Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole.
Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter.
Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
Do not use for reproduction, copying, pasting, or reading; exclusively for search engines.
OCR for page R1
G, · ' . .
enenc ~ngmee~ dig
of Plants
Agncullural Research Opportunities and Policy Concerns
Board on Agriculture
National Research Council
NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS
Washington, D. C. 1984
OCR for page R2
NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS 2101 CONSTITUTION AVENUE, NW WASHINGTON, DC 20418
The convocation from which this publication was developed was approved by the
Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from
the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering,
and the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was established by the National Academy of Sciences
in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's
purposes of furthering knowledge and of advising the federal government. The Council
operates in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy under the
authority of its congressional charter of 1863, which establishes the Academy as a private,
nonprofit, self-governing membership corporation. The Council has become the principal
operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy
of Engineering in the conduct of their services to the government, the public, and the
scientific and engineering communities. It is administered jointly by both Academies
and the Institute of Medicine. The National Academy of Engineering and the Institute
of Medicine were established in 1964 and 1970, respectively, under the charter of the
National Academy of Sciences.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 83-63138
International Standard Book Number 0-309-03434-5
Copyright @) 1984 by the National Academy of Sciences
No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, or electronic
process, or in the form of a phonographic recording, nor may it be stored in a retrieval
system, transmitted, or otherwise copied for public or private use, without written
permission from the publisher, except for the purposes of official use by the United
States Government.
Printed in the United States of America
First Printing, January 1984
Second Printing, June 1984
Cover Photograph: Rice farming scene in northern California. ~)1982 by William
Garnett, reproduced with permission of the photographer.
OCR for page R3
Board on Agriculture
WILLIAM L. BROWN, Chairman, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc.
LAWRENCE BOGORAD, Harvard University
NEVILLE P. CLARKE, Texas A&M University
ERIC L. ELLWOOD, North Carolina State University
ROBERT G. CAST, Michigan State University
EDWARD H. GLASS, Cornell University
RALPH W. F. HARDY, E.~. du Pont de Nemours & Co., Inc.
LAURENCE R. lAHN, Wildlife Management Institute
ROGER L. MITCHELL, University of Missouri
JO~ A. PINO, Tnter-American Development Bank
VERNON W. RUTTAN, University of Minnesota
CHAMP B. TANNER, University of Wisconsin
VIRGINIA WALBOT, Stanford University
PHILIP ROSS, Executive Director
. . .
lit
OCR for page R4
Acknowledgments
We wish to express particular appreciation to Leslie Roberts who wrote
this summary report. Also, we acknowledge the staff of the Council for
Research Planning in Biological Sciences, Inc., Claire Wilson and Carol
Von Dohien, and those with the Board on Agriculture of the National
Research Council, Beulah BresIer, fill Curry, and km Tavares, who pro-
vided valuable assistance in organizing the meeting and in producing
this report.
Finally, we sincerely appreciate the tireless efforts of Alexander Hol-
laender in helping to arrange the convocation and the contributions
made by the speakers, panelists, and other participants without whom
the convocation and report wouIc! not have been possible.
The convocation and study was supported by grants to the National
Research Council's Boarct on Agriculture from the NAS Academy-~:ndustry
Program; National Science Foundation; U.S. Department of Agriculture;
and U.S. Department of Energy; and by grants to the Council for Re-
search Planning in Biological Sciences from Allied Corporation; ARCO
Plant Cell Research Institute; Caigene, Inc.; DeKalb-Pfizer Genetics; E.
I. du Font de Nemours & Co., Inc.; Monsanto Company; North Amer-
ican Plant Breeders; Pfizer, Inc.; Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc.;
Plant Genetics; The Standard Oil Company of Ohio; University of Cal-
ifornia, Davis.
V
OCR for page R5
Preface
U.S. agriculture has flourished in this century. In the past 50 years,
agricultural productivity has more than doubled, while the amount of
land under cultivation has decTinect. This phenomenal growth has been
fueled by advances in agricultural science by farm mechanization and
the clevelopment of agricultural chemicals and improved plant varieties.
