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Biotechnology in the CGIAR system
Goals and strategies of CGIAR
The role of IARCs in advanced research networks
Current and future policy considerations
Future
outlook
Acknowledgements
References
D.L. Plucknett and K Wright Platais
CGIAR Secretariat, Washington, DC
As countries all over the world confront the need to boost agricultural output, biotechnology which comprises techniques for using plants, animals and microbes to produce useful products or improve existing species - stands out as a promising tool. These techniques, ranging from simple tissue culture methods to advanced genetic and molecular manipulation of biological material, hold out the possibility of relieving some of the present tolerance of crops and animals to particular physical or environment stresses (e.g. salinity and drought), increasing the resistance of plants and animals to pests and pathogens, and increasing nutrient efficiency. Biotechnology has been defined thus: "Biotechnology is ... comprised of a continuum of technologies, ranging from the long-established, and widely used technologies, which are based on the commercial use of microbes and other living organisms, through to the strategic research on genetic engineering of plants and animals" (Persley, 1990).
Exactly how much modern biotechnology can or cannot do - especially for the developing countries - is still an unanswered question. Up to this point, most biotechnology research has taken place in the industrialized countries, concentrating on application of interest to the developed world. But in recent years, developing countries have become more active in the field, as they wish to partake of research benefits. A major study in 1988-90 by the World Bank, the International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR), and the Australian Government, concluded that there were many potential benefits from integrating modern biotechnology with conventional agricultural research. This could be done by focusing public sector investments on the "orphan commodities" - crops traditionally of less interest to the industrialized countries but of great importance to the vast numbers of resource-poor producers and consumers in the developing world. The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) is one research group which is tackling these challenges.
CGIAR was established in 1971 to support the works of several international agricultural research centres (IARCs). Today the CGIAR system consists of 18 IARCs, with support being received from some 40 donors. The CGIAR mission statement, as revised in 1991, states: "Through international research and related activities, and in partnership with national research systems, to contribute to sustainable improvements in the productivity of agriculture, forestry and fisheries in developing countries in ways that enhance the nutrition and wellbeing, especially of low-income people" (CGIAR, 1991 a).
The ultimate aims are improved nutrition and economic well-being for low-income people, including women, landless labourers and poor producers and consumers in both rural and urban areas. Research should contribute to self-reliance by increasing the purchasing power of the poor through lower costs and prices and through greater equity in income distribution. It should also contribute to the quality of plant and animal products, to sustainability and stability in their supply, and to the prevention of environmental degradation through improved resource management.
CGIAR is complex and entails a comprehensive programme of research and related activities. Its goals are:
The system's involvement in each of these areas varies greatly. In some, such as crop and livestock production, the centres play a major role. In other areas, the CG system is primarily a catalyst, stimulating and supporting research at other institutions. And in other areas such as commodity conversion and utilization, the system integrates the work of other leading institutions into the results of the centre programmes. A combination of all of these approaches is used by the CG system in the area of biotechnology research.
It has been recommended that IARCs consider undertaking four initiatives in biotechnology to identify and transfer high-priority technologies to developing countries, explore opportunities for closer links with private industry, establish institutional biosafety committees, and establish a standing group of experts to deal with the role of biotechnology in world agriculture (Barkee and Plucknett, 1991).
Biotechnology strategy
A balance between biotechnology and conventional research is crucial to CGIAR. The strategy of CGIAR crop improvement centres is to use relevant, tested biotechnology techniques for more efficient execution of their research agendas.
The centres are interested in developing new tools for their own work as well as for their national programme partners. In some cases, new diagnostic, analytical, or plant breeding tools are developed by the centres to improve their own research capability in meeting critical international needs. In other cases, new tools are made and adapted specifically for national programme research efforts. A well-established linkage strategy of IARCs, that of using cooperation to pass on useful research techniques to national programmes, will also be a way forward in biotechnology, particularly for smaller NARS. One route may be to link IARCs with developing-country universities as future centres of strategic research. As skills mature, the universities can then exploit IARC connections to begin their own interactions with advanced institutions and companies in the industrial economies (Collinson and Wright Platais, 1992).
The "in-house" management of biotechnology in IARCs is rooted in this strategy and is still in a formative stage. Centres each have one, two or sometimes three scientists who act as coordinators of biotechnology research efforts. They listen to programme needs in demand and supply consideration together with the help of senior managers who deal with increasing concerns regarding contractual, legal and safety matters. In some centres, individuals have been the catalysts in making biotechnology research operational. Several of the larger centres have established separate biotechnology units.
Biotechnology research - past and present
Biotechnology research in CGIAR and its potential applications were first discussed by the Group in 1981 (CGIAR, 1981). At that time, with the exception of the research of the International Laboratory for Research on Animal Diseases (ILRAD) which was well under way, mostly tissue culture techniques were being used by CGIAR scientists for multiplication and production of disease-free plant material, and genetic engineering techniques were discussed in a futuristic sense. Still, it was predicted that genetic engineering would not replace traditional plant breeding techniques, but would provide new tools for breeders. As science progressed, an overview was presented to a CGIAR mid-term meeting on the activities of biotechnology research in CGIAR in 1985; this overview was updated in 1988 (Plucknett, 1988). By then it was clear that "biotechnology brings new tools, new ideas and new approaches to agricultural research. In most cases, biotechnology will not supplant what, for want of a better term, might be called conventional agricultural research. Rather, biotechnology will be used in conjunction with traditional plant breeding and other agricultural research to help provide new information and tools to solve problems." The present paper draws extensively on CGIAR thoughts on developments in biotechnology since 1989 in a paper prepared for the World Bank/ISNAR/Australian study, case-studies of IARC activities, and recent papers put forward by the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), the Centre Directors and the CGIAR Secretariat on the emerging socio-economic aspects and future issues raised (such as biosafety and intellectual property rights).
Biotechnology includes both scientific advances and technologies that can be developed from those advances. For an advance to become useful, it must be packaged in a usable way. For example, hybrid maize is a technological delivery package for scientific advances that emanated from a new understanding of basic genetic principles, leading to the development of hybrid seeds that farmers could plant, to their benefit. An understanding of the relationship of science and technology can help us to see the potential benefits of biotechnology in the international agricultural research centres and their national programme partners.
CGIAR believes it can help in two fundamental ways: by providing a bridge for the flow of needed information and germplasm (seed and plant material) between developed and developing countries, and by ensuring that the agricultural needs of the developing countries are not lost in the total research effort, given that there would be little money to be made by private firms in the improvement of orphan commodities or in many technologies designed for resource-poor farmers.
Most IARCs that deal with crop or livestock improvement are involved, or are likely to become involved, in biotechnology research. This includes cellular and molecular biology and the new techniques derived from these to improve the genetic makeup and management of crops and animals. However, few IARCs will develop new basic knowledge in support of biotechnology, but rather will become involved in finding applications for new scientific advances (Plucknett, Cohen and Home, 1990). Thus IARCs are dependent upon scientific advances and resulting technologies in efforts to adapt technologies to developing country problems. In a sense, IARCs are toolmakers in biotechnology, using basic scientific knowledge to develop useful technologies in crop and animal research (Plucknett, 1988).
If IARCs are to play an important role in adapting biotechnology tools to the needs of developing country agriculture, new methods for acquiring technologies must be considered. It is true that commerce drives many of the applications of genetic engineering (Scowcraft, 1989). Not only must the centres themselves be able to negotiate creatively with the private sector, but also appropriate research institutions in the developing countries may need to do so. Several developing countries' research institutions have already recognized the need to apply state-of-the-art technologies to their ongoing research efforts.
At present, the scale of CGIAR biotechnology research is modest - especially compared with that of the private sector - and probably will remain so. In 1990, for example, CGIAR plant and animal biotechnology research totalized US$14.5 million (Cohen et al., 1988). This was less than 5 percent of the total CGlAR budget and only a traction of the US$55 million spent on agricultural biotechnology by one US corporation, the Monsanto Chemical Company. Half of the CGIAR outlay on biotechnology went to plant research, distributed across nine international centres working on 15 crops. The other half went to animal research, primarily at ILRAD in Nairobi. This centre conducts state-of-the-art molecular biology research for the control of two major livestock diseases: tick-transmitted East Coast Fever (theileriosis) and tsetse fly-transmitted African sleeping sickness (trypanosomiasis).
