberry familiar to most consumers is octoploid,
which means that it contains eight sets of chromosomes. By using a close
relative that has two sets of chromosomes and a significantly smaller genome,
the researchers have found a particular type of alpine strawberry that is very
amenable to transformation." He added: "The transformation rate achieved is the
result of innovation and great attention to experimental detail."
Due to
the small size of its genome, short reproductive cycle and small plant size, F.
vesca is an ideal model system for genomics in commercial strawberry. The rapid
growth of new shoots, the high number of seeds generated and the ease in which
new plants may be established, make this plant an ideal candidate as a platform
for large-scale studies to elucidate gene function.
The new protocol
involves taking strawberry plant tissue from its original site and transferring
it to an artificial medium for growth or maintenance. Here unfolded leaves,
known as trifoliate leaves, are able to grow. When collected at 6-7 weeks after
seed germination, these leaves are highly amenable to gene transfer using A.
tumefaciens. Since they glow green under fluorescent light due to the presence
of Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP), transformed strawberry plants may be easily
identified by visual inspection. This is the first time that GFP has been used
in strawberry as a visually selectable marker.
Commenting on the
research, VBI Professor Vladimir Shulaev, one of the authors of the study,
remarked: "The development of this protocol for strawberry represents a key
milestone for researchers interested in improving strawberry and other fruit
crops through genomics." He added: "We are now in a position to generate a
collection of mutants that will serve as an invaluable tool not only for
discovering new genes in the Rosaceae family but also for establishing the
functions of these genes through high-throughput screening
methods."
####
The electronic preprint of this article entitled "High-efficiency transformation of the diploid strawberry (Fragaria vesca) for
functional genomics" (Planta, 2005, Dec 1:1-12) is available online at www.springerlink.com/openurl.asp?genre=article&id=doi:10.1007/s00425-005-0170-3
Contact: Barry Whyte
whyte@vbi.vt.edu
Source:
EurekAlert.org
13 March 2006
(Return to
Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++
1.24 Ozone-resistant crops 'may be needed by
2050'
Soybeans are particularly susceptible to high levels of
ozone
Wagdy Sawahel
Research published this week suggests that rising
levels of ozone at the Earth's surface could reduce soybean
harvests.
However, independent researchers say the findings should be
treated with caution, as new crop varieties that tolerate higher levels of ozone
could be available by then.
Ozone forms when gases produced by cars and
industrial processes react with sunlight. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change predicts a 23 per cent increase in surface ozone by 2050.
Stephen
Long of the University of Illinois, United States, and colleagues used an
approach called FACE (free-air gas concentration enrichment) to simulate this
increase for the first time in open soybean fields.
They found that
yields fell by 20 per cent over two growing seasons.
Previously, similar
studies on plants grown in artificial environments, such as greenhouses,
suggested a smaller role for rising ozone levels.
FACE technology allows
plants to be grown under more life-like conditions, preserving the natural
interactions between soil, plants and the atmosphere.
Alan Davison of
the University of Newcastle, United Kingdom, is critical of the study's
long-term predictions, however.
He points out that crop varieties grown
in 2050 will have been developed under the prevailing conditions of the previous
decade, making it likely that they would have some degree of resistance to high
ozone levels.
Crop varieties are known to vary greatly in their response
to ozone. Some are unaffected by high concentrations of the gas.
Plant
breeders developing ozone-resistant crops should consider "both yield and
nutritional quality, which can also be affected by exposure to ozone", says Lisa
Emberson of the Stockholm Environment Institute.
Soybean is one of the
world's main crops, is grown widely in Latin America as well as in China and
India, and is particularly susceptible to ozone.
"Long's study
highlights the need for more rigorous air quality standards as well as more fuel
efficient automobiles," says Evan De Lucia, head of the department of plant
biology at the University of Illinois.
The study was published online by
the journal New Phytologist on 14 March.
Link
to abstract of the paper in New
Phytologist
Reference: New Phytologist
doi:10.1111/j.1469-8137.2006.01679.x (2005)
Source: SciDev.Net
16
March 2006
(Return to
Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++
1.25 Gene sequencing and the future of agriculture
On
April 3 through 5 the National Academy of Sciences will hold a colloquium on the
fundamental breakthroughs in the sequencing of certain plants that could affect
the future of food and agriculture. They will also discuss the challenges
involved in bringing these discoveries to the consumer. U.S. Senator Kit Bond,
R-Mo., will open the colloquium by giving the 2006 Arthur M. Sackler Lecture at
7 p.m. on April 3.
The program, part of the Sackler Colloquium series,
will be held in the auditorium of the National Academies building at 2100 C St.,
N.W., Washington, D.C,
A program, list of speakers, and registration
information is available online at www.nasonline.org/sackler_crops.
Reporters who wish to attend must register in advance.
Contact: Marty
Perrault
sackler@nas.edu
The National Academies
Source:
EurekAlert.org
6 March 2006
(Return to
Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++
1.26 Conceptual framework for the interpretation of the structure, function and
evolution of genomes of economically important
plants
U.S. National Science Foundation's Plant Genome Research
Program announces its intention to support development of sequence resources
that would contribute to a conceptual framework for the interpretation of the
structure, function and evolution of genomes of economically important
plants
Synopsis
The Plant Genome Research Program announces its
intention to support development of sequence resources that would contribute to
a conceptual framework for the interpretation of the structure, function and
evolution of genomes of economically important plants. The Plant Genome
Comparative Sequencing Program (PGCSP) is specifically soliciting proposals that
focus on biological questions that would be enabled by a particular sequence or
sequences. Sequence resources may include, but are not limited to, whole genome
sequences, survey sequences, and physical maps.
