Biotechnology Can Help Accelerate Plant Breeding

11:05, May 18, 2022

A university biologist spoke about modern methods of crop production

Anzhelika Teptina, Associate Professor at the Department of Biodiversity and Bioecology of UrFU, told about the methods of creating new and improving existing plant varieties. At the TASS press conference dedicated to the start of the gardening season in the Ural and seed breeding, she shared information on the key areas of work of Ural Federal University biologists in the field of plant breeding. Now scientists are working on the search for new ways to increase the resistance of plants to negative environmental conditions.

"Traditional plant breeding methods are now complemented by biotechnological approaches. Biotechnology has made it possible to speed up the breeding process many times over, thereby ensuring that we can quickly develop the varieties we need for our consumption. We can use biotechnology in many different ways. For example, we are now working in several directions, and one of the key ones is to cleanse soils of heavy metals. We use plants that can accumulate high concentrations of heavy metals in the above-ground mass and thus contribute to the purification of the soil. This is a kind of intermediate direction in plant breeding: we prepare the soil in order to then plant food plants on it, which will be grown without damaging the crop and human health," explains Anzhelika Teptina.

In addition, the expert highlighted several other promising technologies that can improve plant varieties, increase their yield and resistance to diseases, pests and critical climatic conditions. These are technologies of hybridization or crossing of varieties with necessary properties, modification of genetic material by natural and artificial mutagenesis, as well as work with cellular structures.

Plant breeding at the cellular level is made possible by microclonal multiplication methods, or, on the contrary, by fusion. New cell materials are stored in seed banks, in special repositories of genetic material, and are used in plant breeding at different stages. This process of biotechnological support makes it possible to accelerate the development of new plant varieties and make the breeders' work more successful.

The news article was translated by UrFU International Marketing Office
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