CROP BIOTECH UPDATE
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A weekly summary of world developments in agri-biotech for developing countries, produced by the Global Knowledge Center on Crop Biotechnology, International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications SEAsiaCenter (ISAAA)
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May 30, 2008
In This Week’s Issue:
News
Global
• OECD/FAO Global Outlook: Food Prices Likely to Remain High
• FAO High Level Conference to Tackle World Food Security
• Russia and EU Strengthen Scientific Ties
• Monsanto, Syngenta Reach Global Pact; Settle Lawsuits
Americas
• DNA Fingerprinting Identifies Bean in Patent Dispute
• Scientists Develop “Genetic Pesticide” to Combat Termites
• Biotechnology Versus Sustainability: What do Students Think
• Protein Essential for Eggshell Formation Eyed as Pesticide Target
• New Website for Insect Control
• KeyGene and ARS Partner for Pepper Research
Asia and the Pacific
• Limited and Controlled Release of Perennial Rye Grass and Tall Fescue
• ICRISAT: Science Innovation can help Overcome Soaring Food Prices
• India Draft Plan to Establish National Biotech Regulatory Authority
• BASF and Academia Sinica Cooperate on Gene Discovery
Europe
• EU Parliament Calls for Gender Parity in Science
• EFSA on the Possible Presence of Unauthorized GM in U.S. Maize
Research
• No Deleterious Effect of Maize Bt Protein on Non Target Arthropods
• Scientists Discover Hidden Gene in Major Plant Virus Family
• Direction of Plant Genome Evolution
• Evolution of Lignin in Ancient Plants
Announcements
• International Symposium on Induced Mutations in Plants
• New Book Promotes GMOs and Organic Farming
• National Viticulture Research Conference
• World Biodiversity Congress
• International Soybean Conference in India
Document Reminders
• CCSP Report on the Effects of Climate Change on Agriculture and Biodiversity
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NEWS
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Global
OECD/FAO GLOBAL OUTLOOK: FOOD PRICES LIKELY TO REMAIN HIGH
Agricultural commodity prices will remain high over the next decade, according to a new report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). In addition to mobilizing humanitarian aids to face the situation, the report suggested boosting agricultural productivity and rethinking of biofuel policies. The report pointed out that it is not clear whether the energy security, environmental and economic objectives of biofuel policies will be achieved with current production technologies. The growth in biofuel production, which tripled between 2000 and 2007, adds to demand for grains, oilseeds and sugar.
Other factors that contribute to sharp rise of commodity prices include high oil prices, changing diets, urbanization, economic growth and expanding populations. The recent drought in grain producing regions has contributed to low stocks. Climate change is also expected to affect crop production and supply.
FAO Director General Jacques Diouf said that coherent action is urgently needed by the international community to deal with the impact of higher prices on the hungry and poor. "It should be clear now that agriculture needs to be put back onto the development agenda.”
View http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2008/1000849/index.html for more information. For the highlights of the report, read http://www.fao.org/es/esc/common/ecg/550/en/AgOut2017E.pdf
Heads of State and Government as well as United Nations organizations will converge at the High- Level Conference on World Food Security to be held in Rome on June 3-5, 2008. “We hope that world leaders coming to Rome will agree on the urgent measures that are required to boost agricultural production, especially in the most affected countries, and at the same time protect the poor from being adversely affected by high food prices,” said Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO) Director-General Jacques Diouf.
A key policy document prepared for the Summit notes that “high food prices represent an excellent opportunity for increased investments in agriculture by both the public and private sectors to stimulate production and productivity”. It calls for support to agricultural research that serves the needs of poor farmers.
Download the policy document at http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/foodclimate/HLCdocs/HLC08-inf-1-E.pdf or view the FAO press release at http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2008/1000847/index.html
A joint statement of the European Union (EU)-Russia Permanent Council and Research sealed the new scientific ties between Russia and the EU. The recently-concluded first meeting was attended by the President of the EU Council on Competitiveness, Slovenian Minister for Higher Education, Science and Technology Mojca Kucler Dolinar, Russian Minister of Education and Science Andrei Fursenko, European Commissioner Janez Potocnik, responsible for research and technological development, and Pierre Legueltel of the incoming French EU Council Presidency.