1. Anticipated Type of
Award: Standard or Continuing Grant or Cooperative Agreement 2. Estimated Number
of Awards: 5 to 10 - Up to 10 awards of up to $2,000,000 per year for up to 2
years, pending availability of funds.
3. Anticipated Funding Amount:
$10,000,000 Up to $5,000,000 in FY 2006 and up to $5,000,000 in FY 2007 will be
allocated to this program, pending availability of funds.
Full document
at http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2006/nsf06555/nsf06555.htm
National Science Foundation
March 20, 2006
Source: National Science Foundation via
SeedQuest.com
(Return to
Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++
1.27 New DNA 'fingerprinting' technique separates hemp from
marijuana
Using new DNA "fingerprinting" techniques, two University
of Minnesota researchers have become the first to unequivocally separate hemp
plants from marijuana plants with genetic markers. Hemp, a crop grown for
durable fiber and nutritious seed, and marijuana, the most abundant illegal drug
of abuse in the United States, both belong to the species Cannabis sativa. They
differ in levels of the psychoactive drug tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) but are
otherwise difficult to tell apart. The technique holds promise for
distinguishing different cultivars (domesticated plant lines) in U.S. criminal
cases. It may also prove useful in countries where the cultivation of hemp is
permitted but marijuana is illegal, as in Canada and Europe. The work appears in
the March issue (volume 51, No. 2) of the Journal of Forensic
Science.
The new technique is an improvement on previous means of
separating the two types of Cannabis, said author George Weiblen, an assistant
professor of plant biology in the university's College of Biological Sciences
and College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences. For decades it
has been possible to identify THC chemically, but the drug is not present in all
plant tissues or throughout a plant's life cycle. And other researchers have
found that genetic markers known as "short tandem repeats," which are used to
identify individuals in paternity and criminal cases, lack the power to
distinguish Cannabis cultivars unequivocally.
In tests with three
different cultivars of hemp and one of marijuana, the DNA fingerprints of all
the cultivars were distinct and nonoverlapping. Weiblen and Shannon L. Datwyler,
a postdoctoral associate who is now on the faculty of California State
University, Sacramento, found that the AFLP (amplified fragment length
polymorphism) technique generated hundreds of genetic markers that together
established separate identities for each of the four cultivars.
"We
think this technique has the potential to distinguish marijuana varieties as
well," said Weiblen. "It has implications not just for separating hemp from
marijuana in countries where hemp cultivation is permitted, but in establishing
origins of seized drugs and, therefore, conspiracy in drug distribution
networks. It also could be used in criminal defenses against claims of
conspiracy."
The technique chops up DNA and generates numerous fragments
of DNA, each defined by particular "marker" DNA sequences that act like
bookends. The lengths of the fragments within the bookends were found to vary
according to the cultivar. Thus, the pattern of fragment lengths adds up to a
composite picture of each cultivar.
"With this technique, we find
hundreds of markers scattered across the genome," said Weiblen. "The larger
number of markers, compared to other techniques, gives us the power to separate
the cultivars."
The Cannabis plant has been cultivated for millennia and
is important in the global economy as both a licit and an illicit crop, said
Weiblen. Hemp is a source of durable fiber that provides an alternative to
cotton fabric, among other uses. Cotton requires pesticide application and a hot
climate, whereas hemp does not, which makes it suitable for local Minnesota
agriculture. Weiblen seeks to screen a wider range of Cannabis cultivars to
refine the technique. He is also working to identify regions of the Cannabis
genome responsible for drug content in marijuana. If enough can be learned about
the genome, it may one day be possible to produce an entirely drug-free hemp
plant that looks different from marijuana. Currently, all hemp products are
imported into the United States. Developing a new variety that could be
cultivated in the United States would reduce American dependence on foreign
products while creating a new alternative crop for American
farmers.
Contact: Mark Cassutt
cassu003@umn.edu
University of Minnesota
Source:
EurekAlert.org
22 March 2006
(Return to
Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++
1.28 Climate change: The rice genome to the
rescue
The sequencing of the rice genome could help mitigate the
impact of climate change on the world's poor
Los Baños, Philippines – New evidence is emerging that climate change could reduce not only the world's
ability to produce food but also international efforts to cut poverty. However,
the recent sequencing of the rice genome is already providing researchers with
some of the tools they need to help poor rice farmers and consumers avoid the
worst effects of the problem.
The new knowledge generated by the
sequencing effort is allowing scientists to both develop new rice varieties
faster and with the specific characteristics needed to deal with climate change,
such as tolerance of higher temperatures. However, scientists are calling for
more research to fully understand the impact of climate change – especially the
extreme weather it may cause – on international efforts to reduce poverty and
ensure food security.
