Biotech Updates

High Temperatures Affect Male Sterility in Plants

February 19, 2014

Scientists at the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS), Aberystwyth University have identified a protein that is essential for male sterility in plants grown in high temperatures. In human males, temperature affects fertility, and the study reports that it appears to be the same in plants, and that a small change in temperature can strongly affect the ability of many crops to produce seed.

Professor John Doonan, Director of the National Plant Phenomics Centre at IBERS said that the protein could also have a crucial role to play in plant breeding and has potentially significant implications in the race to provide enough food for a growing population in the light of climate change.

For more information about this research, read the news release at: http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/ibers/news/news-article/title-145905-en.html.