The role of IARCs in advanced research networks
Many international centres play a crucial role in advanced networks that link centres with advanced basic science institutions. Such networks help to target research, develop methodologies, establish new research channels, expand awareness of centre-based research, and provide a means to acquire new technologies. The centres gain because they can link their own programmes with those of advanced and developing country institutions on problems of mutual interest. Collaborating advanced institutions benefit because they can gain an understanding of major developing country problems that might benefit from biotechnology approaches, as well as learn more about the genetic resource collections held by the centres.
The oldest such network, as far as the centres are concerned, is the Rockefeller Foundation-supported network on biotechnology in rice, established in 1985. This network links advanced laboratories in Europe, the United States and elsewhere, with the international Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT). Molecular maps are being developed to allow breeders to determine whether an individual rice plant contains known genes. Many potentially useful genes have been cloned from rice, including the gene "oryzacystatin", an inhibitor of the digestive enzymes of insect pests. More will be said about this important undertaking later in this paper.
The formation of the Cassava Biotechnology Network in 1988 at CIAT, involving scientists in Latin America, Africa, Europe and the United States, brought new techniques to difficult research problems in cassava. A major effort involves studying the biochemistry and genetics of cyanogenesis (the formation of HCN, hydrocyanic acid, in plants). Social scientists will assist with farming systems studies in areas where cyanogenic cassava is grown. Findings will help define research objectives: whether to eliminate cyanide throughout the plant, or to increase specific enzyme activity to reduce the presence of cyanogenic compounds. A further goal is the production of true seed as a joint venture between the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and CIAT.
The International Potato Centre (CIP) and the International Centre for Maize and Wheat Improvement (CIMMYT) are also effectively using networks. CIP, which works with potato and sweet potato, has established an extensive network of collaborating institutions in the United States, China, Israel and Europe for activities in genetic engineering and RFLP analysis. Efforts such as this have enabled CIP to obtain access to scientific expertise in a cost-effective manner. CIMMYT was involved in establishing and participating in a maize RFLP network under the EUREKA funding and guidelines of Europe. This network consists of public and private institutions in France, Germany, the Netherlands and Italy. Their goals are to utilize molecular markers (RFLPs) to complement the genetic map of maize; to fingerprint European and CIMMYT maize inbred germplasm; to identify (map) Quantitative Trait Loci (QTLs) for important agronomic characters; and to develop strategies for using marker-assisted selection of breeding programme. CIMMYT also participates in the International Triticeae Mapping Initiative (ITMI), a network of scientists interested in mapping the wheat and related genomes.
In addition to the research networks, ISNAR established an Intermediate Biotechnology Service (IBS) in early 1993, to serve as an advisory network on management and policy aspects of biotechnology research in developing countries.
CIAT - Biotechnology research began in the period from 1980 to 1984, with emphasis on tissue culture for conserving cassava germplasm and accelerating rice germplasm improvement. In 1985 the Biotechnology Research Unit (BRU) was established. BRU focused further on critical challenges in CIAT's crop germplasm and expanded to include the study of selected microorganisms and modern biochemical and molecular techniques. Research is carried out through special project funding and includes:
CIAT also established several collaborative research projects with developed country institutions in the United States and Europe to work on, inter alias, genomic studies in cassava, rice biotechnology and molecular markers for evolutionary studies in common bean.
Additional research includes the characterization of mechanisms involved in resistance and tolerance to biotic and abiotic stress in plants. This work can be categorized as (1) the characterization of resistance mechanisms to pests and pathogens (e.g. resistance to bruchids, a major pest in beans, and developing the molecular bases for co-evolution in bean pests); (2) characterization of physiological and biochemical processes in plants and bacteria (e.g. drought and heat tolerance in cassava, aluminium tolerance to acid soils, and cassava starch fermentation); and (3) development of methodologies. As technologies are developed, CIAT shifts activities from BRU into the appropriate research programme, which then continues the work. Since 1988 six major projects have been handled in this manner (CIAT, 1992).
In addition to research efforts, CIAT has trained nearly 90 people from 20 countries in Latin America, Asia and Africa in tissue culture and the biochemical and molecular characterization of genetic resources. Future training will emphasize graduate studies and in-service research, linked as much as possible to national research programmes.
CIMMYT - Since the early 1980s, CIMMYT has utilized various tools of biotechnology in wheat and maize improvement. They have included the use of tissue culture for producing the inter genetic hybrid triticale, somaclonal selection for salt tolerance in wheat, and the enhancement of recombination in the wide-hybridization of wheat with wild relatives, and maize with Tripsacum. Enzyme-Linked Innunoserbent Assay (ELISA) assays were and are being used in the routine diagnosis of several viral diseases, including barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV). Various protein and isozyme markers have been used in detecting chromosomes of wheat in evaluating protein quality of wheat varieties.