A "Climate Change and Rice" planning workshop this
month at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines was
told that climate change is already affecting Asia's ability to produce rice,
and that this could eventually slow efforts to reduce poverty in the region,
where most of the world's poor live.
The workshop was informed that, to
overcome many of the climate change–related problems facing rice production in
Asia – and continue to meet the demand for rice in the region – yields will have
to double over the next 50 years. Research has confirmed that global warming
will make rice crops less productive with increasing temperatures decreasing
yields.
"Clearly, climate change is going to have a major impact on our
ability to grow rice," Robert S. Zeigler, IRRI director general, said. "We can't
afford to sit back and be complacent about this because rice production feeds
almost half the world's population while providing vital employment to millions
as well, with most of them being very poor and vulnerable."
For these
reasons, Dr. Zeigler announced at the workshop that IRRI – in an unprecedented
move – was ready to put up US$2 million of its own research funds as part of an
effort to raise $20–25 million for a major five-year project to mitigate the
effects of climate change on rice production. "We need to start developing rice
varieties that can tolerate higher temperatures and other aspects of climate
change right now," he said.
"Fortunately, the recent sequencing of the
rice genome will allow us to do this much faster than we could have in the
past," Dr. Zeigler added. "But, in addition to new rice varieties, we must
develop other technologies that will help poor rice farmers deal with climate
change."
In one of several examples presented to last week's climate
workshop, researchers mentioned El Niño weather phenomena that hit the
Philippines in 1996-97 and caused a severe drought, resulting in a sharp drop in
national rice production. Other examples focused on the impact of climate change
and variability on gross domestic product, generally causing it to slip by
several percentage points.
"One of the main problems with climate change
is that the effects are felt mostly in poor, underdeveloped countries because of
their reliance on agriculture as one of the main drivers for national
development," Dr. Zeigler said. "In turn, agriculture is very dependent on
climate.
"Another more insidious effect may be more frequent extreme
weather events such as typhoons, floods and droughts," Dr. Zeigler warned.
"IRRI's research has shown that even one drought year can push millions of rice
farmers back below the poverty line. This affects the whole family for many
years after the drought year, as they will have sold their livestock and
withdrawn their children from school just to survive."
IRRI's senior
climate change researcher, John Sheehy, told the workshop that poor farmers need
help in several challenging new areas. "We need to develop rice varieties
tolerant of higher temperatures that can maintain yield and quality when extreme
temperatures occur," Dr. Sheehy said. "We also need rice varieties that can take
advantage of higher levels of CO2 in the atmosphere, rice that is vigorous
enough to recover quickly from extreme weather events and disasters, and very
high yielding rice that will provide a supply buffer for poor communities during
periods of change.
"We need to be able to protect poor people from the
harmful effects of climate change, and rice is especially important because most
of the world's poor depend on it," he added. "We also need to ensure that the
world community is not adversely affected by greenhouse gas emissions from rice
production systems."
Dr. Sheehy said researchers need to acquire
knowledge and develop technologies critical to ensuring that rice production
systems are sustainable in the face of climate change and do not adversely
contribute to climate change.
Contact: Duncan Macintosh
d.macintosh@cgiar.org
International Rice Research
Institute
Source: EurekAlert.org
27 March 2006
(Return to Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++
1.29 Revealed: how rice's worst enemy invades its
cells
Scientists have discovered how a fungus manages to invade rice
plants, causing a disease that destroys enough rice each year to feed 60 million
people.
The discovery could help researchers develop specific,
environmentally friendly chemicals to fight the fungus, says lead researcher
Nick Talbot of the University of Exeter, United Kingdom.
In a paper
published 23 March in Nature, Talbot's team show that the fungus,
Magnaporthe grisea, uses a single protein called MgAPT2 to gain entry
into rice leaves or roots.
This allows the fungus to deliver a series of
additional proteins that suppress the plant's defences and cause rice blast
disease, the most destructive and costly disease of rice.
When the
researchers blocked the gene that makes MgAPT2, they found that the fungus was
no longer able to cause disease.
In 2002, researchers led by Ralph Dean
of North Carolina State University, United States mapped the fungus's genetic
code (see Genetic
secrets of rice's worst fungal pest unveiled).
Dean told SciDev.Net
that to cause disease the fungus must first detect its host, and that proteins
it secretes play a major role in this process.
Of Talbot's research, Dean
says "it is very exciting and rewarding to identify a major component of the
[fungus's] machinery that directs ... proteins out of the fungal cell to attack
the plant." Link
to full paper in Nature
Reference: Nature 440, 535 (2006)
Wagdy Sawahel
22 March
2006
Source: SciDev.net
(Return to
Contents)
++++++++++++++++++++
1.30 ABC-transporters for horizontal gene transfer
By
Angelika Kren, CheckBiotech Science Journalist
By identifying a novel
function for the ABC transporter, Atwbc19, a research team from the University
of Tennessee provides an alternative and safer method for the production of
transgenic plants.
The advent of genetically modified plants has
opened up a vast spectrum for their potential use in fighting global problems
such as hunger and malnourishment, while also creating new or inexpensive health
care solutions. Yet, despite the benefits, there are concerns as
well.
