January 2019 - 32

uses knock-in technology. It could,
however, be two to three years before
the project
is complete. Right now,
researchers aren't certain about the
impact on yields, but Song guesses that
a 10- to 20-percent increase is possible.
" It could be more, " he said. " I'm not
sure right now, but it's an interesting
project for us to test. "
MODIFYING GENES TO STOP
OXIDIZATION
A group of researchers from the
National Institute of Agricultural
Technology (INTA) in Argentina,
led by Sergio Feingold, head of the
Agrobiotechnology Lab at INTA-Balcarce,
recently modified the polyphenol oxidase
gene in potatoes. The gene is responsible
for causing enzymatic browning in
tubers, which means they turn black
or brown when cut and exposed to air.
Oxidization does not present any health
concerns, but it does result in rejection
by consumers and, therefore, industry.
As a result of this discovery, the
Argentine researchers have been able to
produce non-browning potatoes, as well
as potatoes resistant to cold storage. This
is not new, though. Simplot released two
varieties - Innate Generation 1 and 2 -
that offer similar benefits.
Generation 1 Innate potatoes are said to
be less prone to bruising and black spots.
They also produce less asparagine, which
has the potential to reduce the formation
of acrylamide by 58 to 72 percent.
" Based on the literature, if you knock out some
of the tuberization genes, the potato yield will
likely be increased. "
- Junqi Song, Texas A&M AgriLife Research Center
Innate Generation 2 features similar
traits, but also addresses the issues of
shrinkage in cold storage, late blight,
sugar ends and sprouting.
The difference, though, is in how
they were produced, said Feingold, who
pointed out the advantages of working
with gene editing technology.
" There's this common idea among
countries - and I'm talking about
the whole continent from Canada to
Argentina and Chile - that if you can
demonstrate that you have not inserted
any foreign sequence in your product, it
will not go under the same regulation
as a GMO, " Feingold said. " It will go
through the regulations of a normal
variety that could have been obtained
by classical breeding methods. "
" This is a very big advantage in the
sense that you can easily introduce the
products of these developments into
the market because you don't have this
big, expensive and time-consuming
wall of deregulating GMOs, " he said.
To aid in the smooth uptake of geneedited
products, like the non-oxidizing
potato, the government of Argentina
presented to the Committee on Sanitary
and Phytosanitary Measures of the World
Trade Organization, an " International
Statement on Agricultural Applications
of Precision Biotechnology. "
The submission, which was supported
by Australia, Brazil, Canada, Paraguay
and the United States, seeks to
support science-based consideration
of agricultural
said he hopes that the submission will
also
encourage
innovations. Feingold
compatibility among
countries, as well as minimize potential
trade disruptions.
In the meantime, Feingold and his
team at INTA are working to see if
they can enhance water use efficiency
and saline sensitivity in potato. The
quality of water in Argentina is not
the best, he said, which means they
cannot grow more than one potato
crop every four years. Addressing
water use efficiency, he said, could
reduce the crop's use of energy, which
could in turn help address climate
change.
32
Spudman.com
http://www.Spudman.com
January 2019

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