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Iran's first genetically modified (GM) rice has been approved by national authorities and is being grown commercially for

human consumption. Researchers at the Agricultural Biotechnology Research Institute of Iran (ABRII) modified rice to resist attack by insects by inserting a bacterial gene that produces a toxin. The chemical kills insects but is harmless to birds and mammals. The research was conducted in collaboration with the Philippines-based International Rice Research Institute

(IRRI) using a local variety of aromatic rice, Tarom molaii. Following laboratory tests, the GM rice was grown in a

greenhouse and in field experiments from 1999 to October 2004 - a total of six generations. In the trials the GM rice

killed close to 100 per cent of the four species of insect pests attempting to feed on it. One of these - the striped stem

borer - is the main insect pest of rice in Iran, and is also widespread in Asia, where it can cause substantial crop losses.

The field trials of the GM rice showed no abnormal patterns of growth and differed from non-GM rice only in its ability

to resist pests. Additional tests showed the modified rice to have the same nutritional value as the variety it was developed

from, he said. Livestock accepted the GM rice and had no adverse health effects from eating.

References: Molecular Breeding 3, 401 (1997); Journal of Economic Entomology 93, 484 (2000)

Sarah Bearchell and colleagues of the University of Reading, United Kingdom, recently found, through their research, that

their local "Wheat archive links long-term fungal pathogen population dynamics to air pollution." Their findings are published

in the latest online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.

Bearchell was interested in the abundance of two important wheat pathogens, Phaeosphaeria nodorum and Mycosphaerella graminicola, in wheat samples archived in the last 160 years. Using PCR to detect the pathogens, as well as records of

weather conditions during the time period, researchers discovered that changes in the ratio of the pathogens over the

160-year period were very strongly correlated with changes in atmospheric pollution, as measured by SO2 (sulfur dioxide)

emissions. Sulfur dioxide is known to affect physiological processes in plants and may impair disease resistance mechanisms. There was no relationship established between changes in the pathogen DNA ratio and changes in lead, cadmium, polychlorinated biphenyls, or polyaromatic hydrocarbons. Both pathogens studied cause septoria blotch diseases in wheat, resulting in losses of millions of tons of grain worldwide every season. The two fungal pathogens frequently coexist on

leaves and both damage plants by decreasing photosynthetic areas of upper leaves that fill grain.

An article in a recent issue of Plant Cell Preview reports that "Phototropins Promote Plant Growth in Response to Blue Light

in Low Light Environments," as based on the work of Atsushi Takemiya and colleagues of Kyushu University,

Japan. Phototropins are plant-specific blue light receptors which control phototropism, chloroplast movement, leaf expansion,

Using Arabidopsis thaliana as their model, the researchers subjected wild types and mutants (Arabidopsis plants with

non-functional genes for the phototropins) to varying amounts of red and blue light. After measuring growth, researchers

found that plants with functional phototropin genes could still optimize photosynthesis under blue light; and that restoring

one of the phototropin genes, phot1, to mutants allowed their photosynthetic abilities to be restored as well.

The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) are conducting its second field trial of promising

transgenic drought tolerant wheat. The transgenic lines carry the DREB gene, given to CIYYMT by the Japan International Center for Agricultural Sciences. The gene, obtained from Arabidopsis thaliana, exhibited promise in its initial field trial and in earlier greenhouse trials.

CIMMYT reported that the second trial focuses on four transgenic lines and uses a larger plot to ensure better control and analysis. The experimental lines and control plants will be subjected to both watered and drought conditions to determine their respective performance. After a few months, researchers will determine if results are useful for producing hardy wheat for drought-prone areas.

The Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) plans to soon begin field trials of Bt cotton obtained from the U.S.

The Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Project (KEPHIS) has inspected the field trial sites, located at KARI farms in central

Kenya, and has given its authorization for the project. Charles Waturu, director of KARI's Thika Center, says that Bt cotton

can reduce the number of insecticide sprayings needed each season from two to five. Cotton is currently grown in Africa on approximately 2.5 million hectares, most of which is made up of small plots of less than five hectares. The article says that the introduction of Bt cotton has the potential to dramatically increase cotton crop yields among smallholder farmers in Africa. According to the article, Kenya's National Biotechnology Committee "approved the application of Bt cotton only last year."