When the banana genome was cracked by French scientists last month, many in the fresh produce industry had bigger fish to fry. With the poor weather affecting crops up and down the country, it would be safe to say the DNA strands of a banana were not the most pressing of concerns. But the banana genome represents significant progress and is one of many projects that could lead to much stronger crops for growers.
“We sequenced the entire genome of a seed-bearing Musa acuminata banana variety, which is a wild relative of the current-day edible Cavendish variety,” explains assistant professor of the project, Eric Lyons.
One pathogen that is threatening cultivated bananas throughout the world is Fusarium wilt, a soil-borne pathogen that clogs up the banana’s vascular system, and Lyons believes the research could completely eradicate the disease in all crops.
“The decoding of the wild banana genome will be very useful as we can identify its healthy genes, the genes that give the plant resistance to pests and diseases, and then genetically add more of those genes to other more mainstream banana plants,” he adds.
The subject of genome research can generate much interest in the media, though East Malling Research’s Professor Peter Gregory is keen to point out one of the biggest misconceptions surrounding the issue. “We are not talking about genetic modification here,” he points out. “In essence the genome allows you to unlock a number of mysteries. It can lead to disease and pest resistance, yield capacity and improved quality, taste and texture of fresh produce.”
Genome research has led EMR to control wilt in strawberries and it can now select plants with the right markers to combat the disease. “We now have equipment that makes genome research much simpler. Our DNA sequencers essentially extract DNA from the plant cells and it then breaks it down and reads the various amino acid groups in order. Three or four years ago it would have cost £100,000 for a genome - it is now around £10,000.”
However, Tozer Seeds’ R&D director Dr Frances Gawthrop feels genome research is still a big risk to carry out. “It is so expensive, and you’d have to sell a phenomenal amount of extra seed to keep on doing it,” she explains. “Ideally we would have the genome for every fruit and vegetable but the margin is so narrow it isn’t always worth it.”
Gawthrop advises businesses to work with universities in order to get applied research funding and have access to the very best facilities. “The expensive part now is what we call the phenotype - recording the plant out in the field after the research, and that can be a limitation,” admits Gregory.
Tozer recently completed genome research on lettuce in collaboration with various US breeders, but Gawthrop says there is still a long way to go. “The research itself is just the beginning, as it produces so much biomathematics and that all has to be analysed to determine where the useful genes are and to put down markers; it can take 10 to 12 years to see a real commercial impact.”
The French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA) carried out genome research on tomatoes and its lead scientist Mondher Bouzayen urges growers to remain patient as the potential reward is huge. “Things will progress step-by-step until reaching the ideal situation where we get genotypes that allow us to grow tomatoes in a safe condition with no more need for pesticides.”
Gregory adds that EMR will continue to support genome research for all crops. “We are gradually getting the genome together for apples that will help us speed up our programme for apple root stocks. I truly believe that genome research will become the universal way of doing things for fruit and vegetable producers.”
And going back to the recent poor weather, Gawthrop doesn’t think we are too far away from crops resistant to adverse weather. She concludes: “There is much more drought and bad weather conditions for crops these days. With genome research there is definitely potential to select for genes with more tolerance to adverse weather conditions.” -
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