GLOBAL
ALLERGEN-FREE
SOYBEANS FROM CHINESE SOYBEAN LINES
Scientists
from the US Department of Agricultural Research Service's
Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and the University
of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have isolated two Chinese
soybean lines without the primary protein linked to soy
allergies. Dr. Theodore Hymowitz of the University of
Illinois reports that the two soybean lines (PI 567476
and PI 603570A) contain virtually identical genetic mutations
that do not contain the leading allergy-causing P34 protein.
Over 16,000 soybean lines were screened.
The
lines, which are adapted to Illinois-like field conditions,
will be given to breeders to produce new varieties of
allergy-free soybeans. Allergy to soy-based products
including infant formulas has been observed in 6-8 percent
of children. Adults with soy allergies have shown reactions
that range from skin reactions and gastrointestinal irritation
to difficulty in swallowing and fainting.
The
research was funded by the Illinois-Missouri Biotechnology
Alliance.
Read
more on allergen-free soybeans at http://www.danforthcenter.org/newsmedia/
NewsDetail.asp?nid=118.
FAO
PREDICTS FUTURE GLOBAL FOOD CRISES
The
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reports that
39 countries worldwide, with majority in southern and
eastern Africa, will face food crises and thus need external
food assistance. A slight decrease in world cereal production
from last year's level is predicted. If global cereal
use in 2006/2007 is similar to recent trends, it would
exceed the current forecast for production and lower
cereal stocks.
About
24 countries in Africa require food assistance due to
adverse weather conditions, conflict, and economic problems.
Nearly 8 million people are already suffering from the
effects of prolonged drought in Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya,
and Djibouti. Despite good harvests in Sudan and Eritrea,
conflicts have affected food availability.
Asian
countries on the food crisis radar include Mongolia and
Timore-Leste, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Nepal.
In Latin America, sharply reduced yields have been noted
in Argentina (maize), Brazil (rice), and Paraguay (soybean).
These
data are reported in FAO's Crop Prospects and Food Situation,
which provides information on the latest developments
affecting global cereal supply and demand, as well as
regional overviews of the crop prospects and food security
situation.
Read
more on the food crisis situation in http://www.fao.org/
newsroom/en/news/2006/1000288/index.html or contact Teresa Buerkle of FAO
at teresamarie.buerkle@fao.org.
TEXTILES
SOON TO BE SELF-CLEANING, THANKS TO BIOTECH
A
special feature of lotus leaves allows water and dirt
particles to simply run off from the leaf surface. This “lotus
effect” is due to characteristic molecular structures
present on the surface of the lotus leaf, which ensures
that water drops and dirt remain on the very “nano-tips” of
the plant structures, minimizing the leaf's contact area
with foreign objects.
This
property of lotus leaves is the starting point of ITV
(Institute for Textile Technology and Process Engineering)
as it works on developing self-cleaning textiles. A project
is currently underway, and is being done in cooperation
with the NEES - Institute for Biodiversity of Plants
at the University of Bonn and BASF. Such textiles would
need only water to remain clean, ensuring that less money
and time will be spent on washing them. Textiles utilizing
the “lotus effect” would also be more resistant
to wear and tear.
Another
application of the “lotus effect” is in medicine.
ITV scientists are investigating how they might be able
to alter the surfaces of implants in order to improve
the implants' coating with human cells. For more information,
contact the ITV through Dr. Thomas Stegmaier at thomas.stegmaier@ITV-denkendorf.de.
Read the feature article at http://www.bio-pro.de/
en/region/stern/magazin/02141/index.html.
THE AMERICAS
BRAZIL:
NEW LEGAL DOCUMENT SUBMITTED FOR A LESS DOGMATIC LAW
ON GURTs
The
law project 5.964/2005, which proposes a less dogmatic
approach to the regulation of GURTs, has been presented
to the House of Representatives of Brazil in order to
modify article 6 of the Biosafety Law 11.105/05.
