Biotech Updates

Sequenced Seaweed Genome May Hold Key to Climate Change Adaptation

June 11, 2010

The brown seaweeds Ectocarpus siliculous has been a "tough weed" as it evolved to survive in the harsh coastal environment characterized by tidal changes in light intensity, temperature, salinity and wave action. These traits among the many traits unique to the brown seaweeds were the considerations to sequence and analyze its genome. The EU supported the work in the amount of EUR 10 million through the Marine Genomics project under the 'Sustainable development, global change and ecosystems' theme. '

"In the context of climate change, we have now become interested in how brown algae have adapted to UV light and increasing temperatures," commented Dr Valentin of the Alfred Wegener Institute in Germany, one of the authors of the paper. In addition, brown algae are much older terrestrial plants and numerous metabolic properties need to be unlocked and understood to serve as the foundation in the development of new products and technologies.

See the news article at  http://cordis.europa.eu/fetch?CALLER=FP6_NEWS&ACTION=D&DOC=5&CAT=NEWS&QUERY=012920fa7837:74ad:56f24447&RCN=32174