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27 August 2010



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Wheat Genome Decoded to Feed Millions

A team of British scientists led by Neil Hall from the University of Liverpool has completed the sequencing of the genome of wheat. Moreover, they have posted their findings publicly, meaning anyone who wants to use the data can. What this means is greater crop yields, cheaper bread, and more food security. In other words, this is good news.

Wheat is one of the bedrocks of civilization. For 10,000 years, humans have cultivated it, and more than 550 million tons are grown annually. The human population is growing by 6 million a year, so clearly increases in the food supply are vital. Although wheat yields have tripled since Marcus Aurelius sat in a curule chair, they have reached a plateau in recent years.

"It has been estimated that in Europe, productivity needs to double to keep pace with demand and to maintain stable prices. We need to start breeding new varieties of wheat that will be important in five or 10 years' time," Professor Hall said to The Independent. "This means that we will be able to utilise the wheat genome to its full potential. It means that we can fully utilise what nature has given us."

Sequencing the wheat genome (which is five times more complex than the human genome) will allow breeders to find markers that indicate useful genes, such as those providing resistance to certain diseases or ability to withstand drought more readily. Moreover, it will speed up the process of selective breeding. "A process that now takes five or six years will take one or two years. It is quite possible in five years' time that a loaf of bread will be cheaper because of this," Professor Hall said.

One must stress two things. First, because the team has posted the data to the world, no commercial advantage will accrue to any one nation. It is an act of peace. Second, using the genome in this way does not mean one is creating genetically modified wheat. There is no gene splicing going on. This merely takes traditional breeding techniques and makes them more efficient.

That said, the burgeoning human population may undo even this scientific marvel. Professor Hall also commented, "Unless global population is kept under control, nature may not be enough and we may have to use genetic modification because there is always going to be a limit to what you can get out of wheat." There are probably 4-5 billion people too many on planet Earth as it is. The sequencing of the wheat genome will help feed them, but in the end, it has merely bought the human race some more time.

© Copyright 2010 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Ubuntu Linux.

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