The
Biosafety Law 11.105/05 (article 6) restricts the use,
commercialization, and licensing of Genetic Use Restriction
Technologies (GURTs), defined as any of the processes
generating genetically modified plants engineered to
be sterile, or activating/deactivating genes related
to fertility. However, GURTs comprise two types of applications:
Variety GURTs (V-GURTs), which are used to develop sterile
plants, and Trait Variety or Switch GURTS (T-GURTS),
where the expression of the transgene is regulated by
the application of chemicals or by a specific set of
environmental conditions. T-GURTs are therefore not necessarily
associated with changes in seed fertility of genetically
modified (GM) crops. Farmers would be able to keep seeds
for planting in the next growing season, although they
may no longer have access to the benefits of the introduced
trait if they chose to do so.
The
biosafety law 11.105/05 therefore would apply only to
V-GURTs and T-GURTs affecting plant fertility, while
those GURTs that don't would fall outside the law's jurisdiction.
This distinction is however not satisfactory to address
the existing uncertainties related to the scope of the
law, argues Reginaldo Minaré, lawyer and juridical
director of ANBio, the Brazilian National Association
for Biosafety.
For example, how should the development of sterile sugar cane, which is propagated
through stem cuttings and not by seed, be treated?
Minaré argues
that GURTs are potentially a very powerful biosafety
tool, and the law in its current form will have very
negative effects on agricultural research, and in the
field of molecular farming: the development of pharmaceuticals
in plants, such as edible vaccines. As it is now, proposed
changes to the law would arrive too late for many of
the projects under consideration by the National Technical
Commission for Biosafety (CTNBio), the majority of which
involve the development of crops without the ability
to flower.
For
more information, contact Reginaldo Minaré: rminare@uol.com.br.
Read more at: http://www.mrweb.com.br/
clientes/anbiodestaque/geral2.asp?cod=532
BRAZILIAN
AGRICULTURAL EXPERTS LEARN TO TRANSFORM SUNFLOWERS
INTO BIODIESEL
About
150 agricultural experts and leaders of associations
of small-scale farmers of the State of Goiás,
Brazil, attended a course this week to learn the farming
practices required for sunflower production for biodiesels.
Biodiesels, a renewable energy source, are produced from
oleaginous plants, such as soybean, oilseed rape, and
sunflowers. The initiative, aimed at generating jobs
and income for rural communities, is supported by the
Secretariat of Familiar Agriculture from the Ministry
of Rural Development (MDA), and the Brazilian Institute
for New Frontiers in Cooperation (INF).
“ The production of energy crops offers an opportunity for farmers to have
a guaranteed market, with contracts, no intermediary agents, and with the presence
of an industry sector devoted to the manufacture of biodiesels,” says Robert
Land, a consultant for the Program of Biodiesel of the MDA. The course will be
repeated in other biodiesel-producing states of Brazil.
Read
more at: http://www.radiobras.gov.br
BIOTECH
COTTON: SAME YIELD, FEWER PESTICIDES, REPORT SAYS
Bt
cotton is genetically modified (GM) cotton designed to
produce the Bt toxin, a naturally occurring insecticide
that kills pink bollworm, a major cotton pest. Bt cotton
is planted on nearly 5 million hectares all over the
world. In Arizona, USA, over half the state's cotton
fields are planted with Bt cotton, which controls only
one of Arizona's three major cotton pests. The other
two pests, sweet potato whitefly and the western tarnished
plant bug, are controlled by insecticides.
Researchers
at the University of Arizona in Tucson recently conducted
the first large-scale study to simultaneously examine
how growing Bt cotton affects yield, pesticide use, and
biodiversity. The study looked at commercial cotton fields
over an area of 6,600 square kilometers, with 40 of these
fields planted to non-Bt cotton, 21 to Bt cotton, and
20 to Bt/herbicide-resistant cotton.
Researchers
found that: 1) per pesticide application, Bt cotton produced
9% more cotton/acre than non-Bt cotton; 2) growers that
planted Bt cotton used fewer applications of broad-spectrum
insecticides, so that growers ended up with similar yields/acre
regardless of the type of cotton grown; and 3) the type
of cotton planted had no effect on insect biodiversity.
The
team will publish its research in an upcoming issue of
the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
To read the complete press release, go to http://uanews.org/cgi-bin/
WebObjects/UANews.woa/8/wa/CALSArticle?ArticleID=12616.
REPORT
SUGGESTS CELLULOSIC BIOMASS AS BIOFUEL SOURCE
Due
to the United States' rising demand for biofuels, the
demand for corn is likewise rising, and may soon prompt
the country to divert corn from exports. To prevent this
from happening, cellulosic biomass should be developed
as an alternative to corn. Allen Baker and Steven Zahniser
make this conclusion as they explore how “Ethanol
Reshapes the Corn Market.” Their article appears
in the latest issue of Amber Waves, a publication of
the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
The
authors suggest ways by which corn production could be
increased to meet the rising demand. This would entail
devoting more land to planting corn, diverting lands
from soybean production, and growing corn more intensively.
These methods, however, may cost more in the long run,
and the authors suggest that other agricultural crops
should be used to produce biofuels. For instance, sugarcane
and sorghum can be used to produce ethanol.
Cellulosic
biomass, the authors write, can also be a viable ethanol
source. Cellulosic biomass includes forest-related resources
such as mill residues, pre-commercial thinnings, slash,
and brush; solid wood waste materials; agricultural wastes
such as corn stover; and plants that are specifically
grown as fuel for generating electricity.
Read
the complete article at http://www.ers.usda.gov/
AmberWaves/April06/Features/Ethanol.htm.
ASIA
BOEING
CO. AND DANFORTH CENTER KEEN ON BIOTECH SUPPORT FOR
MALAYSIA
The
Boeing Company has expressed interest in Malaysia's biotechnology
development by conducting a study to define the creation
of a plant science research facility in the country.
A program will be implemented as part of an offset program
commitment to the Government of Malaysia. This was explained
to a delegation of senior government officials from Malaysia
who visited the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center
in Missouri recently.
In
addition, Dr. Karel Schubert, representing the Donald
Danforth Plant Science Center, expressed interest in
collaborating with Malaysian scientists to develop new
enhanced crops and create new products for commercialization.
For
more information, visit http://www.danforthcenter.org/
newsmedia/NewsDetail.asp?nid=116.
IRAN
IS 100TH MEMBER OF PLANT GENETIC TREATY
Iran
joins 99 other countries that have ratified the International
Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO),
the international treaty seeks the “conservation
and sustainable use of plant genetic resources for food
and agriculture and the fair and equitable sharing of
the benefits arising out of their use, in harmony with
the Convention on Biological Diversity, for sustainable
agriculture and food security.”
FAO
Director-General Dr Jacques Diouf said that “this
is a legally binding treaty that will be crucial for
the sustainability of agriculture. The treaty is an important
contribution to the achievement of the World Food Summit's
major objective of halving the number of hungry people
by 2015.”
The
first session of the Governing Body of the International
Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture
will take place in Madrid, Spain, from 12 to 16 June
2006. Up for discussion among the contracting parties
to the treaty will be implementation strategies.
See
the news article at http://www.fao.org/newsroom/
en/news/2006/1000287/index.html
VIETNAMESE
SCIENTISTS PRODUCE ORCHID SEEDS
Scientists
of the Da Lat Biotechnology Sub-Institute have reported
successful production of seeds for dia lan, a species
of terrestrial orchids, which promise to open a new era
of production in Vietnam's agriculture.
The Da Lat Biotechnology Sub-institute's seeds were bred in a laboratory, where
scientists have created fertile, single crop dia lan seeds, with a high sprouting
percentage.
