The recently-witnessed opposition to the commercial cultivation of Bt brinjal, many feared, would prove a setback to scientific research on fruit and vegetables.
The Defence Research and Development Organisation, however, has gone ahead full steam with testing a genetically modified tomato to meet the requirements of the armed forces serving in high-altitude regions of over 10,000 feet above sea level. Fruit and vegetables are especially hard to grow at such high altitudes, where the temperature plunges to sub-zero levels.
A tomato variety of Pusa Ruby is undergoing evaluation tests at the Defence Laboratory for High Altitude Research (DLHIR) in Leh, Jammu and Kashmir.
“The transgenic fruit is undergoing fifth- generation trials. We are testing to conduct studies on the use of this tomato as food and its impact on the eco-system,” said chief controller of DRDO W Selvamurthy at a press conference in Mysore. He was speaking on the sidelines of a seminar on the futuristic food requirements of the armed forces on Thursday.
The tomato variety that is currently undergoing tests in Leh has been implanted with two genes that provide cold tolerance and growth with low water content, thus being ideally suited to cultivation in the extreme weather experienced in high altitude regions.
The Pusa Ruby variety was introgressed (a process of hybridisation in which the genes from one species are moved into the gene pool of another, usually a species of the same genus) with the Osmotin gene through agro-bacterium-mediated genetic transformation
. This process, it is expected, will yield a variety of tomato that can withstand extremely low temperatures. The ingrossing technique is one that is especially long-drawn, as the plant species goes through several hybrid generations.
The plants are screened for tolerance to cold stress at a temperature of 3 degree Celsius for three-and-a half days, and later exposed to ambient temperature. Morphological, physiological and biochemical studies are done.
“In Leh and Ladakh, the plant has to be able to survive sub-zero temperatures. There is also lesser oxygen at that altitude. This plant offers potential for a supply of fresh tomatoes to thearmed forces in such areas,” the chief controller said.
Comments