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A single embryo isolated from a single grain of sorghum can give rise to hundreds of progeny. |
Patent applications for two novel technologies have jointly been filed by the CSIR and Pioneer Hi-Bred Inc as part of the African Biofortified Sorghum (ABS) Project. The technologies promise to enhance the efficiency of genetic transformation of plants for scientific research and plant breeding, and to benefit poor farmers.
The objective of this African-initiated and African-led initiative is to develop a more nutritious and easily digestible sorghum as a health solution that contains increased levels of Vitamins A, Iron, Zinc, essential amino, acids and protein prototype with increased amino acid lysine. The ABS Project Consortium includes participants from the Southern Education Research Alliance (SERA) Food Science and Technology Focus Area, representing the CSIR and the University of Pretoria.
The ABS Project will achieve its objective partly through genetic modification - the application of which in plant biotechnology research is conventionally conducted using a variety of approaches that include agrobacterium or by applying a gene gun to shoot desired traits into plant cells. The latter is considered a more random process and does not reliably produce desired results of simpler integration patterns and single trait copies.
Agrobacterium is a bacterium that is known to naturally transfer a segment of its DNA into plants for the purpose of synthesising nutrients for its survival. Scientists noticed the functioning of this plant pathogen and found a way to exploit the bacterium for the purpose of transforming and transferring valuable genetic traits into plants as expression systems. They realised that they can replace the T-DNA, a segment of agrobacterium that is transferred to plant cells, and replace it with genes of interest. When the bacterium comes into contact with the plant, it transfers genes of interest - 'thinking' that it is transferring its own DNA to create nutrients for its survival. Once these genes are integrated into the plant's genome, the plant then uses its own machinery to reproduce and express in its own cells, the trait genes of interest to scientists.
However, transformation needs to be conducted and enabling technologies used in order to fulfil genetic modification. While working on the ABS Project, CSIR Bioscience senior researcher, Dr Luke Mehlo and his research partner, Dr Zhao Zuo-Yhu of Pioneer, found new methods that will provide a deeper understanding of the cell cycle as well as modifications around the use of agrobacterium.
The ABS Consortium has essentially invented a manner of recruiting somatic cells, and abundant callus, converting them into cells that can grow and give rise to multiple organs of a plant and regenerate the entire plant itself - much like stem cells in an animal or human being. The second technology enables the use agrobacterium to transfer improved sorghum genes back into the plant by activating genetic sequences in agrobacterium that are responsible for transferring the T-DNA.
"The combined inventions are aimed at enhancing transformation efficiency so that one achieves transformation events faster, reliably, and efficiently. We envisage this technology to be useful for genetic engineers and plant breeders who will produce the seed for poor farmers on a charitable basis - the sector targeted by the ABS Project", says Mehlo.
The ABS Project is funded by the Grand Challenges for Global Health initiative, a Programme linked to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which supports novel research that could provide solutions to some of the major problems affecting the developing world, and that embraces humanitarian values.
The patenting of any technologies generated under the Grand Challenges Programme is in alignment with the related Global Access Strategy, approved by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which makes the technologies available to the poor and allays fears that patenting will deprive the poor of access.
Source: CSIR
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