The
seeds grow in a natural environment, not only in carefully
engineered environments, and can be sold and cultivated
at home. More importantly, such seeds would save plants
previously plundered from the woods. It is hoped that
this move will contribute to preservation of rare and
valuable plants.
With
reports from Le Thu Hien (hienbiotechvn@pmail.vnn.vn)
from AG Biotech Vietnam. For more information, visit: http://www.agbiotech.com.vn/vn/
GM
TOBACCO HOUSES PLAGUE VACCINE
The
Plague, both in its bubonic and pneumonic forms, has
played a great part in human history. Its causative agent
is a bacterium called Yersinia pestis, and although it
has largely been eradicated from most of the world, it
is still endemic in certain places in Africa, Asia, the
Americas, and the former Soviet Union, especially where
people live in close proximity to rodents. Y. pestis is most fatal when inhaled, as bacteria can invade the
lungs and cause death.
Antibiotics
for plague are available but are effective only if the
disease is diagnosed early. Some Y. pestis strains are
also resistant to antibiotics, prompting scientists to
search for ways to mass produce more varieties of the
plague vaccine. Luca Santi and Hugh S. Mason, in particular,
explore a “Protective Plague Vaccine Produced in
Tobacco Leaves” in an article that appears in a
recent issue of the newsletter of the Information Systems
for Biotechnology. Transgenic plants present a convenient
alternative vaccine-producing system, as they can express
a large variety of proteins, as well as perform the modifications
necessary for proteins to function. Plant systems are
also less likely to harbor microbes that are pathogenic
to animals. They can also be easily scaled up to produce
large amounts of vaccine.
The
researchers report a recent study that analyzed the expression
in plants of two proteins from Y. pestis: the F1 antigen,
which form part of a protective capsule that surrounds
Y. pestis cells; the V antigen, which is involved in
the bacterium's pathogenic process; and a fusion of both
F1 and V. The genes for these antigens were delivered
to tobacco plant cells by Agrobacterium tumefaciens transformation.
The proteins produced were then analyzed for antigenicity,
and subsequently tested as vaccines on guinea pigs.
Researchers
found that: 1) all three antigens were expressed in high
levels in transgenic tobacco leaves; 2) all proteins
elicited an immune response in the guinea pigs; and 3)
after animals were challenged with an aerosol dose of
Y. pestis considered 100% lethal to unvaccinated controls,
sham-immunized animals were dead within six days, while
all antigen-vaccinated groups showed significant rates
of survival at 21 days post-exposure.
Read
the complete article at http://www.isb.vt.edu/news/
2006/news06.apr.htm.
RESEARCH
EXPLORES WEED CONTROL MEASURES FOR HT SOYBEAN
One
type of herbicide tolerant soybeans can grow in the presence
of glyphosate, the active ingredient in some weed killers.
Glyphosate-based week killers cannot control broadleaved
and grass weeds, so that other weed killers are employed
on a need-basis to control such weed species. This entails
that a weed control regimen be formulated to maximize
yield, and such an endeavor is undertaken by María
C. Arregui and colleagues of the Universidad Nacional
del Litoral, Argentina. They describe a system of “Improved
weed control with broadleaved herbicides in glyphosate-tolerant
soybean (Glycine max)” in the July 2006 issue of
the Crop Protection journal.
Researchers
conducted field studies in 2001, 2002, and 2003, and
determined soybean yields as they controlled various
weeds with several types of soil and foliar-applied broadleaved
herbicides. They found that: 1) under good growing conditions,
as much as 99% of the weeds S. sisymbrifolium and S.
rhombifolia were successfully controlled by glyphosate,
while C. erecta and P. debilis were controlled by metribuzin,
imazaquin, and imazethapyr; 2) soil applied herbicides
were best for glyphosate-resistant crops, as they reduced
early season competition of weeds, particularly those
inherently more tolerant to glyphosate, such as P.
debilis or C. erecta which survive pre-seeding glyphosate applications;
and 3) when dry conditions are observed during vegetative
soybean growth, glyphosate applications could be less
effective for weed control, and the resulting competition
could reduce soybean yields.
