China: How do scientists develop bioengineering?

Chinese scientists have made progress toward bioconfinement in dicotyledonous GMO plant species by using overexpression of a specific gene in a modified camelina sativum. AgroXXI has seen an article from Nanjing Agricultural University, China, that talks about biotechnology to limit the transfer of pollen from GM camelina to common relatives: “Comelinaceae is grown as an oilseed crop whose seeds are rich in nutrients and high in unsaturated fatty acids. Genetic engineering has increased the yield of camelina due to resistance to drought, and has also improved other characteristics. However, the introduction of transgenic camelina into the agricultural landscape carries high risks associated with the introgression of transgenes into related agricultural and wild species. Existing studies show significant pollen-mediated gene flow (PMGF) from transgenic camelina to non-transgenic relatives, which is of concern. Thus, bioconfinement strategies such as cleistogamy (self-pollination ...