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Grant Funds Research on Developing Corn for Warmer Climate

Corn (USDA.gov)

(USDA.gov)

A $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will fund Iowa State University researchers in Ames developing a corn variety that maintains the region’s high yields as temperatures rise. Professor Alan Myers and Tracie Hennen-Bierwagen, associate scientist, will join with colleagues from University of Wisconsin, Madison and the University of Florida, Gainesville on the project.

Myers and Hennen-Bierwagen hope to find a biochemical solution to projected yield losses from the prospect of higher temperatures resulting from climate change. Current research shows corn yield can drop by up to 25 percent when sustained temperatures rise from 90 to 95 degrees during corn grain filling. Yield losses of up to 40 percent are projected in tropical and subtropical areas by the end of the 21st century.

An important issue that scientists don’t yet understand is how temperature affects seed metabolism, which according to Hennen-Bierwagen, will be the focus of the research. “The plant part functions fine as long as irrigation is adequate,” she says. “The plant sends sugar up to the seed at normal levels. But the seed is not able to make that sugar into starch as efficiently at high temperatures.”

The researchers will examine the entire maize (corn) genome to try to identify factors responsible for the problem of lower yields. In addition, they will test a few target genes in maize that they already suspect are likely to be important in the yield response to temperature, says Myers.

Genetically engineered corn lines designed to sustain present yield levels in higher temperatures will likely be ready for introduction in five to 10 years. The genetic findings could also apply to other staple crops, such as wheat, rice, and cassava.

Read more: USDA Funding Research on Climate Change, Agr Production

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