One of the most interesting concerns has been the potential for
Horizontal Gene Transfer (HGT). HGT describes any process in which an organism
transfers genetic material (i.e. DNA) into another cell that is not its
offspring. This process occurs naturally among different strains of bacteria, as
well as with bacteria to plants or to other higher organisms. In fact, there are
examples of bacteria-like genes found in a plant genomes. However, it is the
inverse route of HGT - the transfer of genes from plants to bacteria - that have
raised some concern.
It was only last fall when the group of Dr. Neal
Stewart form the University of Tennessee made an immense step forward in solving
this problem. In their article published in Nature Biotechnology they describe a
novel and unexpected function of Atwbc19.
Atwbc19 is a gene originating
from the weed, Arabidopsis thaliana, and belongs to the large family of
ATB-binding cassette transporters (ABC-transporters). These genes are found in
all organisms, but plants have the largest number of ABC proteins encoded in
their genome. Generalized, these proteins function as transporters in different
cell components, selectively pumping a large variety of substrates against a
concentration gradient.
A Safer Selection Marker
An
important aspect of genetic engineering is that, when a gene is introduced to a
plant, it will not always be accepted. So, researchers need to have a way to
ensure that their gene of interest is actually incorporated by the
plant.
A trick that scientists use is they couple the gene with a
so-called selection marker. These selection markers give the plant the ability
to survive when they are grown with a toxic substance. The gene-selection marker
combination is then delivered into plant cells.
Since not all plants
will accept the new DNA, plant researchers can then apply the toxin to the
plants. If the plant took up the DNA, then if will survive because the selection
marker gives the plant the ability to detoxify the toxin, whereas other plants
that did not accept the new DNA will die.
However, many are concerned
that such selection markers could be passed to bacteria. Due to this concern,
Dr. Stewart’s research becomes all the more important as the research community
looks for safer selection markers.
To find out the function of the so far
uncharacterized Atwbc19 transporter, Dr. Stewart removed the Atwbc19 gene from
A. thaliana. It turned out that plants lacking this gene were not able to grow
on medium containing the antibiotic, kanamycin. They therefore hypothesized that
this protein might be involved in resistance to kanamycin, and thus useful as a
selection marker – one that could replace existing antibiotic or pesticide
selection markers.
To test this hypothesis, they compared how well
tobacco took up new DNA coupled with either nptII or Atwbc19. Using Atwbc19
alone turned out to take up DNA just as well as when the researchers used nptII.
In contrast to nptII, though, Atbwc19 only conferred resistance to
kanamycin.
“In addition to tobacco, we also tested Canola, obtaining
similar results, and are farther along with transforming other mustard
varieties,” Dr. Stewart told Checkbiotech. “We have sent the constructs out to
collaborators, who are testing it in various crops, vegetable, and tree
species.”
When asked if the new selection marker was ready for use, Dr.
Stewart replied, “I think it can be routinely used now since it basically
replaces the bacterial nptII gene in established kanamycin selection regimes.”
In respect to HGT, using Atwbc19 provides even more advantages besides
the specificity for kanamycin. The Atwbc19 gene is larger than nptII, which
decreases the chances of it being integrated into a bacterial recipient. Since
it is of plant origin, it has plant codon usage. Thus, if it were to be
transformed into the bacterial genome, it would not likely be expressed like a
bacterial gene.
When Checkbiotech asked about what would happen if a
bacterium was able to incorporate Atwbc19 into its genome, Dr. Stewart said, “We
are testing that now. We have placed the Atwbc19 gene under the control of a
bacterial promoter and introduced it into bacteria via transformation.
Preliminary, unpublished results show that it does not confer antibiotic
resistance back to bacteria, presumably because of the sub-cellular targeting
differences between plant and bacterial cells.”
To ensure the technology
reaches its final stage, Dr. Stewart and his team have already discussed
licensing agreements with some companies. “We would welcome other conversations.
Non-exclusive licenses are our goal, since we think this could help public
perception and be practiced broadly.”
Angelika Kren is a Science
Journalist for Checkbiotech and is currently finishing her doctorate degree in
Biochemistry at the University of Basel, Switzerland. Contact her at
angelika.kren@unibas.ch
Original article:
Mentewab A. et al.
Overexpression of an Arabidopsis thaliana ABC transporter confers kanamycin
resistance to transgenic plants. Nat Biotechnol. 2005 Sep; 23(9): 1177-80.
http://www.nature.com/
Corresponding author:
Dr.
C Neal Stewart Jr.
University of Tennessee, USA
Department of Plant
Sciences
nealstewart@utk.edu
Further reading:
IBS (Information
systems for biotechnology) news report:
http://www.isb.vt.edu/news/2005/news05.Oct.htm
Copyright
Nature
Source: Nature via
CheckBiotech.org
28 February 2006
Contributed by Robert
Derham
Editor, Checkbiotech.org
Robert.Derham@unibas.ch
(Return to Contents)
=========================
2 PUBLICATIONS
2.01 How flowers changed the world – a new book by Field Museum
scientist
Compact book targets general audience – just in time for
spring
CHICAGO--Stop. Smell the roses. And the daisies, petunias and
orchids. Also, stop to consider sugar, potatoes and wheat; cotton, corn and
coffee.
All of these are flowering plants, which completely transformed
the world by providing rich biological diversity, propelling primate evolution,
spurring evolution, allowing for agriculture, and ushering in civilization – not
to mention beautifying the world.