With the completion of its new applied biotechnology facilities in 1989, CIMMYT's efforts in biotechnology were enhanced to include the use of molecular marker technology for location and manipulating the genes involved in traits of agronomic importance. These efforts are the focus of the Applied Molecular Genetics Laboratory. More recently, the Tissue Culture Laboratory was established in order to take advantage of recent reports of successful maize and wheat transformation. All activities in biotechnology seek to enhance the breeding programme, through either more efficient selection techniques or enhanced germplasm. Technology evaluation and adaptation for use at CIMMYT and in its client countries, training and technology transfer and collaborative research, all play a part in these efforts.
The Applied Molecular Genetics Laboratory has concentrated in the last few years on establishing efficient protocols for the use of marker technologies in wheat and maize. There are four aspects of protocol development:
Current collaborative research in maize includes the evaluation of the genetic diversity of tropical, subtropical, highland and African germplasm. The current database contains molecular fingerprints for over 100 lines. This information has enabled CIMMYT's breeders to understand better the heterotic groupings and to develop more appropriate testers for germplasm improvement. A major study involves the genetic base of resistance to multiple corn borers using RFLP genotyping and field evaluations of populations segregating for resistance. Results indicate resistance is polygenic and gene action is primarily additive. It is expected that RFLP markers will facilitate the incorporation of resistance into elite germplasm, increasing breeding efficiency and reducing costs.
The application of marker technologies in wheat is more complex, because of its larger genome and its polyploid nature. There has been progress in pilot mapping studies using large-scale RFLP analysis for durable leaf rust resistance and resistance to bacterial leaf blight. Projects are being developed to widen the genetic base of modern wheat through marker-assisted introgression of desired traits from wild bread wheat relatives (e.g. resistance to viruses, fungi and bacteria; and tolerance to abiotic stresses such as salinity, drought and aluminium). Molecular markers are expected to become routine breeding tools at CIMMYT; this will require a "service-oriented" laboratory to handle the expected large numbers of routine molecular analyses.
The Tissue Culture Laboratory seeks to enhance the resistance of tropical maize to major insect pests through transformation which offers breeders a new tool for broadening the genetic composition of germplasm. Several major tropical and subtropical CIMMYT lines are being evaluated for embryogenic callus formation and regeneration potential. Also under way are insect bioassays of partially purified toxins from Bacillus thuriengensis (Bt) strains collected in Latin America in collaboration with the Mexican plant molecular biology institute, CINVESTAV, and the EMBRAPA maize breeding station in Sete Lagoas, Brazil. Efforts in maize transformation as well as collaboration in several developing and developed country institutions will soon be enhanced, with the recent approval of a special project under UNDP funding.
CIP - Recent work expands on the new Restriction Length Polymorphism (RFLP) map for potato produced by Cornell University, in collaboration with CIP. A total of 220 markers are now available. Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers, generated by the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), have been adapted to analyze DNA variation in tuberbearing Solanum, demonstrating the RAPD markers are suitable for large-scale assessment of the genetic diversity of potato populations.
Transformation through the insertion of antibacterial protein genes and the coat-protein gene for Potato Leaf Roll Virus (PLRV) into potato clones is now possible. Two genotypes, Desiree and 86007, were used for transformation with Agrobacterium tumefaciens and A. rhizogenes as vectors for gene coding for antibacterial proteins.
CIP's virus detection work continues to provide antisera to the major potato viruses, and a new PLRV antiserum is being prepared. Virus detection kits for potato viruses are a widely used CIP product. More than 750 000 virus samples were evaluated through the distribution of antisera, Das-ELISA, and NCM-ELISA kits. There is a great demand for this technology in all countries with severe Sweet Potato Weevil (SPW) problems since progress has been slow in developing SPW-resistant cultivars. The recent discovery of Bt strains effective in controlling SPW has opened new avenues for genetically engineered sweet potatoes with the Bt-toxin gene. In the near future transgenic sweet potatoes with resistance to SPW may become available.
