Breakthroughs Will Boost Research - Cor " Talk ’ Ul,casler Ss,urday ’ oc ' ol,e, H 200 °- pa s e 13
Into Com’s Genetic Makeup
ST. LOUIS, Mo. Recent
announcements regarding
significant breakthroughs in
human and rice genomics
provide a major boost for
corn genome research, the
National Corn Growers As
sociation (NCGA) noted.
Since 1996, funding plant
genomic research a pro
cess that determines the
genetic makeup of the plant,
in this case corn has been
the number one appropria
tions priority for the NCGA.
It is hoped that this checkoff
funded program will open the
doors for the development of
improved corn hybrids that
are more nutritious, provide
greater yields, and are more
adaptable to seasons, cli
mates, and soils.
Monsanto announced a
major scientific break
through in decoding the
genetic makeup of rice that
according to Monsanto “will
provide a new level of under
standing of almost all the
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genes in rice.” Similarly,
Celera Genomics of Rock
ville, Md., announced that it
has completed the sequenc
ing phase of a human’s
genome. Both of these break
throughs involve a “shot
gun” or shortcut sequencing
technique that identifies
nearly all of the genes in rice
and human organisms.
“The human genome
breakthrough will prove va
lidity of the shotgun ap
proach to sequencing,
particularly the validity as it
applies to very complex or
ganisms such as humans.
Corn is estimated to be as
complex,” said Floyd
Schultz, a grower from Plain
field, 111, and chairman of the
NCGA Customer and Busi
ness Development Action
Team. “Things that we can
learn from humans will help
us advance significantly in
corn.”
Schultz noted that every
advancement that has oc
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curred to date in human
genome research has been ap
plied to the plant level with
some success, through the
Plant Genome Initiative.
“The human effort has sig
nificantly driven the plant
effort, and plant research has
helped to drive the human
effort,” he noted.
The rice breakthrough is
also significant in boosting
corn genomic research,
Schultz said.
“Similar to corn, rice is a
grass, so we’re much closer to
applicability to corn,” he
said. “Rice is certainly not as
complicated as corn, but with
the working draft now avail
able, it’s going to jumpstart a
major project under the Plant
Genome Initiative that in
volves locating significant
genes in rice and using them
to locate key corn genes. This
comparative genomics will be
quite significant.”
All of these advances will
allow researchers to continue
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“We strongly urge you to
provide not less than $BO mil
lion for the National Science
Foundation (NSF) Plant
Genome Initiative (PGI) and
$25.5 million for the ‘2OlO
Project,’ the functional
genomics project for Arabi
dopsis thaliana,” Smith said.
Smith noted that a vigor
ous plant genomics program
will allow researchers to
create new hybrids and varie
ties that will:
• Improve human and
animal health.
• Reduce medical costs be
cause of more nutritious,
healthier food for individu
als.
• Reduce worldwide mal
nutrition through higher
yielding and more nutritious
crops.
to make strides in genomic
research involving all eco
nomical crops, such as corn.
In recent testimony to the
U.S. House Subcommittee on
VA, HUD and Independent
Agencies on Appropriations,
Boyd Smith of York, Neb.,
outlined the importance of
plant genomics.
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• Reduce environmental
problems for crop and live
stock producers.
• Expand plant-based re
newable resources for raw
materials, industrial
feedstocks, chemicals and
energy.
• Enable growers to get
more income from the
market, thereby reducing re
liance on federal farm pro
grams.
Referencing the break
throughs in genomic re
search, Smith noted that
another key factor in the
recent announcements is en
sured accessibility to funda
mental genetic information.
“Our interest from the be
ginning has been to try to
ensure accessibility to the
basic genetic information.
We were concerned early on
that interests in other coun
tries would lock up genetic
information and preclude
work in corn because of the
similarity between plants,”
he said. “The great thing
about the rice announcement
is that it puts all of the funda
mental knowledge about rice
in the public domain.”
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