Flowers: How They Changed the World, a
new book for a general audience, describes the fascinating role flowering plants
have played in the story of life on Earth. It is written by popular author
William C. Burger, PhD, Curator Emeritus of Botany at Chicago's Field Museum. He
also wrote the highly acclaimed Perfect Planet, Clever Species.
Flowers
(210 pages with drawings and color illustrations) is available from Prometheus
Books starting this spring – just in time for the blooming of flowering plants,
grasses and trees.
"Burger takes us on a wide-ranging romp through the
world of flowers – from their most intimate secrets to their global
significance," says Sir Peter Crane, Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew,
in London. "This is a wonderful book for any naturalist or gardener who wants
not only to see but also to understand."
There were no flowers of any
kind on Earth until about 100 million years ago during the late Jurassic, which
was the middle of the Dinosaur Age. It's hard to imagine what such a flowerless
world would have been like. Not only was it drab, but food for birds and mammals
and other living creatures would have been far more difficult to find and far
less nutritious.
But flowers, in all there myriad variations, did not
evolve for our eating or viewing pleasure. They evolved as they did for
survival. Their bright colors, attractive fragrances, and alluring shapes were
designed to induce insects and other animals to do their bidding: help them
pollinate and assure their continued existence.
"Flowers are the supreme
example of nature's reproductive exuberance, ensuring the persistence of life
against an onslaught of destructive forces, constantly evolving pathogens, and
unpredictable environmental changes," Dr. Burger says.
Even more
important, he adds, flowers are the fundamental energy resource for most of life
on Earth. "Since they energize themselves by capturing the energy of sunlight,
flowers provide a vital link in the chain of life. Even today in our complex
technological world, it is the flowering plants that provide us, directly or
indirectly, with nearly all the energy that sustains life."
Today there
are 260,000 unique species of flowering plants known to science, with more being
discovered almost every day. Given a total of about 300,000 species of land
plants, the vast majority of land plants produce flowers.
"Without
flowers, we humans simply wouldn't be here, whether as primates, two-legged
omnivores, or grand civilizations!" Dr. Burger says.
This
easy-to-understand book discusses many aspects of flowers including the
evolution of flowers and how flowers created a world richer than any that had
come before in the 4 billion year history of the Earth. There's a lot of
discussion about sex since flowers are the reproductive organs of flowering
plants.
"It is truly botany made interesting and accessible," says David
Lentz, vice president of the Chicago Botanic Garden. "Anyone who ever thought
they would like to learn more about flowers and their mysterious habits should
read this wonderful book."
Chapter titles:
1. What, exactly, is a
flower?
2. What are flowers for?
3. Flowers and their friends.
4.
Flowers and their enemies
5. How are the flowering plants
distinguished?
6. What makes the flowering plants so special?
7. Primates,
people and the flowering plants.
8. How flowers changed the world.
Contact: Greg Borzo
gborzo@fieldmuseum.org
Field Museum
Source:
EurekAlert.org
17 March 2006
(Return to
Contents)
=========================
3. WEB
RESOURCES
3.01 A website ripe with data
from ARS tomato studies
Washington, DC
ARS News
Service
Agricultural Research Service, USDA
Luis Pons, lpons@ars.usda.gov
Landmark
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) work on genes governing tomato ripening and
nutritional content are the cornerstone of the Tomato Expression Database (TED), a Cornell University website funded by ARS and
the National Science Foundation (NSF).
The site, part of the NSF's
ongoing Tomato Genomics Project, gives researchers worldwide access to data they
can use to develop new theories on tomato genetics--and to expand upon what's
already known about this popular food.
The site comprises four sections
created and maintained by molecular biologist James Giovannoni of ARS' U.S.
Plant, Soil and Nutrition Laboratory in Ithaca, N.Y., in collaboration with
Cornell, the University of Florida, and Virginia Tech University's Virginia
Bioinformatics Institute.
Giovannoni has led breakthrough research by ARS
and other institutions that identified key genes that control the ripening of
tomatoes. The TED website provides large-scale tomato gene expression data
generated from "microarrays" - collections of microscopic DNA samples on glass
chips that allow scientists to assess thousands of genes in an
organism.
One section within TED is a tomato microarray data-storage "warehouse," which serves as a source of downloadable raw research
information.
TED's microarray expression database, meanwhile, offers
information analyzed in Giovannoni's laboratory on gene expression related to
fruit development and ripening. It also contains data that allows for genetic
comparisons between normal and mutant tomatoes.
The site's digital
expression database presents information that's similar, but based upon
expressed tag sequences. These sequences identify genes through expression in
RNA that's reflected in DNA. A fourth database, the tomato metabolite database,
has information on the chemical composition of tomatoes, along with comparative
gene-expression data. It's designed to help researchers develop and test
hypotheses on how flavor and texture attributes of tomato fruit are regulated.
The TED site also allows users with a login ID and password to submit
new data.
According to Giovannoni, a recent NSF grant will allow for an
expansion of the TED site, which is accessible online at http://ted.bti.cornell.edu.
ARS is
the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific research
agency.
Source: SeedQuest.com
16 March 2006
(Return to
Contents)
===========================
6.
