Seed Biotechnology: Translating Promise into Practice

摘要

In recent years, biotechnology has come to be synonymous with the use of recombinant DNA techniques to introduce genes into plant or animal genomes. Biotechnology has been applied to modify the composition of seeds as foods or raw products to improvetheir nutritional, flavour, postharvest or processing characteristics. Genetic changes to improve the production of seeds or their performance as propagules can also be achieved using biotechnology. Proof of concept has been demonstrated for many applications of seed biotechnology. However, the only biotechnology products that have achieved wide commercialization are targeted towards insect and weed management, rather than towards enhancement of the biological or nutritional aspects of seeds. The application of biotechnology to enhance seed production, performance and composition has thus far been stymied in practice by the regulatory requirements and economic risk associated with introducing such products into the commercial marketplace.