Scientists achieve breakthrough that could have major impact on food supply: ‘A significant step’ – The Cool Down

Advanced Genetic Research on Chickpeas to Bolster Global Food Security

Project Overview and Strategic Objectives

A report on advanced gene research conducted by scientists at Murdoch University, Australia, details the creation of a comprehensive chickpea pangenome. The initiative aims to fortify global food systems by enhancing the resilience and productivity of this vital legume.

• Primary Goal: To create a pangenome cataloging all genes present across 15 types of chickpeas.
• Strategic Objectives: To accelerate the development of chickpea varieties with superior genetic traits.
• Targeted Traits:
  1. Enhanced drought tolerance
  2. Improved acid soil tolerance
  3. Optimized flowering time for increased yields
  4. Greater resistance to diseases

Aligning Agricultural Innovation with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This research provides a direct and impactful contribution to several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), addressing critical global challenges related to hunger, climate change, and sustainable production.

Contribution to SDG 2: Zero Hunger

The project is fundamentally aligned with the goal of achieving Zero Hunger by ensuring food security and promoting sustainable agriculture.

• Enhancing Food Security: By developing drought- and disease-resistant chickpeas, the research helps stabilize and increase the food supply, particularly in regions vulnerable to environmental stress.
• Promoting Sustainable Agriculture: The creation of higher-yielding and more resilient crops supports sustainable agricultural practices, ensuring long-term productivity and contributing to the eradication of hunger.

Contribution to SDG 13: Climate Action

The initiative serves as a critical adaptation strategy to the impacts of climate change on agriculture, which threaten global food production.

• Building Climate Resilience: Global yields of key crops have already declined due to climate-driven droughts and heat waves. This research directly counters that trend by engineering crops capable of thriving in harsher conditions.
• Adapting Food Systems: Developing climate-resilient chickpeas is a proactive measure to safeguard food systems against the increasing frequency of extreme weather events linked to global warming.

Further SDG Contributions

• SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure): The creation of the chickpea pangenome is a landmark scientific innovation, showcasing the power of advanced technology to build resilient infrastructure within the agricultural sector.
• SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production): By improving crop hardiness, this research promotes more efficient and sustainable production patterns, reducing crop failure and food loss at the source.
• SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals): The project’s success, built on a collaboration between Murdoch University and the Grains Research and Development Corporation, highlights the importance of partnerships in achieving sustainable development outcomes.

Scientific Findings and Technological Breakthroughs

Key Genetic Discoveries

The research team has identified critical genetic information that will form the basis for future crop breeding programs.

1. Gene Family Identification: A total of 34,345 gene families were identified, including 13,986 dispensable families associated with key agronomic traits.
2. “QTL Hotspot” Discovery: A specific chromosome region, termed the “QTL hotspot,” was identified as being instrumental in enhancing crop resilience in hot and dry climates, with proven success in regions like Ethiopia.

Future Outlook and Implementation

Pathway to Deployment and Global Impact

The project is moving from research to practical application, with a clear strategy for implementation that supports both local farmers and global sustainability objectives.

• Farmer Collaboration: Work has commenced to engage with breeding organizations to ensure these new and improved chickpea varieties reach Australian farmers.
• Global Model for Resilience: This research provides a powerful framework for leveraging genetic science to secure food supplies in the face of climate change, offering a scalable model for other essential crops worldwide.
• Securing Production: The ultimate aim is to safeguard Australia’s significant chickpea harvest and ensure the continued availability of this nutritious food source, thereby reinforcing the principles of SDG 2 and SDG 13.

Relevant Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

• SDG 2: Zero Hunger

  The article’s primary focus is on enhancing chickpea production to ensure a stable food supply. The research aims to develop chickpea varieties with stronger yields and resilience against environmental stressors, directly contributing to food security.

• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

  The development of a chickpea pangenome by Murdoch University scientists represents a significant advancement in scientific research and innovation. This technological breakthrough is aimed at upgrading the agricultural sector’s capabilities to face modern challenges.

• SDG 13: Climate Action

  The research is explicitly framed as a response to the impacts of a warming planet on agriculture. By developing varieties with “drought tolerance” and resistance to “abiotic stresses,” the project directly addresses the need to build resilience and adapt to climate-related hazards like heat waves and droughts mentioned in the article.

• SDG 15: Life on Land

  The effort to develop chickpeas with “acid soil tolerance” relates to combating land degradation. Making crops viable in less-than-ideal soil conditions is a key strategy for sustainable land use and restoring degraded agricultural land.

Specific SDG Targets Identified

• SDG 2: Zero Hunger

  • Target 2.4: By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality.
    
    The article details the development of chickpea varieties that are more resilient to drought, acid soil, and diseases, which are resilient agricultural practices designed to increase productivity and adapt to climate change.
  • Target 2.5: By 2020, maintain the genetic diversity of seeds, cultivated plants and their related wild species, including through soundly managed and diversified seed and plant banks at the national, regional and international levels, and promote access to and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, as internationally agreed.
    
    The creation of the “Australian chickpea pangenome” and the identification of “34,345 gene families” is a direct action to catalog and unlock the genetic diversity of the crop to improve it.

• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

  • Target 9.5: Enhance scientific research, upgrade the technological capabilities of industrial sectors in all countries, in particular developing countries, including, by 2030, encouraging innovation and substantially increasing the number of research and development workers per 1 million people and public and private research and development spending.
    
    The advanced gene research conducted by Murdoch University scientists, in collaboration with the Grains Research and Development Corporation, is a clear example of enhancing scientific research and technology to foster innovation in the agricultural sector.

• SDG 13: Climate Action

  • Target 13.1: Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries.
    
    The article highlights that changing conditions from an “overheating planet” threaten crop production. The research aims to create chickpea varieties with “drought resilience” to directly strengthen the agricultural system’s adaptive capacity to climate hazards.

• SDG 15: Life on Land

  • Target 15.3: By 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world.
    
    The specific goal of improving “acid soil tolerance” in chickpeas is a direct effort to make agriculture more productive on degraded land, contributing to the restoration and sustainable use of soil.

Indicators for Measuring Progress

• Implied Indicators for Target 2.4 (Resilient Agriculture)

  • Agricultural Yields: The article states the goal is to “produce stronger yields.” An increase in the tons of chickpeas harvested per hectare using the new varieties would be a direct indicator of success.
  • Adoption Rate of Resilient Varieties: The article mentions that “Work has started to introduce the modified chickpeas to Australian growers.” The percentage of farmers adopting these new drought and disease-resistant varieties would measure progress.

• Explicit Indicators for Target 2.5 (Genetic Diversity)

  • Number of Gene Families Cataloged: The article explicitly states that the research team “identified ‘34,345 gene families, including 13,986 dispensable families…'” This number serves as a direct indicator of the genetic resources that have been characterized and preserved.

• Implied Indicators for Target 9.5 (Scientific Research)

  • Development of New Technologies/Methods: The creation of the “Australian chickpea pangenome” is a specific technological achievement that can be used as an indicator of innovation.

• Implied Indicators for Target 13.1 & 15.3 (Climate Resilience & Land Use)

  • Development of Climate-Adapted Crop Varieties: The number of new chickpea varieties developed with specific traits like “drought tolerance,” “acid soil tolerance,” and adjusted “flowering time” serves as an indicator of strengthened adaptive capacity.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Analysis

Source: thecooldown.com