MEETINGS, COURSES AND WORKSHOPS
Note: New announcements may
include some program details, while repeat announcements will include
only basic information. Visit web sites for additional
details.
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
*27 – 29 May
2006.Incentives for supporting on-farm conservation, and augmentation of
agro-biodiversity through farmers’ innovations and community
participation: An international consultation for learning from
grassroots initiatives and institutional interventions, Indian Institute of
Management, KLMDC, IIM, Ahmedabad, India. www.sristi.org/agrobioconf.html
To identify the
feasibility of using various market and non-market based incentives for
promoting on farm conservation of agrobiodiversity research programme was
undertaken in collaboration with IFPRI, University of Guelph, SRISTI and IIMA,
for last three years. Several innovative attempts have been made to
explore the viability of both the demand and supply side incentives for
conservation. The proposed international consultation aims to provide platform
to share the findings of such research projects being implemented in different
parts of India and elsewhere.
Objectives of the international
consultation:
1. To share the findings of the three year long action
research and identify agenda for follow up action.
2. To identify the best
practices around the world for providing market and non market based incentives
for on farm conservation and augmentation.
3. To explore the policy and
procedural changes required at the level of National Biodiversity Authority,
Plant Variety and Farmers’ Rights Act Authority and at other levels to encourage
crop varietal diversity in farmers’ fields.
4. To explore opportunities for
dissemination of existing traditional as well as new varieties developed by
farmers (for lateral exploration of existing farmers’ varieties but also
of new varieties developed by farmers).
5. To create an international
knowledge network and an informal alliance among industrialists, policy makers,
researchers and others committed to the cause of conservation, augmentation and
innovations.
Conceptual Themes and Organization
1.
Socio-cultural, economic factors affecting current state of on farm agro
biodiversity and triggering of innovative spirit.
2. Current policy
environment influencing agrobiodiversity and required policy changes.
3.
Complimentarily of formal and informal seed development and supply systems for
ensuring availability of crop varietal diversity.
4. Incentives for enhancing
demand of locally adapted crop varieties in household as well as industrial
sectors.
5. Monetary and non-monetary incentives for encouraging farmers to
innovate, improve, exchange and conserve agrobiodiversity.
6. Market
research on channels of procurement and preferences of industrial and individual
consumers of agrobiodiversity in local as well as distant markets.
7.
Scientific basis of on farm conservation and exploring the role of agricultural
research, conservation and development institutions particularly in
characterization and value addition of local crop and varietal
biodiversity.
8. Methodological approaches and tools for monitoring state of
agrobiodiversity and bringing awareness among different stakeholders.
9.
Farmers’ perspectives and role in influencing the policy environment and
institutional changes expected.
Interested colleagues are encouraged to
send abstract of their presentation related to any of the themes listed above.
The themes would be deliberated in different technical sessions and panel
discussions. The manuscripts of the presentations should not exceed four pages
(A4 size) typed in double space with adequate margins on all sides ( though full
papers can be of ten to fifteen pages). The deadline for sending manuscripts is
April 30, 2006
Who can participate?
The consultation will
invite leading scholars, senior policy makers and analysts to present their
perspectives on the subject and discuss opportunities for bringing policy change
to encourage diversity. The participation of farmer breeders and conservators,
food processing and other industrial consumers of agrobiodiversity, and NGO
involved in supporting on farm diversity will be encouraged to share their
experiences in the conference. Young scholars pursuing graduate studies,
activists involved in conservation and NGOs as well as private sector
entrepreneurs involved in any aspect of the value chain are particularly
invited. In selected cases, the organizers will bear all the costs for a small a
group of participants.
Registration fees
No
charges for invited speakers, panelists and participants. Others will pay
Rs.10,000/= to cover the cost of boarding and lodging for three days and other
expenses. The fee should be sent through crossed Demand Draft drawn in favour of
IIM, Ahmedabad.
Contact:
Professor Anil K
Gupta
Indian Institute of Management, Vastrapura
Ahmedabad – 380 015
Ph
+91 79 26324927
Fax 91 79 2630 73 41
Email:
anilg@iimahd.ernet.in
Website: www.sristi.org/agrobioconf.html
+++++++++++++++
*1-2
June 2006.:Patent protection of plant-related innovations:facts and issues
(ISF International Seminar), Copenhagen.
For programme see http://www.worldseed.org/PatentSeminar/Programme.htm
Contributed
by Tim Roberts
tim.twr@gmail.com
+++++++++++
*31 July – 4
August 2006. African Rice Congress, WARDA , Dar es Salaam,
Tanzania
Contact: Lawrence
Narteh
http://www.warda.org/africa-rice-congress/
+++++++++++
*8 – 10 August 2006. 7th Plant Genomics Conference, Heilongjiang University
, Harbin, China
Contact: Rongtian
Li, Zhenqiang Lu, Chunquan Ma
http://www.plantgenomics.cn
+++++++++++++
*16 - 19 August 2006.Tropical Crop Biotechnology Conference
2006, Cairns, Queensland, Australia
The Conference will address two
critical research issues in the future development of tropical crops:
1. The
potential for tropical crops as biofactories in the production of industrial
biomaterials, renewable energy, functional foods and pharmaceuticals.
2.
