Global
FAO DG CALLS FOR SECOND GREEN REVOLUTION “In the next few decades, a major international effort
is needed to feed the world when the population soars from
six to nine billion. We might call it a second Green Revolution.” This
was stated by Jacques Diouf, Director General of the United
Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), as
he addressed a recent meeting of the World Affairs Council
of Northern California in San Francisco, USA.
“The new Green Revolution will be less about introducing
new, high-performance varieties of wheat or rice, important
as they are, and much more about making wiser and more efficient
use of the natural resources available to us,” he said.
Dr. Diouf was optimistic that this could be done, as tests
conducted by the organization have shown that yield increases
of up to 30% could be achieved through Integrated Crop Management
(ICM), or improved crop management techniques. “It
may sound incredible but we actually can save water and grow
more food at the same time,” the Director-General added.
Read the complete press release at http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2006/
1000392/index.html
JOURNAL COMMENTARIES EXAMINE FOOD BIOTECH
Two commentaries in Nature Biotechnology take a look
at the promise of biotech foods, and how they might be
able
to improve diets, as well as allow producers and manufacturers
to avoid lawsuits. Henry Miller, of Stanford University,
and colleagues examine “Why spurning food biotech
has become a liability.” They write on how food manufacturers
have excluded genetically modified (GM) foods from their
products, but how these manufacturers could face litigation,
since most “all-natural” foods will contain
contaminants like insect parts, toxic molds, bacteria,
and viruses. GM foods are better protected from these
contaminants, and authors suggest that there should
be better incentives
to using GM grains more widely. They do so by presenting
hypothetical scenarios of litigation involved when
dealing with allergen-contaminated, all-natural potatoes
and baby
food. In “The breeder's dilemma—yield or nutrition?” Cindy
Morris and David Sands of
Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA) and
Montana State University, respectively, suggest that farmers
and scientists devote energy to increasing crop nutritional
value, rather than yield. By looking at problems with staple
foods, such as wheat and corn, the authors recommend ways
by which crops could be enhanced to improve consumers’ diets.
Nature Biotechnology subscribers can read the commentaries
at http://www.nature.com/
nbt/journal/v24/n9/full/nbt0906-1078.html and http://www.nature.com/nbt/journal/
v24/n9/full/nbt0906-1075.html.
PAPER ASSESSES MODERN BIOTECH, ISSUES Plant biotechnology has been accelerated
by advances in gene transfer technology, which can engineer
new traits into
plants that are very difficult to introduce by traditional
breeding. Gene transfer technology, however, should supplement,
and not completely replace conventional breeding techniques.
This was concluded by Prem P. Jauhar of the United States
Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service
(USDA-ARS) in “Modern Biotechnology as an Integral
Supplement to Conventional Plant Breeding:
The Prospects and Challenges,” an article that appears
in the latest issue of Crop Science.
Jauhar examines the history of plant biotechnology,
from crop breeding, to the Green Revolution, to today’s
genetic engineering techniques. While the future seems bright
for biotechnology and its possible role in creating edible
vaccines or in phytoremediation, the author reminds readers
that the current resistance to acceptance of novel technology “should
be assessed and overcome so that its full potential in crop
improvement can be realized,” and that “Although
some of the public concerns may not be well founded, they
will need to be properly addressed.”
Subscribers to Crop Science can read the complete article
at http://crop.scijournals.org/cgi/content/full/46/5/1841.
FAO MEETS ON REDUCING CHILD LABOR IN AGRI Reducing child labor in agriculture was on the agenda of
a recent meeting in Rome, which brought together representatives
from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO), the International Labor Organization (ILO), and other
international agricultural organizations to discuss how to
coordinate efforts to tackle the problem. About 70% of child
labor worldwide is found in agriculture, where children are
often obliged to work long hours, use sharp tools designed
for adults, carry loads too heavy for their immature bodies,
and operate dangerous machinery. Children working in agriculture
also risk exposure to toxic pesticides, dusts, diseases,
and unsanitary conditions.