Previous agreements signed in 2000 and 2003 created partnerships in key strategic areas, such as space, aeronautics, renewable energy sources and nuclear fission energy research to quality food, safety and climate change. This resulted to a number of co-funded projects in the areas of agro-bio-food and energy. With the recent meeting, a further set of joint calls for collaborative projects in the areas of health, nanotechnologies and new materials, as well as in aeronautics, nuclear fission and space research are expected to come out.
Details of the agreement can be viewed in a press release accessible at http://cordis.europa.eu/fetch?CALLER=EN_NEWS_FP7&ACTION=D&DOC=1&CAT=NEWS&QUERY=011a2e23a33e:17a6:41953b3f&RCN=29479 and at: http://www.eu2008.si/en/News_and_Documents/Press_Releases/May/0526MZZ_GAERC_Rusija.html
Monsanto announced that it has granted Syngenta a global royalty-bearing license for the use of the Roundup Ready 2 Yield technology across the company’s soybean seed brands. The companies also agreed to settle all antitrust and commercial litigations, including Syngenta's antitrust action against Monsanto and infringement cases on herbicide-tolerant and insect-protected corn technologies. Monsanto was given a royalty-bearing license for the use of Syngenta’s dicamba tolerance technology. Syngenta, on the other hand, no longer has to pay royalty for the corn-borer resistance (Bt 11) trait and herbicide tolerant maize (GA21) technology. The companies will also work together to develop new herbicide-tolerant and Bt insect-protection products in corn, soybean and cotton.
With the agreement, Monsanto estimates a potential available acreage of 45 to 55 million acres in the United States for the product. Monsanto believes that Roundup Ready 2 Yield ultimately could be used on approximately 75 percent of an average of 60 to 70 million soybean acres in the U.S. Last year, Syngenta’s soybean brand represented 12 percent of total U.S. sales, while Monsanto's Asgrow and American Seeds Inc. brands together represented 27 percent.
Read the press release at http://monsanto.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=604
Termites cause more than $1 billion in structural damage every year in the U.S. despite the wide array of available insect control techniques. Now a team of scientists from the University of Florida has found a way to combat the wood gnawing pest by targeting its very genes.
“The trend in insect control is to find methods that eliminate the problematic insect without affecting anything else in the environment,” said Michael Scharf, lead author of the study. “What could possibly be more specific than genes that are unique to the insect itself?”
Using RNA interference, a method of silencing gene expression by inserting short sequences of ribonucleic acid (RNA) that correspond to a gene essential for termite reproduction, the team has developed “genetic pesticides”. The genetic pesticide, when consumed by the insects, causes them to be cripplingly deformed after molting. This approach is much safer than the widely used neurotoxin-like insecticides. Insects tend to build resistance to toxins that affect their nervous system.
Read the full article at http://news.ufl.edu/2008/05/28/genetic-bug/
A Sustainable Agriculture course was the playing field for a survey on biotechnology and sustainability. The course's professor, William A. Anderson of the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, conducted the survey with agree or disagree options to 17 statements related to sustainable agriculture and biotechnology. The questionnaires were answered during the first and the last session of the course to help the instructor learn the students' understanding of the topics, to reveal their opinions toward the topic-related statements and to stimulate their interests in the course.
Results of the survey according to Anderson were, "At first, students were neutral about organic farms as fully sustainable businesses, but they rejected the idea later. They discovered that organic farming, like conventional farmers, are continually striving to make their operations sustainable". He also believed that it is important to expose students to both sustainable agricultural systems and agricultural biotechnology without introducing personal biases, and students should be allowed to voice out their opinions in the evolving debate.