Developing and using functional genomics in tropical crops to facilitate a
quantum leap in the performance of tropical crop plants.
The earlybird
registration and abstract submission deadline is Friday 28 April 2006. For
more information: Contact: CSIRO Plant Industry s.mckell@uq.edu.au
Website: www.tcbc2006.com.au
Organized by: CSIRO Plant Industry
+++++++++++++
*30 August – 1
September 2006. XIII EUCARPIA Biometrics in Plant Breeding Section Meeting,
EUCARPIA , Zagreb, Croatia
Contact EUCARPIA SecretariatEvent Website
Links:
Meeting Announcement (PDF)
Pre-registration
Form (Word Document)
+++++++++++++++++
*11-14 October 2006
Plant Genomics European Meetings, Venice, Italy. http://www.distagenomics.unibo.it/plantgems/
Contact
person: PGEM5@agrsci.unibo.it
================
REPEAT
ANNOUNCMENTS
* 2006-2008. Plant Breeding Academy, University of California, Davis.
The University of California
Seed Biotechnology Center would like to inform you of an exciting new course we
are offering to teach the principles of plant breeding to seed industry
personnel.
This two-year course addresses the reduced numbers of plant
breeders being trained in academic programs. It is an opportunity for companies
to invest in dedicated personnel who are currently involved in their own
breeding programs, but lack the genetics and plant breeding background to direct
a breeding program. Participants will meet at UC Davis for one week per quarter
over two years (eight sessions) to allow participants to maintain their current
positions while being involved in the course.
Instruction begins
Fall 2006 and runs through Summer 2008 (actual dates to be
determined)
For more information: (530) 754-7333, email scwebster@ucdavis.edu, http://sbc.ucdavis.edu/Events/Plant_Breeding_Academy.htm
*
18-21 April 2006: The 13th Australasian Plant Breeding
Conference -- Breeding for Success: Diversity in Action, Christchurch
Convention Center in Christchurch, New Zealand. For more details, visit http://www.apbc.org.nz
*
27-29 April 2006. Joint IOBC Working Group conference "Breeding for inducible
resistance against pests and diseases," Heraklio, Crete, Greece. Register
and find additional information at http://www.unine.ch/bota/IOBC/. If
there are questions, please contact: a.schmitt@bba.de or N.Birch@scri.sari.ac.uk
*
27 – 30 April 2006. Breeding for inducible resistance against pests and
diseases, Heraklio, Crete, Greece.
For further information see: www.unine.ch/bota/iobc or contact
either convenor: Annegret Schmitt (a.schmitt@bba.de) or Nick Birch
(N.Birch@scri.sari.ac.uk)
* 29 April - 4 May 2007 I International Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Conference on Culinary Herbs
(organized by ISHS) will be held in Antalya (Turkey) on . Conference web page
adress is http://www.mapc2007ant.org/. Further info can be obtained from congress scientific secretary Assoc. Prof. Dr.
A. Naci Onus, onus@akdeniz.edu.tr.
* 15-19 May 2006. Biosafety II:
Practical course in evaluation of field releases of genetically modified
plants,, Florence, Italy. Organised by the International Centre for Genetic
Engineering and Biotechnology in collaboration with the Istituto Agronomico per
l'Oltremare. Closing date for applications is 30 January 2006. See http://www.icgeb.trieste.it/MEETINGS/CRS06/15_19maggio.pdf
or contact courses@icgeb.org for more information.
* 19-23 June 2006.
Training course on biotech crop commercialization, Manila, The
Philippines The all-inclusive course fee is US$2,500.00 per participant,
and will cover material and six nights of accommodation (including five days of
specially catered meals). Cost of travel to and from the course venue in Manila,
Philippines is not included. Full details and the pre-registration form to be
emailed to <info@asiabiobusiness.com> are available at (<
http://www.asiabiobusiness.com/images/manilaCourse_final.pdf>). Closing
date for pre-registration is March 31, 2006. Registrants paying the registration
fee by 31st April, 2006 will receive a discount of $150.
* 28 to 30 June
2006. EUCARPIA Meeting on Rye Genetics and Breeding, Rostock,
Germany.
Further information about the meeting can be found at http://www.eucarpia.org.
* 2-6 July
2006. IX International Conference on Grape Genetics and Breeding, Udine
(Italy), under the auspices of the ISHS Section Viticulture and the OIV. Info:
Prof. Enrico Peterlunger, University of Udine, Dip. di Scienze Agrarie e
Ambientale, Via delle Scienze 208, 33100 Udine, Italy. Phone: (39)0432558629,
Fax: (39)0432558603, email: peterlunger@uniud.it
* 23-28 July
2006. The 9th International Pollination Symposium, Iowa State University.
The official theme is: "Host-Pollinator Biology Relationships - Diversity in
Action." For more information please visit www.ucs.iastate.edu/PlantBee
*
13-19 August 2006: XXVII International Horticultural Congress, Seoul
(Korea) web: www.ihc2006.org
*
20-25 August 2006. The International Plant Breeding Symposium, Sheraton “Centro Historico” Hotel, Mexico City.
Presentations by invited speakers
will be published in a proceedings by Crop Science. More information is
available at www.intlplantbreeding.com. If you are unable to register
online please send an e-mail to: intlplantbreeding@cgiar.org.