“Some agricultural activities – mixing and applying
pesticides, using certain types of machinery – are
so dangerous that children should be clearly prohibited from
engaging in them,” Parviz Koohafkan, Director of FAO’s
Rural Development Division, said. But, he adds, not all of
the work that children do is harmful to their development
and well-being. Agriculture could also teach children valuable
skills, build their self esteem, and allow them to contribute
to the generation of household income.
The challenge of eliminating of hazardous child labor is
particularly daunting in Africa where agriculture is the
dominant economic activity, and factors such as persistent
poverty and food insecurity, poor education and HIV/AIDS
compound the problem.
Read the complete press release at http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2006/
1000394/index.html.
Africa SYRIA HOSTS REGIONAL TRAINING ON IPR
Syria’s Damascus University hosted
a Training Program on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR).
Participants from
Qatar, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania, Jordan, Morocco, Syria,
and Egypt participated in the program, which was supported
by the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(ISESCO) and the Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological
Cooperation (COMSTECH)/
Prof. Wael Al-Malaa President of Damascus
University emphasized on the importance of IPR in his welcome
speech. “Such
[a] training program will lead to better understanding of
IPR issues,” he said, “I encourage the participants
to fully benefit from this training to help their own countries
to advance the innovation process.” On behalf of ISESCO,
Prof. Hamed Eid focused on the effect of IPR on sustainable
development and the impact of Tech Transfer on the invention.
Speakers from Egypt and Syria explained the copy rights and
Tech Transfer as case studies for participants.
In the closing session, participants remarked
that “future
training on IPR especially in Tech Transfer should be continued.” For
more information, contact Dr. Ismail Abdelhamid of the Egypt
Biotechnology Information Center at iamaeg@yahoo.com
The Americas CIRAD, EMBRAPA PROJECT BRINGS AGRI TO NORDESTE, BRAZIL
A project spearheaded by the Centre De Cooperation
Internationale En Recherche Agronomique Pour Le Développement
(CIRAD) and the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation
(EMBRAPA)
has brought sustainable agriculture to the semi-arid Nordeste
region of Brazil. Conceived as a method to increase productivity,
the project has resulted in farmers having a better understanding
of how their farming systems work. They have thus been able
to adapt their practices accordingly.
CIRAD and EMBRAPA researchers suggested a
methodology for establishing indicators of production system
sustainability.
It included establishing a conceptual framework, padding
out that framework with field surveys, and comparing the
suggested indicators with those put forward by farmers, to
ensure their relevance. The conceptual framework and field
surveys yielded eight indicators: changes in the area of
native vegetation, mineral balance, production revenues and
costs, fodder balance, the proportion of the fodder balance
drawn from outside the farm, changes in animal numbers, changes
in security areas, and diversification of sources of agricultural
income. With farmers adopting better agricultural practices,
the project’s next step is to validate the sustainability
indicators by taking account of the parameters that are missing:
the labor resource, which is a major production factor, and
water resource flows.
Read the complete article at http://www.cirad.fr/en/actualite/communique.php?id=518
Asia and the Pacific “SEARCH FOR NEW GENES” TO
BOOST INDIA'S AGRICULTURE
While inaugurating the symposium on 'Search for New Genes'
to commemorate the recent birth centenary of Dr BP Pal, Dr
APJ Abdul Kalam, President of India, urged the scientific
community to inculcate scientific magnanimity to motivate
and nurture team spirit, which would lead to new discoveries
and innovation in plant genome research.
“I feel the search for new genes would always be there
to meet urgent and important changing needs of the society,” said
the President. He urged agriculture scientists to, among
others, deploy cutting edge biotechnology; develop stress-tolerant
crop varieties; develop more nutritional crop varieties rich
in Vitamin A, iodine, calcium, and iron to minimize nutrition
deficiency problems in developing countries; improve crop
productivity and add value to agriculture produce, particularly
vegetables, fruits, flowers, and other perishables; and produce
biofuels and develop designer crops.