Yet productivity gains may be harder to achieve in the next 50 years.
In the United States, there is little prime farmland left to develop. Even
with increased use of fertilizer and pesticides, farmers may not be able
to squeeze more productivity from existing varieties. For some crops,
yields are beginning to level off. Some of the richest croplands are
becoming salinized; topsoil is being lost. And farmers are confronting
rising costs for fuel, fertilizer, and water.
In much of the Third World, hunger is pervasive. In many developing
nations, farmers still struggle to extract an adequate food supply from
marginal soils and world food production must somehow double in
the next 40 years to meet the expected rise in demand.
To sustain agricultural productivity, farmers worldwide will need new
technologies, especially new plant varieties adapted to harsh conditions.
Throughout the agricultural community, there is an increasing aware-
ness that genetic engineering may provide some of the solutions. Re-
combinant DNA and the other genetic engineering techniques, clevel-
opect in animals in the early 1970s, have only recently been applied to
plant research. Yet already, they have yielded a wealth of information
about the basic structure and function of plant cells information that
can be channeled into more effective breeding strategies. And eventu-
ally, it may be possible to manipulate plant genes in the laboratory to
improve plants and perhaps create new ones.
At this stage, research effort is still largely centered in basic research
v
OCR for page R6
v]
PREFACE
laboratories though excitement has spread throughout the agricultural
research community. In just a few years, the scientific progress of a few
plant scientists has been remarkable. In many ways, their work consti-
tutes a revolution- one that foretells of changes that the agricultural
enterprise may undergo as it absorbs the new technology.
On May 23-24, 1983, plant scientists and science policymakers from
government, private companies, and universities met at the National
Academy of Sciences for a convocation on the genetic engineering of
plants. Organized with the aid and encouragement of Dr. Alexander
Holiaender of The Council for Research Planning in Biological Sciences,
Inc., the convocation was cosponsored by Dr. HolIaender's organization
and the Board on Agriculture of the National Research Council. (The
program of that convocation follows on the next two pages.)
During the convocation, the researchers described some of the ways
genetic engineering may be used to address agricultural problems.
Policymakers delineated and debated the changes in research funding
and training necessary to realize this potential. Various speakers urged
new collaborative efforts among basic scientists and plant breeders. And
all spoke of a new era in agricultural research.
This book summarizes those discussions. It is intended to serve as an
introduction and guide for those who wish to follow the development
of this promising new technology.
WILLIAM L. BROWN
Chairman, Board on Agriculture
OCR for page R7
Program of the
Convocation on Genetic Engineering of Plants:
Speakers and Panelists
Introductory Remarks
WALTER A. ROSENBLITH, Foreign Secretary, National Academy of Sciences
GEORGE A. KEYWORTH TI, Science Adviser to the President
GEORGE E. BROWN, JR., Chairman, House Subcommittee on Department
Operations, Research and Foreign Agriculture, U.S. Congress
Why Agricultural Research?
ORVILLE BENTLEY, Assistant Secretary for Science and Education, U.S.
Department of Agriculture (National Perspective)
W. DAVID HOPPER, Vice President, South Asia Division, World Bank
(International Perspective)
RALPH W. F. HARDY, Director of Life Sciences Research, E. I. du Pont de
Nemours & Co., Inc. (Industrial Perspective)
LOWELL N. LEWIS, Assistant Vice President for Agriculture and Director,
California Agricultural Experiment Station System (University Perspective)
A Science Overview of Genetic Engineering
LAWRENCE BOGORAD, Biology Department, Harvard University
Research Opportunities
ROBERT GOLDBERG, Biology Department, University of California at Los
Angeles (Gene Structure, Function and Genetic Transmission)
WILLIAM SCOWCROFT, Plant Industries Division, CSIRO, Canberra,
Australia (Somaclonal Variation, Cell Selection and Genotype Improvement)
CHARLES I. ARNTZEN, Director, Plant Research Laboratory, Michigan State
University (Introducing Herbicide Resistance into Crops via Novel Genetics)
MILTON N. SCHROTH, Department of Plant Pathology, University of
California at Berkeley (Organisms in the Rhizosphere)
· ~
VI!