The full article is available for free for 30 days following the date of this summary at http://www.jnrlse.org/pdf/2008/E07-0021.pdf. After 30 days it will be available at the Journal of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Education website, http://www.jnrlse.org. Go to http://www.jnrlse.org/issues/ (Click on the Year, "View Article List," and scroll down to article abstract). The press release can be viewed at https://www.agronomy.org/press/releases/2008/0519/161/
A recent discovery on the development of fruit fly may help scientists develop new and more effective pesticides. A team of scientists, led by Ellen LeMosy, from the Medical College of Georgia identified a gene that when disrupted, results to malformed eggs. The gene is necessary for the formation of vitelline bodies, protein balls that form insect eggs’ first line of defense. These bodies also help keep the eggs from drying out.
The gene could prove a great target for pesticides, which today are largely neurotoxins, because humans don't have it. Genetic pesticides that target the expression of the gene, however, must first be studied since it is likely to affect “good” insects such as ladybugs and praying mantis that have a big appetite for other insects.
Read more at https://my.mcg.edu/portal/page/portal/News/archive/2008/Fruit%20fly%20helps%20identify%20protein%20critical%20to%20eggshell%20format The paper published by Developmental Biology is available to subscribers at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ydbio.2008.04.035
KeyGene Inc. and the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service signed a cooperative research and development agreement to collaborate on the characterization of pepper germplasm with enhanced flavor. The three year collaboration will be based on an existing culinary pepper project developed by Dr. John Stommel and his colleagues at the ARS Genetic Improvement of Fruits and Vegetables Laboratory. The ARS pepper program has successfully utilized diverse Capsicum germplasm resources to breed award winning pepper cultivars. KeyGene will apply its fingerprinting technology to identify the pepper accessions to develop bell pepper cultivars with improved taste characteristics.
The press release is available at http://www.keygene.com/keygene/pdf/PR%20US%20Department.pdf
An invitation to comment was released by the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator of Australia for the Victorian Department of Primary Industries application for a limited and controlled release of 500 perennial ryegrass and tall fescue lines, genetically modified for improved forage qualities. The field trial will be conducted to assess their agronomic performance and forage properties at one site in the shire of Southern Grampians, Victoria on a total area of up to 800 m2 between 2008 and 2010. Based on the prepared Risk Assessment and Risk Management Plant, the proposed release would pose negligible risk to human health and safety, or to the environment.
The Acting Regulator welcomes comments in written submissions till July 4, 2008, in order to finalize the RAMP that forms the basis to issue the license. Related documents can be downloaded at http://www.ogtr.gov.au/. Details of the invitation can be viewed at: http://www.ogtr.gov.au/pdf/ir/dir082notifcon.pdf
Other ways include planting-basin cultivation, fertilizer microdosing and improved seed systems. Dr. Dar warned that “unless agriculture is reinvigorated and lifted to a new level of proficiency and efficiency, the world will face more hunger, more poverty, more despair, and more anger”.
Read the press release at http://www.icrisat.org/Media/2008/media7.htm
India's Department of Biotechnology (DBT), a department under the Ministry of Science and Technology, announced a draft plan to set up the National Biotechnology Regulatory Authority (NBRA). In addition, a draft National Biotechnology Regulatory Bill 2008 has been made available for public comment and feedback. The draft establishment plan for NBRA and draft National Biotechnology Regulatory Bill 2008 were prepared by a consultative committee of experts.
The NBRA will be set up as an independent and autonomous body to provide a single window mechanism for biosafety clearance of genetically modified products and processes. Setting up the NBRA will require the promulgation of new legislation, namely the “National Biotechnology Regulatory Act” or the NBR Act in the form of the National Biotechnology Regulatory Bill 2008 by the Parliament of India. The Department has initiated a process of seeking feedback on both the documents from various stakeholders at the central and state levels.
Feedback may be sent to Dr SR Rao, Advisor, Department of Biotechnology (DBT) at nbra.dbt@nic.in with a copy to Dr. Vibha Ahuja of BCIL at vibhaahuja.bcil@nic.in. Copies of the draft documents are available at http://www.igmoris.nic.in/ and http://dbtbiosafety.nic.in/ For more details about biotech developments in India contact b.choudhary@isaaa.org.
