Navigation Links
Genome of a heat and drought resistant cereal plant analyzed
Date:1/30/2009

2009-01-30. The global climate is changing, and this change is already impacting food supply and security. People living in regions already affected by aridity need plants that can thrive / grow under dry conditions.

One example is sorghum: Also known as milo, durra, or broomcorn, sorghum is a grass species that can grow up to five meters in height and is extremely resistant to aridity and hot conditions. The grass, which originates from Africa, can thrive under conditions and locations where other cereal plants cannot survive due to lack of water. In arid-warm and moderate regions of the Americas, Asia and Europe it is mainly utilized for food and fodder and is also gaining in significance as a basis for bio-fuel. The plant also provides fibers as well as combustible material for heating and cooking.

As part of an international consortium of scientists, researchers at Helmholtz Zentrum Mnchen are analyzing the genes of sorghum, the first plant of African origin whose genome has been sequenced.

Dr. Klaus Mayer of the Institute of Bioinformatics and Systems Biology of the Helmholtz Zentrum Mnchen described the scientists' research goal: "We want to elucidate the functional and structural genomics of sorghum." He went on to explain: "That is the prerequisite for making this important grain even more productive through targeted breeding strategies. As German Research Center for Environmental Health, sustaining the food supply is one of our most important research topics. That is why we are trying to learn something about the molecular basis of the plant's pronounced drought tolerance in order to apply this knowledge to other crop plants in our latitude zone as well. "The first results of the study have been published in the current issue of Nature.

What makes sorghum interesting as a model system is that it is more closely related to the predominant grains of tropical origin, for example maize, than it is to rice. Moreove
'/>"/>

Contact: Sven Winkler
sven.winkler@helmholtz-muenchen.de
0049-893-187-3946
Helmholtz Zentrum Mnchen - German Research Center for Environmental Health
Source:Eurekalert

0

GOOD

Page: 1 2

Related biology news :

1. Genome sequence shows sorghums immense potential
2. Sequencing of sorghum genome completed
3. New computational technique allows comparison of whole genomes as easily as whole books
4. Genome Medicine: Bridging the gap between research and clinical practice
5. Gene switch sites found mainly on shores, not just islands of the human genome
6. In lung cancer, silencing one crucial gene disrupts normal functioning of genome
7. Breast cancer genome shows evolution, instability of cancer
8. DOE Joint Genome Institute completes soybean genome
9. Research consortium to sequence turkey genome
10. Washington University scientists first to sequence genome of cancer patient
11. Diatom genome helps explain success in trapping excess carbon in oceans

