Genes From Wheat Improves Plant Growth of Sorghum

Bioscientists from Joint BioEnergy Institute developed strains of sorghum that can grow tall, strong, and healthy with very little water. This highly benefits farmers in producing large quantities of crops with minimal costs.

According to the researchers, sorghum does not have the best ability to regenerate in the plant tissue culture. Genes from wheat have been found to allow regeneration in wheat. Thus, the researchers added the genes from wheat to improve the regeneration efficiency in sorghum.

Improving sorghum to maximize its potential as a sustainable biomass resource could help with the current pressing problems of climate change and the energy crisis. This research accelerates the current efforts in studying the potential of sorghum as a carbon source for producing biofuels.

For more information, watch the video from Berkeley Lab.