Surinder Sud: Harvesting perfection

FARM VIEW

The private sector is pushing an initiative which will yield drought-, heat- and cold-tolerant genetically modified crops.

In just about one decade of commercialisation of genetically modified (GM) crops, biotechnology has effectively manifested its potential to revolutionise agriculture. While the first series of biotech seeds containing Bt gene was meant chiefly to protect the crops against pests with reduced use of pesticides, those in the pipeline aim at addressing the changing demands on agriculture and making the produce more versatile for different end-uses. What is really significant is that new initiatives in biotechnology are coming from the private sector and with wholly private investment.

Of course, the public funded research is also engaged in developing GM plants but it is way behind the private sector. Barring the insertion of pest-protecting genes in a few crops, the only other significant success of the public sector is the development of the Golden Rice that has a vitamin A-enhancing gene incorporated into it. But the private sector, on the other hand, has a much broader vision for future thrusts.

Monsanto, one of the leading multinational bioscience companies, can be a case in point. The company has already begun working on enhancing crop yields by making them drought-tolerant, cold- or heat-tolerant and more efficient utilisers of nitrogen. Also in its pipeline are health-friendly products, including those rich in Omega-3 that reduces the risk of heart attacks.

According to Monsanto Executive Vice-President Jerry Steiner, who was in India recently, some of these new generation gene-altered seeds are at various stages of trials and may be ready for commercialisation in the next few years. Indeed, Monsanto's strength lies in having sequenced the genes of plants like corn (maize) and cotton and developing "markers" (distinctly different and identifiable traits) to facilitate gainful exploitation of the desired genes. The company has managed to put together a large donor gene pool in the past 25 years and has the option to access genes from other sources as well. "From gene discovery to commercialisation of seeds takes about 10 years for Monsanto," Steiner pointed out.

Interestingly, Monsanto has got hold of the genes that enable the plants to withstand drought and has transferred them to corn, cotton and soyabean to enable them to grow with less water. Of course, these genes may not ensure 100 per cent crop survival during a crippling drought but water scarcity of moderate intensity would become immaterial for these crops. In fact, drought-tolerant corn is already under trials in the US. It is claimed to show better performance, having fuller canopy and less wilting than the non-GM crop. Ultimately, such seeds are expected to help stabilise crop yields under rainfed conditions, something that India badly needs. However, though such seeds might be ready for commercial use in the US in the next five to six years, more time might be needed to try them out under Indian conditions.

Monsanto has also identified the genes that boost the plants' capacity to use available nitrogen more efficiently. Such genes have already been put in corn and have shown that the same yields can be had with the application of about a third or even less nitrogen. However, here again, more work is still needed for fine-tuning this technology and understanding how this mechanism really works.

Where altering the nutritional status of farm products is concerned, Monsanto is seeking to augment the Omega-3 content of soyabean to make its oil heart-friendly. Omega-3 is basically a family of polyunsaturated fatty acids which are essential for normal human growth. Recently, the US Food and Drug Administration has endorsed the claim that it can reduce the risk of coronary heart diseases.

Of course, some Omega-3 is available in fruits like kiwi and seabuckthorn (better known as Leh-berry) and products like yogurt and salad-dressings. But its best sources, at present, are shell fish, such as mussels and clams, and oily fish like salmon, mackerel, sardines and others. Since, algae that these fish normally feed on is the main source of Omega-3, the Monsanto scientists have taken the genes from the algae and put them in soyabean. The soya produce from one hectare land is reckoned to have the same amount of Omega-3 as about 22,500 salmon fish. Further experimentation on GM Omega-fortified soyabean is going on.

Indeed, considering the significance of such approaches, it may be prudent for the biotechnologists in the public-funded research systems also to look ahead to the future and search for and gainfully use the desired genes for bigger and better harvests.