Genetically Modified Crop hybridization/introgression

BACKGROUND: Cultivated bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) spontaneously hybridizes with wild/weedy related Aegilops populations, but little is known about the actual rates at which this hybridization occurs under field conditions. It is very important to provide reliable empirical data on this phenomenon in order to assess the potential crop-wild introgression, especially in the context of conducting risk assessments for the commercialization of genetically modified (GM) wheat, as gene flow from wheat to Aegilops species could transfer into the wild species genes coding for traits such as resistance to herbicides, insects, diseases or environmental stresses...

Apple ( Malus ) and pear ( Pyrus ) are economically important fruit crops well known for their unique textures, flavours, and nutritional qualities. Both genera are characterised by a distinct pattern of secondary metabolites, which directly affect not only resistance to certain diseases, but also have significant impacts on the flavour and nutritional value of the fruit. The identical chromosome numbers, similar genome size, and their recent divergence date, together with DNA markers have shown that apple and pear genomes are highly co-linear...

In nature, interspecific hybridization occurs frequently and can contribute to the production of new species or the introgression of beneficial adaptive features between species. It has great potential in agricultural systems to boost the process of targeted crop improvement. In the advent of genetically modified (GM) crops, it has a disadvantage that it involves the transgene escaping to unintended plants, which could result in non-specific weedy crops. Several crop species in the Brassica genus have close kinship: canola ( Brassica napus ) is an ancestral hybrid of B...

Over the past two centuries, introgression through repeated backcrossing has introduced disease resistance from wild grape species into the domesticated lineage Vitis vinifera subsp. sativa. Introgression lines are being cultivated over increasing vineyard surface areas, as their wines now rival in quality those obtained from preexisting varieties. There is, however, a lot of debate about whether and how wine laws defining commercial product categories, which are based on the classification of V. vinifera and interspecific hybrid grapes, should be revised to accommodate novel varieties that do not fit either category...

Cucumis hystrix Chakr. (2n = 2x = 24) is a wild species that can hybridize with cultivated cucumber (C. sativus L., 2n = 2x = 14), a globally important vegetable crop. However, cucumber breeding is hindered by its narrow genetic base. Therefore, introgression from C. hystrix has been anticipated to bring a breakthrough in cucumber improvement. Here, we report the chromosome-scale assembly of C. hystrix genome (289 Mb). Scaffold N50 reached 14.1 Mb. Over 90% of the sequences were anchored onto 12 chromosomes...

Brazil and South Africa, countries with economies in transition, are characterized by a dual agrarian structure co-occurring, sometimes, alongside in the same region. Large-scale commercial farming produces crops for export to global markets on the one hand, and small-scale farming, on the other hand, provides for subsistence and local markets. In both systems, maize (Zea mays) is a key crop for these two countries. For the commercial system, maize is a commodity crop while for the small-scale system it is the prime staple crop...

BACKGROUND: The cropping area of genetically modified (GM) crops has constantly increased since 1996. However, currently, cultivating GM crops is associated with many concerns. Transgenes are transferred to non-GM crops through pollen-mediated gene flow, which causes environmental problems such as superweeds and introgressive hybridization. Rapeseed (Brassica napus L.), which has many GM varieties, is one of the most crucial oil crops in the world. Hybridization between Brassica species occurs spontaneously...

BACKGROUND: Unintentional introgression from genetically modified (GM) oilseed rape (Brassica napus) to a relative is inevitable in the open field. A feasible and practical strategy for restricting the spread of GM offspring is to set a reasonable isolated distance between GM B. napus and the relatives. To define the isolated distance, a pollen donor/recipient pair is a prerequisite to conducting the field trial of pollen flow. However, because the cultivation of GM B. napus is prohibited in Taiwan, it is difficult to obtain relevant information...

Pre-commercialization studies on environmental biosafety of genetically modified (GM) crops are necessary to evaluate the potential for sexual hybridization with related plant species that occur in the release area. The aim of the study was a preliminary assessment of factors that may contribute to gene flow from sugarcane ( Saccharum hybrids) to indigenous relatives in the sugarcane production regions of Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal provinces, South Africa. In the first instance, an assessment of Saccharum wild relatives was conducted based on existing phylogenies and literature surveys...

Brassica juncea (A(j)A(j)B(j)B(j)), is an allotetraploid that arose from two diploid species, B. rapa (A(r)A(r)) and B. nigra (B(n)B(n)). It is an old oilseed crop with unique favorable traits, but the genetic improvement on this species is limited. We developed an approach to broaden its genetic base within several generations by intensive selection. The A(r) subgenome from the Asian oil crop B. rapa (A(r)A(r)) and the B(c) subgenome from the African oil crop B. carinata (B(c)B(c)C(c)C(c)) were combined in a synthesized allohexaploid (A(r)A(r)B(c)B(c)C(c)C(c)), which was crossed with traditional B...

Gene flow from genetically modified (GM) crops to wild relatives might affect the evolutionary dynamics of weedy populations and result in the persistence of escaped genes. To examine the effects of this gene flow, the growth of F1 hybrids that were formed by pollinating wild soybean (Glycine soja) with glyphosate-tolerant GM soybean (G. max) or its non-GM counterpart was examined in a greenhouse. The wild soybean was collected from two geographical populations in China. The performance of the wild soybean and the F2 hybrids was further explored in a field trial...