Post Your Comments:
*Name:
*Comment:
*Email:
(Date:12/3/2009)...on windows or solar panels that repels grime and d...ext electric car? New Tel Aviv University research...ls a breakthrough in assembling peptides at the na...sions come true in just a few years. , Operating...onth of a meter) and even smaller, graduate studen...
(Date:12/3/2009)..., Mich. (Dec. 3, 2009) Van Andel Research Insti...how the plant hormone abscisic acid (ABA) works at...ironmental stresses such as drought and cold. The...uld help engineer crops that thrive in harsh envir...ortages. The findings could also have implication...
(Date:12/3/2009)...searchers have measured CO2 levels for the past th...er a sparsely inhabited rural area near Valladolid...n the Iberian Peninsula, show that the levels rose...ecent years, physicists and meteorologists have be...evels, and how these have evolved in the troposphe...
Breaking Biology News(10 mins):A window that washes itself? 2VAI researchers find long awaited key to creating drought resistant crops 2VAI researchers find long awaited key to creating drought resistant crops 3CO2 levels rising in troposphere over rural areas 2New Website for Disability Insurance Launched by Set for Life Insurance by KF Financial 58839 1New Website for Disability Insurance Launched by Set for Life Insurance by KF Financial 58839 2National report shines light on lupus 50 year treatment drought 10254 1National report shines light on lupus 50 year treatment drought 10254 2National report shines light on lupus 50 year treatment drought 10254 3Acne Scars Significantly Improved by a Combination Treatment of Photodynamic Therapy and Percutaneous Collagen Induction 5202 1Acne Scars Significantly Improved by a Combination Treatment of Photodynamic Therapy and Percutaneous Collagen Induction 5202 2
...f alternative fuels from plant material, enzymes w...pounds are required in industrial quantities and a...A&M University have come up with a solution: using...lov, who leads the Bioseparations Lab, will descri...y for Experimental Biology,s Annual Meeting in Mar...
... a lefty the "Natural," according to David A. Pete...neering at Washington University in St. Louis, and...er who specializes in aircraft and helicopter engi...erica,s Favorite Pastime., , First of all, some n...n is right-handed, but in baseball 25 percent of t...
...findings at the 11th International Coral Reef Symp...8. , African Dust Poses Threat to Coral Reefs a...an dust to the Caribbean and the Americas may be a...to preliminary results of a new study by researche...niversity, and the University of the West Indies. ...
Other Biology News:A green solution to biofuel production 2Baseball diamonds: the lefthander's best friend 2The good, the bad and the smelly: USGS at the 2008 Coral Reef Symposium 2The good, the bad and the smelly: USGS at the 2008 Coral Reef Symposium 3The good, the bad and the smelly: USGS at the 2008 Coral Reef Symposium 4The good, the bad and the smelly: USGS at the 2008 Coral Reef Symposium 5The good, the bad and the smelly: USGS at the 2008 Coral Reef Symposium 6The good, the bad and the smelly: USGS at the 2008 Coral Reef Symposium 7The good, the bad and the smelly: USGS at the 2008 Coral Reef Symposium 8The good, the bad and the smelly: USGS at the 2008 Coral Reef Symposium 9
(Date:12/4/2009)...Newswire/ -- Stemline Therapeutics, Inc. today ann...IL-3R targeting agents, SL-401 and SL-501, in both...loid leukemia (CML) have been selected for poster ...f the American Society of Hematology (ASH), to be ...oster will be presented by Stemline,s collaborator...
(Date:12/3/2009)...RNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ACCESS PHARMACEUTICALS, ...d an update on its European commercial launch of M...s, a debilitating side effect of radiation treatme...ed by Access, partner, SpePharm, in six European c..., Greece and Sweden. Access is conducting pre-mark...
(Date:12/3/2009)... Inverness Medical Innov...abling individuals to take charge of their health ...d health management, has declared a dividend of $3...l Preferred Stock ( IMA-PB). The dividend will be ...share equal to the quotient of (a) $3.00 divided b...
(Date:12/2/2009).... 2 Spectrum Blue Steel is emergin...nies on the planet. Through the efforts of True Gr... and Recycling Specialist Leroy Johnston, who has ...stated that Spectrum Blue Steel is light years ahe...cular earnings because of the bi products recovere...
Breaking Biology Technology:Stemline Therapeutics Announces Poster Presenting in vivo and Anti-Cancer Stem Cell Activity of SL-401 against Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML) at the 51st Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) 2Access Pharmaceuticals Provides Update on MuGard Commercial Launch in Europe 2Access Pharmaceuticals Provides Update on MuGard Commercial Launch in Europe 3Access Pharmaceuticals Provides Update on MuGard Commercial Launch in Europe 4Spectrum Blue Steel partners with Famous Chemists for Procuring Profitable Applications from Garbage Using the Biosphere MKV and Electrostatic Precipitators 2Spectrum Blue Steel partners with Famous Chemists for Procuring Profitable Applications from Garbage Using the Biosphere MKV and Electrostatic Precipitators 3
...deploying biometric exit procedures for internatio...partment of Homeland Security (DHS) today began co...tographs - from non-U.S. citizens departing the Un...ld-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and Detro...biometrics have helped DHS prevent the use of frau...
... 28 SyntheMed, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: SYMD), a...nd commercialization of anti-adhesion products, an...rbable adhesion barrier film for the reduction of ...approval from the Australian Therapeutic Goods Adm...en heart surgery. REPEL-CV will be marketed throu...
... 28 SPO Medical Inc. (SPOM), a,leading developer ...se in,portable monitoring devices, announced today... hand-held SPO Medical PulseOx 6100(TM) device wit...pediatric sensor is designed to,further enhance ap...cal,sector. In addition, the PulseOx 6100(TM) now ...
Other Biology Technology:DHS Begins Test of Biometric Exit Procedures at Two U.S. Airports 2SyntheMed Receives Australian Regulatory Approval for REPEL-CV(R) 2SPO Medical Expands Professional Product Offering 2SPO Medical Expands Professional Product Offering 3
...y, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, Aust...y of Technology, Perth, Australia This is the Four...in. It is a large format version (330 x 360 mm) ... This product number includes the CD with all illu...
MBS Thermal Cycler 1 Block Laptop Kit from Thermo Scientific
Mouse Anti-Rat L-Pyruvate Kinase Monoclonal Antibody, Unconjugated, Clone AD12 from ScheBo Biotech AG
PxE Thermal Cycler 0.5ml from Thermo Scientific
Biology Products: