Biotechnology and agriculture

Jean Semal; Philippe Lepoivre



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Biotechnology and agriculture
Cahiers Agricultures. Volume 1, Number 3, 153-62, Juillet-Août 1992, Synthèse
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Author(s) : Jean Semal, Philippe Lepoivre
Summary : Application to agriculture of the new discoveries in the field of manipulating living organisons certainly opens interesting perspectives, but also raises potential problems. The most recent steps in the Development of agricultural biotechnology are listed in Table 1. In microbiology, progress was mainly in the field of biopesticides and biostimulants. On the other hand, plant and animal sciences benefitted from major advancement in the techniques of genetic manipulation, reproduction control, disease diagnosis and therapeutics, thus paving the way to the introduction of revolutionary methods in crop and animal husbandry. Table 2 summarizes the techniques of nucleic acid characterization currently used, with increasing specificity, accuracy, and rapidity in identifying biomolecules. The major applications of gene transfer obtained thus far with crop plants are listed in Table 3. They deal mainly with disease and stress resistance, newer techniques in genetic or reproduction manipulation, together with improved quality and increased economical value of the products. Beside the successes thus obtained and the perspectives of even more sensational discoveries, there is a less bright side of the question, namely the limitations, either scientifical or sociological, of possible applications. Table 4 presents a survey of the potentials of plant biotechnology together with the problems encountered. Two main objectives are illustrated : increase the yield of a given genotype by sanitation or transgenesis \; and modify the available genomes by speeding up genetic improvement programs, overcoming incompatibility factors, or creating additional genetic variability. Whatever the methods used, the improved organisms should be submitted to extensive field testing in order to ascertain their values in terms of genetic conformity and stability, sustainable health through successive croppings, yield, and product quality. Successful sanitation by meristem tip culture is examplified by case studies dealing with sweet potato freed from viruses in Guangdong province, China (figure 2), and with the production of virus-free potato plantlets in Rwanda (figures 3 and 4), within the frame of cooperative research programs with the financial support of EEC. With such vegetatively propagated crops, the valorization of virus-free clones rests on the setting up of controlled shemes of production of field-propagated healthy seed material, by avoiding natural reinfection, and by roguing infected plants. The sociological and economical implications of biotechnology applications in agriculture should not be underestimated, notably in developing countries. In this respect, such issues as patentability of living microorganisms, gene ownership, genetic diversity, or farmer’s rights, should be raised and adequately delt with. The explosive development of biotechnology in agriculture raises mixed feelings of admiration and fear, which need to be managed adequately by taking into account the social, economical, scientific and ecological environment, including the specific context of North-South relationship. In industrialized countries, the scientific and legislative background allows a suitable control of biotechnology applications in industry, crop production, and animal husbandry. Biotechnology innovations could lead there to an increasing use of transgenic plants and animals, to produce specific molecules intended for bioindustries, fine chemicals, or pharmaceuticals. In developing countries, where production of food and of renewable energy are essential, together with cash crops, biotechnologies have many potential applications. Benefitting from them, however, requires a progressive and adapted development, based on legal and physical infrastructures, as well as the human skill to perform on-site control. Attention should be paid also to ensure the various programs correspond to the needs of the relevant populations and to their global environment.
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