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NewsGlobal[Top]
Some 1,000 World Food Prize Laureates, ministers, farmers, community development organizations, leading scientists, and innovators will gather in Montpellier, France from 28-31 March 2010 for the first Global Conference on Agricultural Research for Development (GCARD). [ Send to a Friend | Rate this Article ] [Top]
"There is a critical need to get beyond popular biases against the use of agricultural biotechnology and develop forward-looking regulatory frameworks based on scientific evidence," experts say in an opinion article Radically rethinking agriculture for the 21st century published in the journal Science. N.V. Fedoroff and colleagues call for a "serious reevaluation of the existing regulatory framework in the light of accumulated evidence and experience." This means establishing a foundation for making the regulatory less complex without affecting the integrity of safety assessment. The restriction regulatory system has hampered the greater involvement of the public sector noting their virtual exclusion from the use of molecular methods to improve crops for farmers. The authors conclude that "if we are to resume progress toward eliminating hunger, we must scale up and further build on the innovative approaches already under development, and we must do so immediately." See http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/327/5967/833 for the full article. Africa[Top]
A new alliance that aims to improve food security and livelihoods in sub-Saharan Africa has been formed. Known as Improved Maize for African Soils (IMAS), the collaboration will create and share new maize varieties that use fertilizer more efficiently and help smallholder farmers get higher yields, even where soils are poor and little commercial fertilizer is used. It will be led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and will involve Pioneer Hi-Bred, the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), and the South African Agricultural Research Council (ARC). According to a press release, the organizations will use cutting-edge biotechnology tools such as molecular markers and transgenic approaches to develop maize varieties that yield more over currently available varieties, with the same amount of nitrogen fertilizer applied or when grown on poorer soils. The varieties developed will be made available royalty-free to seed companies that sell to the region's smallholder farmers, meaning that the seed will become available to farmers at the same cost as other types of improved maize seed. The collaboration has received USD 19.5 million in grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). For more information, read http://www.pioneer.com/web/site/portal/menuitem.46a38374fe929fcde580e580d10093a0/ [ Send to a Friend | Rate this Article ] [Top]
New, improved maize varieties developed by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in partnership with Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria and Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile Ife, Nigeria have sparked renewed optimism for maize farming in West and Central Africa. The varieties, which were developed through conventional plant breeding by tapping naturally-available traits, address many of the major constraints to maize production such as drought, low soil fertility, pests, diseases, and parasitic weeds. The released maize varieties, which were approved by the Nigeria National Variety Release Committee, include 13 open-pollinated varieties of extra-early-, early-, intermediate-, and late-maturity with resistance to the parasitic weed Striga hermonthica and stem borers, tolerance to drought, and with good adaptation to sub-optimal soil nitrogen. Four hybrids with drought-tolerance have also been released. Abebe Menkir, IITA maize breeder, says that the release of these varieties will hasten the adoption of improved maize cultivars by farmers in Nigeria, consequently increasing yields, raising farm incomes, and improving food security. The press release is available at http://www.iita.org/cms/details/news_feature_details.aspx?articleid=3286&zoneid=342 [ Send to a Friend | Rate this Article ] [Top]
African and Arab Ministers met in Sharme El Sheikh, Egypt to discuss a Joint Action Plan that sets the terms for their collaboration in agriculture and food security. Earlier, preliminary talks were made by experts from the two regions at the same venue. Addressing the opening ceremony of the Joint Afro Arab Ministerial Meeting on Agricultural Development and Food Security, Egyptian Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation Amin Abaza said that it is imperative for the African Union (AU) and the League of Arab States (LAS) to increase their cooperation. He urged greater collaboration to overcome challenges and increase food security. Mr. Abaza said the Ministerial meeting aimed to create a partnership to promote food security; and seek ways to achieve best use of land resources through cooperation. He encouraged the two regions to have private sector driven projects, to attract investors to work with the private sector, to cooperate in the management of water; promote small holder farmers; build human and financial capacity; and to exchange experiences. African Union Commissioner for Political Affairs Julia Dolly Joiner added that "We are bound by our geographic proximity and historical, linguistic, religious and cultural ties, and are also living witnesses to an era when there is ever increasing interactions between our two peoples", she said. See Africa Union's press release at http://www.africa-union.org/root/au/index/index.htm [ Send to a Friend | Rate this Article ] [Top]
