How did an ancient plant from Latin America become Asia's second-most-important cash crop?
Half a century ago, cassava was a simple staple crop for some smallholder farmers in Asia eking out a living in harsh landscapes.
Half a century ago, cassava was a simple staple crop for some smallholder farmers in Asia eking out a living in harsh landscapes.
Biotechnology
Apr 16, 2020
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The normal way to study cassava roots is digging up the plant. Unfortunately, that tends to kill the plant, causing serious complications for researchers who are interested in learning more about how cassava grows. To solve ...
Biotechnology
Dec 12, 2019
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A nutty-flavored, starchy root vegetable, cassava (also known as yuca) is one of the most drought-resistant crops and is a major source of calories and carbs for people in developing countries, serving as the primary food ...
Ecology
Oct 30, 2019
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Today, as world leaders gather for the UN General Assembly, hundreds of emerging leaders focused on fighting global inequality came together at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's third annual Goalkeepers event in New York ...
Biotechnology
Sep 25, 2019
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Using gene-editing technology to create virus-resistant cassava plants could have serious negative ramifications, according to new research by plant biologists at the University of Alberta, the University of Liège in Belgium ...
Biotechnology
Apr 26, 2019
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Southeast Asia is the source of 95 percent of global cassava exports, and the detection in 2015 in Cambodia of the potentially harvest-devastating Sri Lankan cassava mosaic virus (SLCMV) raised alarm. By 2016, the disease, ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 22, 2019
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26
A new study led by Danforth Center principal investigator Nigel Taylor and research scientist Narayanan Narayanan, shows that field-grown cassava plants overexpressing a combination of plant genes can accumulate significantly ...
Biotechnology
Jan 28, 2019
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Using the famous CRISPR-Cas9 gene scissors, plant biotechnologists at ETH Zurich have been able to improve cassava. The new variety has amylose-free or 'waxy' starch, which is preferred by industry.
Biotechnology
Sep 6, 2018
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Researchers from half a dozen states in West Africa have joined together in a battle against what one expert calls a root crop "Ebola"—a viral disease that could wreck the region's staple food and condemn millions to hunger.
Plants & Animals
Jul 8, 2018
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5
Cassava is a staple in the diet of more than one billion people across 105 countries, yet this "orphaned crop" has received little attention compared to popular crops like corn and soybeans. While advances in breeding have ...
Biotechnology
May 10, 2018
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