To develop transgenic potatoes with resistance to tuber moth, CIP is collaborating with the Comitato nazionale per la ricerca e per lo sviluppo dell'energia nucleare e delle energie alternative (ENEA) in Italy, Michigan State University (MSU), and Plant Genetic Systems (PGS) of Belgium. ENEA has focused on the development of two DNA sequences similar to other known Bt sequences. These were used for transforming potato plants by Agrobacterium infection. Collaborative work between MSU and PGS has produced several potato cultivars with resistance to PTM. Several CIP advanced clones have now been selected for engineering Bt genes with resistance to PTM. Other genes of interest for transformation efforts include the Cowpea Trypsin Inhibitor Gene (CPTI).
ICRISAT - ICRISAT scientists use biotechnology tools to overcome crop production constraints, but only where conventional techniques cannot be applied, or where biotechnology is more efficient or cost-effective. ICRISAT adapts proven biotechnology techniques to its research.
In cereal biotechnology research, ICRISAT aims to use molecular markers in crop improvement. In collaboration with the University of Milan, a RFLP map of sorghum is being developed using maize probes. Similarly, with the collaboration of scientists from the United Kingdom, a RFLP map of pearl millet is nearing completion. Refined molecular maps for both crops will enable researchers to make rapid progress in their improvement. ICRISAT participates actively in global efforts to use molecular markers in crop improvement.
Some transformation work is also being pursued. Whole plants were regenerated from various organs or single cells of pearl millet, and from shoot apices of sorghum. Future work will build upon collaboration with public institutions in the United States and elsewhere, particularly in sorghum.
In collaboration with the Scottish Crop Research Institute (SCRI), United Kingdom, a molecular map of groundnut is being developed to identify markers for agronomic traits. This will help identify the coat protein gene of the Indian peanut clump virus and make plasmid constructs suitable for the transformation of groundnut. Research in chickpea and pigeonpea has emphasized reliable tissue culture and plant regeneration techniques for use in wide crossing and transformation. Interspecific hybridization of chickpea (Cicer arietinum) and a wild Cicer spp. is in progress. Target genes are those conferring resistance to insects and to fungal pathogens. For pigeonpea, wild species hold many desirable characters not present in the crop. An interspecific hybridization programme involves crossing Cajanus cajan with Cajanus platycarpus, and overcoming current barriers to hybridization.
IRRI - As mentioned earlier, IRRI's biotechnology work has been supported by the Rockefeller Foundation International Programme in Rice Biotechnology, established in 1985. This network serves as a prototype for successful interactions between developed and developing country institutions, and includes the participation of IRRI, CIAT, IFPRI and ISNAR. Of the total amount invested or committed to the programme by the Rockefeller Foundation since 1985 over US$48 million - slightly over US$22.5 million have gone to institutions in North America, Europe and Japan; nearly US$19 million to developing countries - most of the funds being spent on 130 fellowships; US$ 1 million towards information dissemination; and slightly over US$6 million to international agricultural research centres. Of the funds going to IARCs, US$5 million supported 12 biological research projects, and US$ 1 million supported six social science research projects (Rockefeller Foundation, 1992).
The rice biotechnology programme aims to strengthen the capacity of research institutions in developing countries to assume increased responsibility for further development and application of rice biotechnology. IRRI, in collaboration with developed country laboratories, has worked to bring about some of the major highlights of the programme, including the following (Toenniessen, 1992):
Information and technologies generated are passed to developing country institutions for further research and implementation.
ILRAD - ILRAD's work represents approximately half of CGIAR funds invested in biotechnology research. Recent accomplishments include joint work with the University of California at Berkeley which led to a completed map of the entire genetic material of Theileria parva, an important parasite of domestic African livestock, which causes the disease known as East Coast Fever. This restriction map is the first complete map made of the genome of a protozoan parasite. Techniques involving modern molecular biology, biotechnology and genetic manipulation were used in the mapping exercise. The parasite genome map will be used to monitor the occurrence of genetic recombination in the parasite's life cycle, which involves the generation of a wide variety of parasite strains. Knowledge of the basis of this diversity will help researchers develop a vaccine that will work broadly and effectively against all strains.
The theileriosis programme continues to develop and refine antibody-based ELISA systems and DNA probes for precise identification of tickborne disease organisms. In this effort ILRAD works closely with laboratories in Australia, United States and Latin America (ILRAD, 1992). ILRAD has identified, characterized, cloned and expressed a surface antigen of the sporozoite stage of T. parva. The recombinant protein when combined with adjuvant is capable of inducing protective ability has also been identified, characterized, cloned and expressed, and its immunizing potential in cattle is now being tested. These antigens represent the basis for the development of new, genetically engineered vaccines against East Coast Fever.
