Scientists: Gene resists drought and disease, increases crop yields

Chinese scientists have discovered a gene that can help crops become more tolerant of heat and disease while increasing yields.

In a thesis published in Nature Biotechnology Tuesday, a team led by He Zuhua, of Shanghai Institute for Biological Sciences under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, found that the ERECTA (ER) gene in transgenic rice and tomatoes improved heat tolerance in the greenhouse and field tests at multiple locations in China during several seasons.

The detrimental effects of global warming on crop productivity threaten to reduce the world's food supply. Although plant responses to changes in temperature have been studied, genetic modification of crops to improve thermotolerance has had little success to date.

The overexpression of the gene can also help improve yield while making the plants more resistant to diseases.

Earlier scientists found no such genes to accomplish two goals: more tolerance to heat and diseases and increases in crop productivity. Endi