OCR for page R8
Ill
Perspectives on Future Research (Panel DiscussionJ
SPEAKERS AND PANELISTS
RONALD L. PHILLIPS, Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics,
University of Minnesota
STEPHEN P. BAENZIGER, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville
WINSTON BRILL, University of Wisconsin and Cetus-Madison, Inc.
GLENN B. COLLINS, Agronomy Department, University of Kentucky
ROBERT M. GOODMAN, Calgene, Inc.
KEITH A. WALKER, Plant Genetics
An Overview of PoZicy Issues
VERNON W. RUTTAN, Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics,
University of Minnesota (Agricultural Productivity Implications of
Biotechnology Research)
ANTHONY I. FARAS, University of Minnesota and Co-chairman, Molecular
Genetics, Inc. (Economic Considerations in Founding a Biotechnology Company)
RENE TEGTMEYER, Assistant U.S. Commissioner of Patents, Patent and
Trademark Office, U.S. Department of Commerce (Patents)
RAYMOND THORNTON, President, Arkansas State University (Safety
Regulations for Recombinant DNA)
Education and Manpower (Panel Discussion)
CHARLES HESS, Dean, College of Agriculture and Environmental Science,
University of California at Davis
MARY E. CLUTTER, Division of Physiology, Cellular and Molecular Biology,
National Science Foundation
PHILIP FILNER, ARCO Plant Cell Research Institute
KENNETH I. FREY, Agronomy Department, Iowa State University
The Roles of Universities, Industry, and Government: Opportunities for
Cooperation and Collaboration
GILBERT S. OMENN, Dean, School of Public Health and Community
Medicine, University of Washington (Overview of Types of Agreements:
University-Industry-Government)
REUVEN M. SACHER, Director, Biological Research, Monsanto Agricultural
Products Co. (Industry's Roles)
THEODORE HULLAR, Director of Research, Cornell University
(Government's Roles)
RICHARD S. CALDECOTT, Dean, College of Biological Sciences, University of
Minnesota (University's Roles)
Closing Remarks
WILLIAM L. BROWN, Chairman, Board on Agriculture, National Research
Council
OCR for page R9
Contents
INTRODUCTION.
CROP IMPROVEMENT
. . . . . . . .
The First Biological Revolution, 6
Burgeoning Demand for Food,
Molecular Genetics, 12
Uncertain Impact, 13
GENE TRANSFER
. . . . . . .
The Background, 15
The Technique, IS
Current Constraints, 21
Vectors, 21
Gene Expression, 24
Single and Multigene Traits, 25
Plant Regeneration, 25
A TOOL FOR FUNDAMENTAL PLANT SCIENCE.
Seed Protein Genes, 31
SOMATIC CELL GENETICS
Selection, 33
Protoplast Fusion, 36
Somaclonal Variation, 37
15
..... 27
IX
33
OCR for page R10
XAPPLYING THE TOOLS OF BIOTECHNOLOGY TO AGRICULTURAL
PROBLEMS
Herbicide Resistance, 40
Engineering an Atrazine-Resistant Crop, 42
Bioengineered Microorganisms to Combat Plant Diseases, 44
Nitrogen Fixation, 48
The Bottom Line, 52
POLICY AND INSTITUTIONAL CONSIDERATIONS
Neglect of Basic Science, 55
Multidisciplinary Training, 57
UNIVERSITY-INDUSTRY RELATIONS
University Concerns, 61
Industry Concerns, 62
Three-Way Collaboration, 64
SAFETY REGULATIONS . .
The Need for Continued Diligence, 71
PATENTS
The Test Case, 74
Patent Activity, 75
INDEX .
CONTENTS
40
53
60
69
73
77
OCR for page R11
\l a/ ~
~ ~ j~
1
Genedc En~eer~g
of plants
I/ R~- ~or~"f~e ~~d PI Corals
OCR for page R12