The Technical Advisory Committee of the NEPAD African Biosafety Network of Expertise (ABNE) held its inception meeting on February 4-5, 2010 at the Kunduchi Beach Hotel & Resort, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. The six-member committee comprises senior and experienced Africans representing all geographical regions of the continent. The Technical Advisory Committee meeting was preceded by a two-day Management Committee meeting. ABNE is an Africa-based, Africa-led, continent-wide service network established by the NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency to provide regulators with access to the most up-to-date training and science-based information to regulate biotechnology. ABNE is established to be a permanent resource to regulators to coordinate a continent-wide focus on crop biotechnology with the first node based in Burkina Faso. ABNE offers multidisciplinary expertise to service broad components of biosafety systems, including food safety, environmental safety, socio-economic impact, intellectual property and legal issues. The Technical Advisory Committee approved ABNE's work plan for 2010 aimed at providing a range of services to regulators including science-based biosafety information through a web portal, training programs (workshops, short courses, internships and study tours), and expert consultations. The Committee acknowledged the contribution of the Government of Burkina Faso in adopting ABNE's host country agreement and commended the ABNE team's efforts in establishing the nodal office in Burkina Faso for project takeoff. The Committee recommended the adoption of innovative approaches to project implementation, training, and communication with stakeholders to achieve the desired impact. An official launch of ABNE was approved and scheduled for April 2010 by the Committees. Email Prof. Diran Makinde of ABNE at diran.makinde@nepadbiosafety.net for additional details. Americas[Top]
The United States National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) has awarded biotech company Arcadia Biosciences and the University of Washington a USD 855,000 grant to help fund Phase II development of wheat varieties with reduced celiac disease-causing proteins. Celiac disease is a digestive disorder that, in sensitive individuals, results from a toxic reaction to certain proteins found in specific grains, including wheat. This reaction in celiac sufferers causes damage to the small intestine and inhibits proper food absorption. Approximately 1 percent of Americans have the disease, and the incidence is even higher in some northern European countries. Arcadia expects to complete Phase II research in mid-2011. The company has not released commercialization timeline for the wheat varieties. Read http://www.arcadiabio.com/news/press/11 for more information. Asia and the Pacific[Top]
Bangladeshi Minister for Agriculture Matia Chowdhury challenged the country's agriculturists to produce food to make the country food sufficient. She said that varieties resistant to salinity, drought, submergence, pests and diseases should be developed through both conventional breeding and genetic engineering to mitigate food shortage of the country. The Minister was the Chief Guest during a seminar on Institutional reforms in agricultural sectors at the Agriculturists Institution Bangladesh on February 12. She told an audience of 3,500 agriculturists that more experts will be posted at the grass root level (Union Parishad) to encourage farmers to adopt high technology agriculture. For more news about crop biotechnology development in Bangladesh email Dr. Khondoker Nasiruddin of the Bangladesh Biotechnology Information Center at nasirbiotech@yahoo.com [ Send to a Friend | Rate this Article ] [Top]
India's Union Minister of Agriculture Sharad Pawar has urged agricultural scientists to come together and increase their efforts to remove all misinformation regarding GM crops from the minds of policy makers and public. "The recent decision on Bt brinjal should not be seen as a setback to our efforts, but a challenge which we need to surmount," said Mr. Pawar while inaugurating the two-day conference of Vice Chancellors of Agricultural Universities and meeting of Directors of the Indian Council for Agricultural Research on February 17 at New Delhi. Mr. Pawar emphasized that the use of GM crops was essential to address food security in the country. Underscoring the importance of the new technology he stated, "Conventional technologies of agriculture are inadequate to meet the formidable challenges. The most compelling case for biotechnology and more specifically transgenic crops is their capability to increase crop productivity, lower production costs, conserving bio-diversity, efficient use of external inputs, and improvement of economic and social benefits and alleviation of abject poverty in poor and developing countries." He said that the expanding population of India makes food security the most important issue - this challenge calls for harnessing powerful tools of molecular biology and biotechnology in agriculture. For more details visit http://www.pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=57918 and http://www.icar.org.in/node/1065 For more information about biotech development in India contact b.choudhary@cgiar.org and k.gaur@cgiar.org [ Send to a Friend | Rate this Article ] [Top]
The Hong Kong Government informed the World Trade Organization (WTO) members that it would enact the Genetically Modified Organisms (Documentation for Import and Export) Regulation through notifications G/SPS/N/HKG/32 and G/TBT/N/HKG/34. It invited comments on the consultation paper from WTO members regarding the draft Regulation before March 31, 2010, a subsidiary regulation to the GM (Control of Release) Bill. The subsidiary Regulation provides detailed information on documentation requirements accompanying shipment containing GMOs. Europe[Top]
According to Futuragra, a pro-biotech farmers' organization in Italy, Italian farmers lose an estimated €175 (USD 273) to €400 (USD 543) per hectare because they are not allowed to grow Bt corn, resulting in total annual losses of €150 million (USD 203 million) to €350 million (USD 475 million). The EU Council of State has recently ordered the Italian Ministry of Agriculture to permit biotech cultivation. This threw into relief the financial implications of prohibiting biotechnology, says a new report by the US Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA FAS). Bt corn has been approved for environmental release in the European Union since 1998. However, cultivation of the GM corn is prohibited in Italy. If Futuragra's estimates are correct and Italian farmers lose €400 per hectare for growing conventional varieties, then the total loss to farmers in Italy due to the prohibition on Bt corn alone since 1998 is estimated at €5.1 billion (USD 6.9 billion). After the Council of State's favorable ruling, observers feared that Minister of Agriculture Luca Zaia would defy the ruling and maintain Italy's prohibition on biotech crops. Should the Ministry of Agriculture do so, Futuragra said that it will file a class-action lawsuit demanding that compensation be given for the attacks of pests that biotech seeds could prevent. Download the report at http://gain.fas.usda.gov/Recent%20GAIN%20Publications/The%20Financial%20Cost%20to%20Corn%20Growers%20of%20Italy%27s%20Ban%20on%20Biotechnology_Rome_Italy_2-11-2010.pdf [ Send to a Friend | Rate this Article ] [Top]
Switzerland has extended its ban on the cultivation of genetically modified plants for another three years. The moratorium has been in place since 2005 and is due to expire on November 2010. A report by GMO Compass says that majority of the members of the Scientific Commission of the Swiss National Assembly were of the opinion that an extension would result in "no serious scientific disadvantage". Under certain conditions, field trials of GM plants for research purposes will be allowed despite the moratorium. Swiss experts are awaiting the results of national research programs on the uses and risks of genetically modified plants. The results of these research programs are not expected until the middle of 2012. The original story by GMO Compass is available at http://www.gmo-compass.org/eng/news/488.docu.html [ Send to a Friend | Rate this Article ] [Top]
Researchers at the French National Agricultural Research Institute (INRA) have developed a biological method to control pathogenic strains of Fusarium oxysporum. Fusarium oxysporum is a common fungus that is found in soils throughout the world. Some of its numerous strains are pathogenic, while others are non-pathogenic and can protect plants against infection by a pathogenic strain. This protection phenomenon has been known for many years, and scientists have now isolated a strain called Fo47 which provides particularly efficient protection. The INRA researchers have studied how strain Fo47 could be introduced directly into the soil, and in particular examined the conditions for its persistence. The researchers found that Fo47 was capable of developing in different types of soil, and its introduction had very little impact on the microbiological equilibrium of the soil measured after one year. These findings mean that Fo47 is a good candidate for the development of a biological agent to control pathogenic strains of Fusarium oxysporum. Read the original story at http://www.inra.fr/ Research[Top]
By demonstrating that a human protein important in cancer development can revive dying plants, researchers at Purdue University have shown an evolutionary link between plants and humans. The aminopeptidase M1 protein, or APM1, is critical for root development in plants. Arabidopsis plants lacking the protein will die, but can be rescued if the protein is restored. The Purdue researchers found that inserting a similar protein found in humans, called insulin responsive aminopeptidase, or IRAP, also rescued the plants. "APM1 and IRAP are in the same group," said Wendy Peer, leader of the study. "M1 aminopeptidase activity is such a fundamental process that it's been conserved evolutionarily. This protein has changed very little over time." Peer noted that the finding could advance the understanding of this class of proteins because it might make it possible to conduct studies with plants instead of animals, offering researchers more control and options. Humans with altered function of the equivalent proteins often have leukemia or other cancers. The paper published by Plant Physiology is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1104/pp.109.148742 Read http://www.purdue.edu/newsroom/research/2010/100215PeerProtein.html for more information. [ Send to a Friend | Rate this Article ] [Top]
A new mechanism of immune system signaling in plants has been discovered by researchers at the Texas A&M University. Both plants and animals react to microbials by first recognizing them as foreign and then launching cascades of immune responses to fend off the attack. It has been known that calcium ions are used as a kind of messenger in this signaling process to activate cellular proteins. But exactly how calcium ions were sensed and relayed in the process was a mystery. Using the model plant Arabidopsis, Texas A&M researchers led by Ping He found four calcium-dependent enzymes (calcium kinases) that are critical to plants' immune system response. All four enzymes are involved in the plant cells' synthesizing defense mechanisms such as peptides and other metabolites to fight microbial threats. "The results clearly suggested that specific calcium dependent processes are central regulators in integrating multiple signaling pathways," He said. "The identified calcium kinases (enzymes) have great potential to improve plant resistance to multiple pathogens, including bacteria, fungi and phytophthora." The study published by Nature is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature08794 For more information, read http://agnews.tamu.edu/showstory.php?id=1758 [ Send to a Friend | Rate this Article ] [Top]
Scientists from the John Innes Centre and the University of Oxford have pinpointed the gene responsible for controlling root hairs, specialized nutrient mining machine that develops on the surface of plant roots. The team, led by Liam Dolan, discovered that a master regulatory gene called RSL4 acts like a switch; hair cells grow when the gene is turned on and growth stops when it is off. "When we discovered that RSL4 was a master regulator of hair growth we thought that perhaps the increased growth of root hairs in low phosphate soils might result from turning this gene on," says Dolan. Dolan and co-workers were right. Growing plants in phosphate-poor soils turned the gene on resulting in the growth of very long root hairs. The discovery has the potential to help breeders develop crops that can grow on poor soils. "Our hope is that in the future someone will be able to use this gene to develop cultivars which enhance yields on poor soils," says Dolan. "This could have obvious benefits for developing world agriculture. Also as fertilizers become increasingly expensive we will need crops that are more efficient in nutrient uptake. This could have the added benefit of decreasing the amount of polluting phosphate that runs off into rivers and lakes." Read http://www.jic.ac.uk/corporate/media-and-public/current-releases/100216rootmining.htm for more information. [Top]
AnnouncementsThe ICGEB, in the framework of its biosafety capacity building project for sub-Saharan Africa, is offering five fully-funded biosafety fellowships for a one-year MSc course 'Managing the Environment' (specifically the Risk Assessment of GM Crops pathway) at the world renowned Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences, Aberystwyth University, UK. More information, eligibility requirements and instructions on how to apply can be found at http://www.icgeb.org/biosafety/MScFellowships.html The Food and Agriculture Organization will hold an International Technical Conference on Agricultural Biotechnology in Developing Countries: Options and opportunities in agriculture, forestry, livestock, fisheries and agro-industry to meet the challenges of food insecurity and climate change (ABDC-10) in Guadalajara, Mexico, from March 1 to 4, 2010. The ABDC-10 will be hosted by the Government of Mexico and cosponsored by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR), International Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) and the World Bank are other partners. [Top]
Document RemindersGene Flow between Crops and Their Wild Relatives by Meike S. Andersson and M. Carmen de Vicente discusses the scientific basis for assessing the likelihood of gene flow between 20 crops and their wild relatives. For each crop that includes barley, corn, cotton, cowpea, wheat, pearl millet and rice, a full-color world map shows the modeled distributions of crops and wild relatives. The book is published by the John Hopkins University Press. For more information about the gene flow project which led to this publication visit http://www.bioversityinternational.org/scientific_information/themes/ The final report of the EuropaBio workshop on the Environmental risk assessment for the cultivation of genetically modified crops held at Hotel Silken Berlaymont, Brussels, Belgium in October 2009 is now available online. It discusses, among others, the conduct of environmental risk assessment, tiered framework for testing applications and studies, and challenges in performing field trials. Download the report at http://www.europabio.org/positions/GBE/EuropaBio%20ERA%20Workshop%20Oct%202009%20Final%20Report.pdf |
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