Subscribers
to Crop Protection can read the complete article at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2005.09.006.
PAPER
TRACKS COCOA BEAN BORING, RELATION TO INSECT RESISTANCE
The
cocoa pod borer (CPB) is an important pest of cocoa.
It attacks the crop by boring into cocoa beans, causing
them to clump and stop developing. In severe infestations,
cocoa pods ripen prematurely, leading to unextractable
beans, or beans of inferior quality, and leading, in
turn, to economic losses for cocoa farmers. CPB can be
controlled by insecticides, but there is growing concern
that over time, CPB may be resistant to such control
measures. Insecticides also pose great risks to farmers,
consumers, and the environment.
Chong-Lay
Teha and colleagues of Golden Hope Research, Malaysia
monitor the “Variation of the response of clonal
cocoa to attack by cocoa pod borer Conopomorpha cramerella (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae) in Sabah.” Their
article appears in the July 2006 issue of the Crop Protection
journal.
Researchers
counted the holes made by CBP in eight cocoa bean clones,
and monitored the clones for variation in resistance
to the pest. By obtaining the ratio of the number of
larva exit holes to the number of larva entry holes (exit/entry)
they found two clones, designated PBC123 (ratio of 5.42)
and IMC23 (ratio of 6.39), to be particularly resistant
to larval infestation. They recommended that this ratio
be used to screen cocoa bean clones for resistance to
CPB should a selection program be started for cocoa.
These
natural variations in the cocoa beans may also be used
in the future to search for the genetic basis of such
insect resistance. Subscribers to Crop Protection can
read the complete article at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/
j.cropro.2005.10.009.
WORKSHOP
TO ADDRESS BIOTECH IN HORN OF AFRICA
A
workshop tackling biotechnology in the Horn of African
countries (Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan)
will be held on June 29, 2006 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. “Workshop
on Present Status, Challenges and Future Opportunities” organized
by the Horn Biotechnology Forum (HBF). The workshop aims
to raise biotechnology awareness in Horn of African countries,
as well as to facilitate the better understanding of the
current status, challenges and future opportunities of
biotechnology applications for the region. For more information,
contact Dr. Tilahun Zeweldu at tila@apepuganda.org, zeweldu@msu.edu,
and tilazew@yahoo.com.
PHILIPPINES TO HOST REGIONAL
CONFERENCE ON IPR
Intellectual
property rights (IPR) and their relation to agriculture
will be explored in “Pathways to Agricultural and
Rural Development: Intellectual Property Rights and Implications
Regional Conference on IPR.” This will be held in
Makati, Philippines on the 30th-31st of May, 2006. A registration
fee of PhP4, 500 for local participants and US $100 for
foreign participants will cover meals and a conference
kit. To download details in PDF, visit http://www.bic.searca.org/
events/IPR_2006.pdf
YOUTH CONGRESS TO BE HELD
IN GHANA
The
2nd African Regional Youth Congress on Science and Technology
is scheduled for June 2006 in Accra, Ghana. The Congress
is an annual event designed to provide a forum for young
professionals and leaders to share expertise and experiences,
as well as contribute to the major policy discussions affecting
Africa's development. The emphasis will be on, but not
limited to, health, agriculture, science, technology, and
innovation issues. For more information, visit http://www.atpsnet.org or
download the application form at http://www.atpsnet.org/Application%20form%20-%20
youth%20congress%202006.doc.
JAPAN TO HOLD 5th BIOFORUM
AND BIOEXPO
The
5th Bio Expo Japan Technical Conference will be held in
conjunction with the Bio Academic Forum, which will present
studies by universities, and national and public institutes.
This will be held on May 17-19, 2006 at the Tokyo Big Sight,
Japan. To see the list of presenters and find out more
about the conference, visit http://www.bio-expo.jp/bio/english/
academia/index.phtml.
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