New Study Increases Biomass of Transgenic Tobacco by Approximately 40%

New Study Increases Biomass of Transgenic Tobacco by Approximately 40%

In a new study, researchers from the US Department of Agriculture and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign introduced genetic constructs into tobacco plants to adjust one process called photorespiration. Photorespiration occurs when an enzyme called Rubisco accidentally captures oxygen molecules rather than the carbon dioxide required for plant growth. This process occurs in about 20% of the time and can cause plants to produce a toxic chemical called glycolate. The results of the study were published in the issue of Science, entitled "Synthetic glycolate metabolism pathways stimulate crop growth and productivity in the field." To remove glycolic acid, plants convert it into useful compounds by a series of chemical reactions taking place in multiple compartments of the cell and reduce photosynthetic efficiency by up to 50%. To restore photosynthesis efficiency, these researchers genetically engineered their tobacco plants by introducing these genetic constructs, keeping glycolic acid in a cell compartment and transforming there. These researchers tested the performance of these genetically modified tobacco plants (ie, transgenic tobacco plants) in the field under typical agricultural conditions. The biomass of these genetically modified tobacco plants increased by approximately 40% compared to unmodified tobacco plants. These researchers hope that this adjustment to photosynthesis will also increase the biomass of edible plants. They are currently testing whether these types of modifications contribute to potatoes in greenhouse experiments. They plan to conduct similar experiments on rice, soybeans, and cowpeas. However, this may take decades to confirm that these genetic modifications produce more food and are approved by regulatory agencies for use in these crops.   Reference Paul F. South et al. Synthetic glycolate metabolism pathways stimulate crop growth and productivity in the field. Science, 2019, doi:10.1126/science.aat9077. Marion Eisenhut et al. Improving crop yield. Science, 2019, doi:10.1126/science.aav8979.
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