BASF Plant Science and Academia Sinica, a leading research institute in Taiwan, are teaming up to develop high yielding and stress tolerant crops. The Germany-based company and the institute signed a cooperation agreement focusing on the discovery of genes that control abiotic stress resistance and beneficial agronomic traits in rice and corn. Within the scope of the cooperation, Academia Sinica will continue their work on the detailed functional analysis of genes in rice. BASF, on the other hand will evaluate genetically modified plants harboring the identified genes. The duration of the cooperation has initially been set for two years.
“Essential genes identified during the cooperation could be used to improve yield in rice and other cereal crops such as wheat, corn, and grass species, which are very much needed in order to ensure food and bioenergy security for the rapidly growing world population,” said Dr. Su-May Yu of the Institute of Molecular Biology at Academia Sinica. This is the third biotech agreement by BASF Plant Science in Asia within eight months.
View the press release at http://www.corporate.basf.com/en/presse/mitteilungen/pm.htm?pmid=3110&id=oL*aFCLx_bcp-GZ
Adventitious presence of the non-authorized genetically modified (GM) event DAS 59132-8 in maize imported from the U.S. has not been found in Europe, according to a scientific opinion released by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). EFSA conducted the study, as requested by the European Commission, after the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) detected low levels (less than 3 seeds per 1000 seeds) of the non-authorized GM maize in hybrid lines containing DAS 59122-7. EFSA’s GMO panel has previously adopted an opinion on the maize event 59122 saying that, with regard to import and processing for food, feed and industrial uses, it is as safe as its non-GM counterparts.
The unauthorized GM maize and DAS 59122-7 were developed by using the same genes, Cry34Ab1 and Cry35Ab, that confer resistance against coleopteran pests and an herbicide tolerance gene as a selectable marker. Considering the low-level presence of the unauthorized 59132, as well as the similarity of the two varieties, EFSA concludes that it is unlikely that DAS 59132-8 will cause risk to human health or the environment.
Read the full report at http://www.efsa.europa.eu/EFSA/Scientific_Opinion/gmo_op_ej713_DAS59132-8_en.pdf or http://www.efsa.europa.eu/EFSA/Scientific_Opinion/gmo_op_ej713_DAS59132-8_summary_en.pdf
Transgenic Bt maize varieties derived from the events Bt176 and MON810 were found to have no deleterious effect on the beneficial insect predator (Stethorus punctillum). The study which investigated prey-mediated effects of two maize varieties expressing a truncated Cry1Ab protein was conducted by the group of Fernando Alvarez-Alfageme at the Centre of Biological Research in Spain. Spain is a major Bt maize growing country in Europe with more than 75,000 hectares in 2007. Bt maize was first commercially planted in the country in 1998.
The researchers studied the survival of the insect predator, their developmental time to adulthood, and fecundity when exposed to its prey, the red spider mite T. urticae, reared on Bt and non Bt maize leaves. Commercial Bt maize varieties Compa CB (Bt176) and DKC7565 (MON810) with corresponding non-transformed near isogenic varieties Brasco and Tietar were used in their experiments. The results from feeding
trials showed that neither Bt maize variety caused any negative effects on any of the parameters studied. The group reports that the predator midgut lacks specific receptors for the active Bt toxin to bind to.
The paper is available to journal subscribers at http://www.springerlink.com/content/a7wv68173353627g/
The virus family Potyviridae includes more than 30 percent of known plant virus species, most of which are of great agricultural significance such as the potato virus Y, turnip mosaic virus and wheat streak mosaic virus. Scientists from the Iowa State University, working with colleagues from the University College Cork in Ireland, have discovered a tiny gene present in all members of this virus family. Without this gene, the viruses are harmless.
Using a gene-finding software, the team identified a stretch of nucleotide bases that overlaps with a much larger and well characterized gene in potyviruses. They called the new gene pipo (short for pretty interesting potyvirus ORF). Alterations in the sequence of the pipo gene, while leaving the polyprotein amino acid sequence unaltered, were found to be lethal for the viruses.
