Biotech Updates

IGER to Develop Superior Plant Varieties

June 22, 2007

The Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research (IGER) in the United Kingdom has received a grant to develop superior plant varieties that are able to adapt to climate change. Specifically, scientists will identify genes that control target traits that are important for developing new plant varieties that meet the demands of sustainable agriculture, climate change and biorenewables.

Ian King, head of the research team at the Aberystwyth- based station says that a target trait for sustainable agriculture is increased nitrogen uptake which requires less fertilizer. Examples of climate change traits are drought tolerance or changing the flowering time of a plant so that flowering occurs in cooler periods.

Visit http://www.iger.bbsrc.ac.uk/default.asp for additional information.