The trypanosomiasis research programme has developed highly sensitive tests (monoclonal-antibody-based ELISAs) for distinguishing trypanosome species. The reliability of this work was validated in 1991 by researchers in eight laboratories in Africa whose work was supported by FAO and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna. The utility of these tests in diagnosing human trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness) is now being tested with the World Health Organization in Geneva. ILRAD and its partners in a network of laboratories in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Israel, the United States and Australia, are engaged in developing a physical map of the bovine genome. In this collaboration, ILRAD provides a major genetic resource by breeding F1 and F2 families derived from crosses of trypanosusceptible and trypanotolerant parents and determining their trypanotolerant status. ILRAD has also developed technologies and primers to define cattle populations and subpopulations, known as RAPDs, which will be highly valuable in the description and conservation of global bovine genetic resources.
Training and institution building
An important way to diffuse research technology is through training and institution building. CGIAR has an illustrious record in research training to help strengthen developing country capabilities. Between 1985 and 1989, CGIAR-supported centres conducted training courses, most of them lasting from two to four weeks, to an estimated 25,000 developing country researchers and scientists in all areas of crop and livestock improvement (CGIAR, 1991b). In addition, research fellowships in biotechnology have been offered at several centres.
Most IARCs are hesitant to promote biotechnology training in countries without significant plant breeding programme and without appropriate laboratory facilities (Collinson and Weight Platais, 1992). Experience shows that researchers returning to a national system, after receiving training from a developed country institution but with little or no means of mobilizing their skills, become frustrated and often feel "cut off" from scientific advances.
On the institutional side the centres are increasingly being asked by national agencies to help set up creative programmes that often have a biotechnology component. In 1986, for example, the Andean Development Bank (CAF - Corporación Andina de Fomento) asked IARCs in the Latin American region to assist in some of the activities of its recently created biotechnology programme. In response, CIP began work with CAF on projects in five Andean countries (Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela), which range from using tissue culture for disease-free material, to in vitro potato seed production, to facilitating the transport of planting materials to remote areas.
Information dissemination
As research advances are made in biotechnology, the importance of information flow becomes essential. IARCs help NARS by providing technical information which may be otherwise difficult to obtain. Information resources currently available include Ag-biotech news and information, published by CAB International. The CGIAR Biotechnology Task Force (Biotask) was formed in 1988 to help raise the awareness of biotechnology in all elements of the CGIAR system, including lARCs, donors, TAC and national partners. In addition to providing a forum for discussion on issues of biotechnology, other activities were undertaken, such as assistance by the Dutch Government in distributing the ag-biotech journal to 120 developing country libraries. Biotask ended its work in 1992.
In regard to information needs, in 1990 the Directors-General of the CGIAR centres stated:
"The fullest application of biotechnology may be constrained by non-technical issues such as biosafety regulations, intellectual property management and public awareness. The dissemination of balanced, accurate information concerning biotechnological activities carried out in the Centres and elsewhere in the scientific community in the service of agriculture would ease such constraints" (CGIAR, 1990).
Current and future policy considerations
Biosafety
Biotechnology regulations in the developing world are complicated, partly because of a diversity of players in biotechnology research and testing, including IARCs, their donors, developing country governments and research institutions, research institutions and private industry of industrialized nations, and various environmental and public advocacy concerns. Each has its own agenda and definition of what constitutes safe and appropriate release (Cohen et al., 1988).
All biotechnology programme must abide by the legally established regulations of the country where the research is being conducted. Currently, if regulations exist at all, they vary widely from country to country. If regulations are not in place, international guidelines to ensure adequate safeguards are followed. A common first step is the successful testing of regulated organisms in industrialized countries or in countries with established regulatory and approval mechanisms; this helps clear the way for subsequent testing in developing countries. However, care must be taken when "transposing" the regulations of one country directly to another as the different ecologies, crops, quarantine regulations, etc. vary greatly from one site to another; each site must make its own policy and cost/benefit analyses (Sawyer and Dodds, 1991).