The speech, “Impact of gene science in agriculture” is
available at http://presidentofindia.nic.in/scripts/sllatest1.jsp?id=815 and http://pib.nic.in/release/rel_print_page1.asp?relid=20456.
For
more information contact Bhagirath Choudhary of the ISAAA
South Asia Office at b.choudhary@isaaa.org.
FIELD TRIALS FOR GM BANANA COMPLETED Rahan Meristem, an Israeli biotech company,
has successfully completed a field trial that validates
the complete resistance
of their transgenic banana plants to a wide range of pathogenic
nematodes. Nematodes are one of the crop’s most destructive
pathogens. Nematicides, though effective, have been banned
in large parts of the world because of their polluting effects
on the environment.
Rahan Meristem is currently involved in various breeding
projects using genetic engineering. The company is also working
on other crops, including almonds, apples, avocado, olives,
and strawberries.
Read the complete article at http://www.export.gov.il/Eng/_Articles/Article.asp?
ArticleID=4115&CategoryID=399.
For additional information, visit Rahan Meristem at http://www.rahan.co.il.
THAI COTTON DOWN, COTTON INDUSTRY PRESIDENT SAYS Thai cotton production is down due to lack
of government support. This is according to the president
of the Thai Cotton
Industry, who disclosed that the country’s consumption
is costing it millions of Thai Baht a year, which may result
in Thailand importing cotton if the situation does not improve.
Somchai remarked on how cotton growers in
India are using Bt cotton, and how yields in that country
have increased
up to 8 times, with lower production costs. “We are
importing Bt cotton from outside to meet industrial demand
but we can’t produce our own,” said Somchai.
With reports from Naewna (http://www.naewna.com), as translated
by Thailand’s Biotechnology Information Center (http://www.safetybio.com/).
ADB,
VIET GOVERNMENT SIGN AGRI GRANT PROJECT
The
Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of Vietnam
have signed a
grant project that will disseminate improved
agricultural technology and information to help reduce
poverty in remote and isolated mountainous parts
of the country. The US$900,000 grant is provided by the
Japan
Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR), financed by the
Government
of Japan. The Government of Viet Nam will contribute
$80,000 toward the project's total cost.
The
project will undertake a series of community-based programs
to develop
agriculture and income-generating
activities for
local communes. It will strengthen skills of grassroots
extension staff and develop farmer-to-farmer learning
networks, and
promote new methods of planning and evaluation. It
will complement a proposed Agriculture Science and
Technology (AST) Project
that aims to strengthen the country’s agriculture
science and technology system through research, extension,
and rural-based
training.
With
reports from Agbiotech Vietnam. For more news from Vietnam,
email Le Hien of BiotechVn
at lehien@agbiotech.com.vn.
MALAYSIA WORKS ON IMPROVING BIOTECH SECTOR Recent events in Malaysia have allowed the
country to further strengthen its biotechnology sector.
Prime Minister Datuk
Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi participated in the groundbreaking
ceremonies of the National Institute for Natural Products,
Vaccines and Biologics (9Bio). The institute’s core
functions include the development of halal (permissible within
Islamic principles) vaccines and other health-related products.
The Prime Minister also announced the BioNexus status and
the Malaysian Life Sciences Capital Fund (MLSCF), which will
allow biotech companies with BioNexus status to receive more
incentives, including freedom of ownership, freedom to source
funds globally, and unrestricted employment of knowledge
workers.
The companies would also have access to shared laboratories
and production facilities as well as access to an information
network linking research centers of excellence. Other privileges
include 10 years of tax exemption on company profits as well
tax deductions on early-stage investments. The prime minister
said these efforts were taken to encourage more Malaysian
companies to enter the industry.