* 9-14
September 2007. The World Cotton Research Conference-4, Lubbock, Texas,
USA (http://www.icac.org). There is no cost
of pre-registration and if you pre-register you will receive all the up-coming
information on WCRC-4.171 researchers from over 20 countries have pre-registered
as of today.
* 10-14 September 2006. First Symposium on Sunflower
Industrial Uses. Udine University, Udine Province, Friuli Venezia Giulia
Region, Italy.
http://www.sunflowersymposium.org/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1
http://www.isa.cetiom.fr/1st%20ann%20Symposium%20Udine.htm
Sponsored
by the International Sunflower Association (ISA)
* 11-15 September
2006. XXII International EUCARPIA Symposium - Section Ornamentals: Breeding
for Beauty, San Remo (Italy). Info: Dr. Tito Shiva or Dr. Antonio
Mercuri, CRA Istituto Sperimentale per la Floricoltura, Corso degli Inglesi 508,
18038 San Remo (IM), Italy. Phone: (39)0184694846, Fax: (39)0184694856, email:
a.mercuri@istflori.it web: www.istflori.it
* 17-21 September 2006. Cucurbitaceae 2006, Grove Park Inn Resort
and Spa in Asheville, North Carolina, USA (in the scenic Blue Ridge
Mountains).
Contact: Dr. Gerald Holmes, Department of Plant Pathology,
North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695-7616, 919-515-9779 (gerald_holmes@ncsu.edu)
Conference
website: http://www.ncsu.edu/cucurbit2006
* 18-20 September 2006.The International Cotton Genome Initiative
(ICGI) 2006 Research Conference, Blue Tree Park Hotel (
http://www.bluetree.com.br/index_ing.asp) Brasília, D.F., Brazil. Details of
the ICGI 2006 Research Conference will be posted on the ICGI website (http://icgi.tamu.edu ) as they
become available.
*14 - 18 October 2006. The 6th New Crops Symposium:
Creating Markets for Economic Development of New Crops and New Uses,
University Center for New Crops and Plant Products,The Hilton Gaslamp Quarter
Hotel, San Diego, CA
Sponsored by: Association for the Advancement of
Industrial Crops and Purdue www.aaic.org or www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop
* 9-12 November
2006. 7th Australasian Plant Virology Workshop. Rottnest Island, Perth,
Western Australia.
For further information contact: Prof Mike Jones,
Murdoch University, Perth m.jones@murdoch.edu.au
* 1-5 December 2006:
The First International Meeting on Cassava Plant Breeding and
Biotechnology, to be held in Brasilia, Brazil. For more details, email Dr.
Nagib Nassar of the University of Brasilia at nagnassa@rudah.com.br
or visit the meeting website at http://www.geneconserve.pro.br/meeting/.
(Return to Contents)
=======================
7. EDITOR'S NOTES
Plant Breeding News is an
electronic forum for the exchange of information and ideas about applied plant
breeding and related fields. It is published every four to six weeks throughout
the year.
The newsletter is managed by the editor and an advisory group
consisting of Elcio Guimaraes (elcio.guimaraes@fao.org), Margaret Smith
(mes25@cornell.edu), and Anne Marie Thro (athro@reeusda.gov). The editor will
advise subscribers one to two weeks ahead of each edition, in order to set
deadlines for contributions.
REVIEW PAST NEWSLETTERS ON THE WEB: Past
issues of the Plant Breeding Newsletter are now available on the web. The
address is: http://www.fao.org/WAICENT/FAOINFO/AGRICULT/AGP/AGPC/doc/services/pbn.html
We
will continue to improve the organization of archival issues of the newsletter.
Readers who have suggestions about features they wish to see should contact the
editor at chh23@cornell.edu.
Subscribers are encouraged to take an active
part in making the newsletter a useful communications tool. Contributions may be
in such areas as: technical communications on key plant breeding issues;
announcements of meetings, courses and electronic conferences; book
announcements and reviews; web sites of special relevance to plant breeding;
announcements of funding opportunities; requests to other readers for
information and collaboration; and feature articles or discussion issues brought
by subscribers. Suggestions on format and content are always welcome by the
editor, at pbn-l@mailserv.fao.org. We would especially like to see a broad
participation from developing country programs and from those working on species
outside the major food crops.
Messages with attached files are not
distributed on PBN-L for two important reasons. The first is that computer
viruses and worms can be distributed in this manner. The second reason is that
attached files cause problems for some e-mail systems.
PLEASE NOTE: Every
month many newsletters are returned because they are undeliverable, for any one
of a number of reasons. We try to keep the mailing list up to date, and also to
avoid deleting addresses that are only temporarily inaccessible. If you miss a
newsletter, write to me at chh23@cornell.edu and I will re-send it.
To
subscribe to PBN-L: Send an e-mail message to: mailserv@mailserv.fao.org. Leave
the subject line blank and write SUBSCRIBE PBN-L (Important: use ALL CAPS). To
unsubscribe: Send an e-mail message as above with the message UNSUBSCRIBE PBN-L.
Lists of potential new subscribers are welcome. The editor will contact these
persons; no one will be subscribed without their explicit permission.
(Return to
Contents)
+++++++++++++++++