British scientists have called the fast-growing and unpretentious GMO rice the only hope of mankind for salvation from hunger in the long term. The research has entered the third, penultimate phase, as reported in a press release.
The development of a genetically modified rice variety is carried out as part of the C4 Rice Project, which was launched in 2008 with the support of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. 12 scientific institutions from eight countries take part in the research.
By the type of photosynthesis, rice belongs to the C3 class, which is considered a rather capricious crop. The task of scientists is to change its class to C4, which will increase the grain yield by 50 percent and make it more unpretentious and fast-growing.
During the first two phases, scientists successfully identified the biochemical and morphological components of plants responsible for class C4 photosynthesis. The third stage of research is to investigate the regulatory mechanisms required for gene modification of rice.
The researchers believe that the transition of many plants from photosynthesis of the C3 class to the C4 class is due to an evolutionary factor, therefore, their task is not as difficult as it seems.
“Given the rate of population growth and the scale of urbanization, over the next 35 years, people will need almost double the amount of rice to feed themselves. I hope we will be able to solve this problem in time,”said Professor Jane Langdale, one of the leaders of the study.