Malaysia and the Netherlands are also engaged
in agricultural cooperation. Malaysia appointed an agricultural
attaché in
Amsterdam in early 2006, while the Netherlands opened a regional
office for Agriculture, Nature, and Food Quality in Kuala
Lumpur early this month. The Prime Minister said that Malaysia
could learn from the Dutch experience in agriculture and
biotechnology to produce top quality and high-value food
products.
For more information, contact Mahaletchumy Arujanan of the
Malaysia Biotechnology Information Center (MABIC) at maha@bic.org.my.
CO-EXISTENCE MAPPED FOR BT, CONVENTIONAL MAIZE Most markets allow a 0.9% threshold of adventitious
presence for genetically modified (GM) organisms. At what
distance
should GM crops be planted from conventional ones to keep
within the threshold? In “Pollen-mediated gene flow
in maize in real situations of coexistence,” Joaquima
Messeguer and colleagues from various research institutions
in Barcelona and Girona, Spain conduct the first study on
cross-fertilization between Bt and conventional maize in
real situations of coexistence in two regions in which Bt
and conventional maize were cultivated. Their findings appear
in the latest issue of Plant Biotechnology.
Scientists sampled maize from transgenic fields and analyzed
them for the presence of GM DNA using the real-time quantification
system-polymerase chain reaction (RTQ-PCR) technique. Researchers
found that: 1) in general, the rate of cross-fertilization
between GM and conventional plants was higher in the borders,
with decreasing rates toward the center of the field; 2)
In real conditions of coexistence and in cropping areas with
smaller fields, the main factors that determined cross-pollination
were the synchronicity of flowering and the distances between
the donor and receptor fields; 3) By establishing an index
on the two variables, a distance of about 20 m would be sufficient
to maintain the 0.9% threshold.
Read the abstract of the article at http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/
j.1467-7652.2006.00207.x.
Subscribers to Plant Biotechnology can access the complete
article through the same link.
RICE PROTEIN CHANGE MAKES CROP VIRUS RESISTANT, RESEARCH
FINDS Because the viral genome is so small, viruses often rely
on host factors to assist them in infecting the host. One
such factor is the eukaryotic translation initiation factor
4E (eIF4E), which interacts with the potyvirus VPg protein.
VPg breaks host resistance to viruses. In plants, both eIF4E
and eIF4G appear to play a significant role in plant/virus
interactions. But if host factors are mutated and cannot
be recognized by viral proteins, can plants remain resistant
to viral infection?
Laurence Albar and colleagues try it out
on rice, and report that “Mutations in the eIF(iso)4G translation initiation
factor confer high resistance of rice to Rice yellow mottle
virus.” Their work is published in the latest issue
of The Plant Journal. Researchers worked on rice resistance
to the Rice yellow mottle virus (RYMV), a major pathogen
of rice in Africa; as well as on the rice variety Gigante,
which has a very high resistance to RYMV.
Researchers mapped the Gigante variety’s genome to
isolate the Rymv1 locus; this locus encodes a gene that contributes
to the plant’s resistance. The researchers then derived
the corresponding gene from a rice variety susceptible to
RYMV, and transferred it to the Gigante line. With the new
gene, transgenic Gigante lost resistance to RYMV. Rymv1,
the researchers found, encodes an isoform of eIF4G. This
gene is mutated in Gigante, keeping it from interacting with
viral proteins, and allowing the rice variety to be resistant
to RYMV infections.
According to the researchers, this gene “is of outstanding
interest as it is the only one controlling the high resistance
of rice against RYMV that has been described so far.” They
now plan to do a wider analysis of Rymv1 diversity in rice
varieties and their wild relatives, particularly those that
are described as being resistant to RYMV. This can pave the
way for eventual use of the genes in rice breeding programs.
Subscribers to The Plant Journal can read the complete article
through http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-313X.2006.02792.x or http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/
doi/full/10.1111/j.1365-313X.2006.02792.x.
Other readers can access the abstract through http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-313X.2006.02792.x.
RYE PROTEIN SHOWN TO BIND TO ICE
Plants that live in temperate and boreal regions have to
be able to survive not only extreme temperatures, but also
temperature fluctuations. In such regions, summer heat
is severe, and winter cold is extreme; in the latter condition,
ice crystals can form in plants, destroying cells by forcing
water out of them and effectively dehydrating the plant.
Freezing damage also renders plants more susceptible to
pathogen attack.
Freezing-tolerant plants, which include some cereals,
undergo cold acclimation, a gradual adaptation to cold
but not
freezing temperatures. In the process, the plants secrete
antifreeze proteins (AFP) that inhibit the growth of
ice crystals. Finding out what proteins keep plants
frost-free
can help scientists engineer other plants with cold
acclimation. Mahmoud W.F. Yaish and colleagues of University
of Waterloo,
Canada report on "Cold-Active Winter Rye Glucanases
with Ice-Binding Capacity" in the latest issue
of Plant Physiology, where they characterize glucanases,
pathogenesis-related
proteins found in winter rye, to further examine the
enzymes' roles and contributions to cold tolerance.
Glucanases were previously known to function in plant pathogen
resistance, cell wall synthesis, and pollen development,
but the current study shows that these enzymes can contribute
to protecting plants from forming ice crystals in cold
conditions. Scientists found this out by expressing two
different glucanases in Escherichia coli, purifying the
recombinant proteins, and assaying them for their hydrolytic
and antifreeze activities in vitro. Glucanases, they surmised,
have evolved not only to possess enzymatic activity in
order to resist infection by pathogens; glucanases also
inhibit the formation of large, potentially fatal ice crystals.
The next question to be addressed is whether glucanases
also act as AFPs in other plant species, for which a better
understanding of the additional roles that glucanases have
in cold tolerance in planta is required. Subscribers
to the journal can read the complete article at http://www.plantphysiol.org/
cgi/content/full/141/4/1459.
Other readers can take a look at the abstract through http://www.plantphysiol.org/cgi/content/abstract/141/4/1459.
DR. MARGARET KAREMBU APPOINTED AFRICENTER HEAD Dr. Margaret Karembu has been appointed as
the new Director of ISAAA’s AfriCenter, based in
Nairobi, Kenya. Dr. Karembu obtained her PhD in Environmental
Sciences Education
from Kenyatta University, and is experienced in both formal
and non-formal training of environmentalists, farmer groups,
science communicators, journalists, training of trainers
(TOT), as well as use of participatory training methodologies.
As Director, she will be in charge of managing and implementing
selected ISAAA-facilitated projects in Africa.
Find
out more about the AfriCenter at http://www.isaaa.org/africenter.
INDONESIA
TO HOST RISK COMM WORKSHOP “A Risk Communication Workshop for Agricultural Biotechnology” for
Indonesian scientists will be held from 21 – 22 September,
2006 at SEAMEO BIOTROP, Bogor, Indonesia. The workshop will
be jointly organized by ISAAA, IndoBIC, and ABSP II, and
will present speakers from Indonesia and the Philippines.
The event will tackle writing a popular scientific article,
preparation of written statements for the press, and presentation
and analysis of written statements. To see the agenda, please
visit http://www.indobic.or.id. For more information contact
Dewi Suryani at dewisuryani@biotrop.org.
SOUTH ASIA INFOCENTER TO DISCUSS DELIVERY OF AGRICULTURAL
TECHNOLOGIES In November 2006, the SAARC (South Asian
Association for Regional Cooperation) Agricultural Information
Center (SAIC)
is organizing a Regional Workshop on Research–Extension
Linkages for Effective Delivery of Agricultural Technologies
in SAARC Countries. To be held at the National Academy of
Agricultural Research Management in Hyderabad, India, the
workshop aims to study national policy processes providing
facilitating framework and practices for establishing stronger
agricultural research - extension linkages; highlight the
technical, economic and institutional conditions influencing
development of collaborative linkages between research and
extension systems; and improve agricultural communication
between research and extension organizations. The proceedings
of the workshop will be published by SAIC and widely distributed
for follow-up actions by the relevant institutions.
Further details can be obtained at http://www.saic-dhaka.org/Regional%20Workshop.html
AOAD 2006 PRIZE FOR SCIENTIFIC INNOVATION IN THE AGRICULTURAL
AREA The Arab Organization for Agricultural Development
(AOAD) Prize aims to encourage agricultural research on
the following
topic: “Developing natural resources, protection of
environment, bio-diversity and desert combating.” Details
of the competition can be obtained by contacting AOAD headquarters
in Khartoum, or from the AOAD website: http://www.aoad.org/index_en.asp.
NIGER:
COURSE ON ECOLOGICAL IMPACT OF BIOTECH CROPS The Permanent Inter-State Committee for Drought
Control in the Sahel (CILSS) has embarked on a process
of harmonization
of GMO regulations since 2001 to facilitate and secure trade
between sub-regional countries. The course "The Bio-safety
of Genetically Modified Plants, with Special Reference to
Ecological Impacts” intends to address the environmental
aspects of GMO utilization, and is slated for November 3
- 8 in Niamey, Republic of Niger. The workshop will bring
together about twenty participants working in the fields
of agricultural products and by-products, seed, and/or GMO
quality control. Applicants must be citizens of the following
CILSS Member States: Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia,
Guinea Bissau, Mauritania, Niger, Mali, Senegal, and Chad.
Some places are reserved for self-sponsored candidates. Closing
date for receipt of applications: October 6th, 2006. More
information on how to apply is available at http://www.agrhymet.ne/PDF/Atelier_biodiversite_eng.pdf.
AGRIC INFO SPECIALISTS FROM LATIN AMERICA TO MEET IN MEXICO The 14th Inter-American Meeting of Agricultural
Librarians, Documentalists and Information Specialists
(RIBDA): “Toward
a new culture of knowledge: change and development” will
take place in Mexico. The event aims to promote prosperity
in the rural communities of the Americas, and focuses on
the on the new role professionals in the field of information
must assume in “the knowledge era,” to become
agents for change in their organizations and to contribute
to the development of their countries by devising more effective
processes for managing information. The main topics of the
meeting are: development of capabilities and skills in information
services: education, extension, research and marketing; management
of library services: quality and certification; new skills
for professionals in the field of agricultural information;
information and communication technologies; and best practices
in agricultural information: global, regional and national
initiatives.
The meeting, initially slated for September in Oaxaca, will
now take place in Mexico City on 6-10 November, 2006. More
information is available at http://www.14ribda.org and
http://www.iica.int/noticias/detalles/2006/CP31-2006_eng.pdf
TRAINING PROGRAMS ON PLANT GENETIC RESOURCES SCHEDULED Three one-week workshops of the International Training Program
on Plant Genetic Resources will address topics in conservation
and the use of plant genetic resources and seeds. These will
be held in Iran, and will include in situ and ex situ conservation
strategies (November 4-8, 2006); Support of local seed supply
and small-scale seed enterprises (November 11-15, 2006);
and genetic resources, rights, and institutional policies
(November 18-22, 2006). For more information, visit http://www.aarinena.org/rais/documents/Conferences/
TrainingW/IPGRI2006Iran/IPGRIWS2006iran.htm.
MEETING ON NATURAL PRODUCTS SLATED “Plant-derived Natural Products: A Resource for Bioactive
Compounds” will be held on the 28th of November 2006,
in Bracknell, Berkshire, United Kingdom. This meeting will
discuss the opportunities for optimizing naturally-based
remedies in medicine, new plant-based approaches to crop
protection and how vitamin deficiencies can be alleviated
simply, cheaply and effectively. It is an opportunity to
debate these issues and identify the way forward, assess
the opportunities, applaud the successes and look to the
promises for the future. Read more at http://www.soci.org/SCI/events/details.jsp?eventID=EV858. |