Biotech Updates

Scientists to Study Genetic Makeup of Ancient Rice for Development of More Resistant Strains

November 21, 2012

Researchers from the University of York in England, the Central Rice Research Institute in India and Cornell University in the USA will attempt to develop varieties of rice that are more resistant to extreme climatic conditions, by gathering valuable genetic information among ancestral wild species of rice. Genomic segments that help plants survive drought and flood will be identified from ancestral rice genomes and will be bred into commercial rice varieties.

At the end of the four-year project, the international team hopes to produce improved drought tolerant rice varieties that are accepted and adopted by local communities in rain-fed areas of India, as well as new breeding tools to enable rapid further development of new rice varieties.

View the University of York's news release at http://www.york.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/2012/research/ancient-rice-secrets/.