When applying new technologies, IARCs must deal with many issues including scientific, technical, environmental, regulatory and policy dimensions of research. Several centres have established special committees to prepare for the testing of such genetically improved material. IARCs follow international guidelines set by OECD, and work closely with host countries in determining proper risk analysis for field testing.
Plant genetic resources and intellectual property management
The need to preserve future biodiversity has been, and continues to be, a top priority for CGIAR. Over the years, several of the centres have assembled global germplasm collections for their mandated crops, often using the material to re-establish individual country collections (e.g. because of storage failures or losses caused by political unrest). The former International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR) now the International Plant Genetic
Resources Institute (IPGRI) - was established in 1974 for the purpose of promoting germplasm utilization and conservation.
CGIAR has always operated an "open door" germplasm policy - meaning that all clients, whether public or private, in developed or developing countries, can enjoy access to the germplasm. But the involvement of the private sector in biotechnology research has raised some questions about both access of developing countries to new biotechnologies and the extent to which research will benefit resource-poor farmers. Developing countries see themselves as faced with two possible scenarios, either of which may be entirely acceptable. They can protect intellectual property rights, and thereby obtain access to the latest crop technologies which in turn may lead to higher seed costs. Or they can choose to forego IPR protection, perhaps to save foreign exchange and attempt to protect farmers' incomes, but risk being left behind in the technology race. (Platais and Collinson, 1992). Are alternative scenarios possible?
Intellectual property considerations are not new in CGIAR. ILRAD has long sought vaccines for its two target diseases, trypanosomiasis and theileriosis. ILRAD realized that to develop a vaccine and make it available to African farmers paradoxically it would have to file for patent protection. Such protection was considered essential to satisfy private sector partners who otherwise would be unwilling to provide the investment funds necessary to develop and produce a vaccine and bring it to market. Other centres have obtained patents on discoveries, such as small farm machines developed at IRRI, but such patents were taken for defensive purposes (Siebeck, Plucknett and Wright Platais, 1993). CGIAR does not seek financial gain from discoveries made at IARCs. When patents are taken, they are used by IARCs themselves or transferred to their partners to ensure that scientific advances are utilized in developing countries.
In 1982 CGIAR began to review the implications of intellectual property protection, beginning with a report by TAC on the role of plant breeders' rights, and culminating in a recent discussion paper on the subject of plant genetic resources, biosafety and intellectual property rights. The latter paper is currently under review both within and outside the CGIAR system. At the mid-term meeting of CGIAR in Istanbul, in May 1992, the members of CGIAR agreed to a CGIAR Working Document on Genetic Resources and Intellectual Property which stated:
"The CGIAR reaffirms that genetic resources maintained in the genebanks of the centres are held in trust for the world community. Material from the genebanks at the centres will continue to be freely available, in accordance with the 1989 CGIAR Policy on Plant Genetic Resources... Centres do not seek intellectual property protection unless it is absolutely necessary to ensure access by developing countries to new technologies and products. The centres will not seek intellectual property protection as a source of operating funds. Should exceptional cases arise where a centre might receive a financial return, an appropriate means will be used to ensure that such funds are used for the conservation of genetic resources and related research" (CGIAR, 1992).
Future CGIAR efforts in biotechnology are likely to emphasize genetic characterization of germplasm materials of important crop plants and animals, improved diagnostic tools, and enhanced genetic improvement of important crops and livestock. Partnerships will continue to be sought with advanced institutions and developing country institutions to help solve important common problems, in particular those of developing countries. As now, IARCs will largely be consumers and not originators of developments in basic sciences, but will stand among the leaders in developing tools and technologies that can be used in developing countries. Furthermore, IARCs will play a bridging role in technology transfer and a leading role in helping to train developing country scientists.
Our thanks to the scientists of CIAT, CIMMYT, CIP, ICRISAT, and ILRAD and the Rockefeller Foundation for the information provided.
Contact for biotechnology information at the listed IARCs:
Dr William Roca
Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical
Apartado Aereo 6713
Cali, Colombia
Dr David Hoisington
Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maiz y Trigo
PO Box 6-641
Mexico 06600, D.F. Mexico
Dr Peter Gregory
Centro Internacional de la Papa
Apartado 5969, Lima, Peru
Dr Y.L. Nene
International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics
Patancheru PO
Andhra Pradesh 502 324, India
Dr Jack Doyle
International Laboratory for Research on Animal Diseases
PO Box 30709
Nairobi, Kenya
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