The team led by Allen Miller and John Atkins are now working to determine the function of gene during infection as well as how the pipo protein is expressed from the viral genome. For this, the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Research Initiative (USDA-NRI) has awarded them with a $400,000 competitive grant.
For more information, visit http://www.public.iastate.edu/~nscentral/ Read the paper published by PNAS at http://www.pnas.org/cgi/reprint/105/15/5897
The apparent lack of correlation between the genome size of an organism and its complexity has long puzzled scientists. Simple organisms, like some fungi and bacteria, could have genomes that are many times larger than more complicated ones.
It has become clear that transposable genetic element play a role in genome size growth especially in plants. Recent studies on maize and cotton revealed that their genome sizes have significantly increased over the past few million years due to proliferation of retrotransposons, mobile genetic elements that can amplify themselves in the genome. Evidences suggest that the direction of plant genome size change is biased toward increase, albeit there must be some limit on genome size growth. Plants employ several mechanisms such as homologous recombination to remove “junk” DNA. The question remains, nonetheless, if these mechanisms really contribute in downsizing the genome.
The review paper by Hawkins et al. is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.plantsci.2008.03.015
Researchers from Purdue University have discovered that syringyl lignin, fundamental building blocks of cells in flowering plants, have evolved independently, yet almost identically, on a separate branch of the evolutionary tree in lycophytes; pretty much similar to how flight arose separately in bats and birds. Lycophytes are an ancient group of plant that arose around 400 million years ago. It was recently discovered that these plants also contain syringyl lignin, an important part of the plants' scaffolding and water-transport systems, which was considered to be restricted in flowering plants.
Lead researcher Clint Chapple and his colleagues studied the lycophyte Selaginella, an ornamental plant commonly known as spike moss. The discovery they made might be useful in manipulating lignin deposition in plants for biofuel production. Engineering plants that expresses syringyl lignin could allow easier breakdown of cellulose. The study may also provide insights for improving agricultural traits of important crops.
Scientists from the Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI) are currently sequencing the Selaginella genome.
Read the full article at http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=111597&org=olpa&from=news The Paper published by PNAS is available at http://www.pnas.org/cgi/reprint/0801696105v1
The International Symposium on Induced Mutations in Plants (ISIM) will be held on 12-15 August, 2008 in Vienna, Austria. The event aims to provide a venue to disseminate information on current trends in induced mutagenesis in plants. Among the topics to be discussed include: molecular genetics and biology of induced mutagenesis, new mutation techniques, induced mutations in crop breeding programmes, mutational analysis tolerance to abiotic and biotic stresses, and socio-economic impact of widespread mutant varieties. Interested parties may send completed participation forms to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
More information at http://www-pub.iaea.org/mtcd/meetings/Announcements.asp?ConfID=167
The International Soybean Processing and Utilization Conference will be held at the Soybean Processing and Utilization Centre, Central Institute of Agricultural Engineering (CIAE) at Bhopal, India on December 10 - 14, 2008. Bhopal is regarded as the Soybean State of India. The conference will focus on the emerging technologies in soybean processing and utilization as food for nutritional enhancement and health promotion.
For additional details email Dr. S. D. Kulkarni of CIAE at sdk@ciae.res.in or ispuc.v@gmail.com.
A new report on the Effect of Climate Change on Agriculture, Land Resources, Water Resources and Biodiversity in the United States was released recently by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Climate Change Science Program (CCSP). The report, written by 38 authors from universities, national laboratories, non-governmental organizations and federal service is one of the most extensive examinations of climate impacts on U.S. Ecosystems. "The report provides practical information that will help land owners and resource managers make better decisions to address the risks of climate change," said Agriculture Chief Economist Joe Glauber.
Details of the findings can be viewed in the press release at http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/!ut/p/_s.7_0_A/7_0_1OB/.cmd/ad/.ar/sa.retrievecontent/.c/6_2_1UH/.ce/7_2_5JM/.p/5_2_4TQ/.d/1/_th/J_2_9D/_
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