Biotech Updates

Heat Tolerant Lentils Endure Increasing Global Temperatures

June 21, 2017

A global team of experts discovered the key traits in lentils that will enable the important grain legume to tolerate rising temperatures.

Scientists from the University of Western Australia, Panjab University, Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) - Indian Institute of Pulse Research, Punjab Agricultural University, and International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) screened a number of lentil genotypes in the field and lab to search for heat tolerant traits and the key mechanisms involved in the tolerance. They exposed the lentil genotypes to heat stress during the crucial stage of reproduction, which led them to five genotypes showing heat tolerance and another five with heat sensitivity. The heat tolerant genotypes showed significantly higher germination, pollen viability, stigma function, ovule viability, and pollen tube growth as well as higher sucrose production compared with the heat sensitive genotypes.

Read more about the study in the UWA website.