{"id":4118,"date":"2015-03-19T13:27:19","date_gmt":"2015-03-19T19:27:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/?p=4118"},"modified":"2015-11-26T11:03:11","modified_gmt":"2015-11-26T17:03:11","slug":"protein-rich-pearl-millet-pearl-of-the-harsh-lands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/2015\/03\/19\/protein-rich-pearl-millet-pearl-of-the-harsh-lands\/","title":{"rendered":"Protein-rich pearl millet, pearl of the harsh lands"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Photo:<\/a>
A farmer harvests her pearl millet crop in Ghana’s Upper West Region.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Pearl millet is the only cereal crop that can be grown in some of the hottest and driest regions of Asia and Africa. It is a staple provider of food, nutrition and income for millions of resource-poor people living on these harsh agricultural lands.<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Even though pearl millet is well adapted to growing in areas characterised by drought, poor soil fertility and high temperatures, \u201cthere are limited genetic tools available for this orphan crop,\u201d reported researcher Tom Hash at the International Crop Science Congress 10 years ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe people who relied on this crop in such extreme environments had not benefitted from the \u2018biotechnology revolution\u2019, or even the \u2018green revolution\u2019 that dramatically increased food grain production on irrigated lands over a generation ago,\u201d adds Tom, now Principal Scientist (Millet Breeding) in the Dryland Cereals Research Program of the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)<\/a>. This lack of research dividends was despite the fact that pearl millet is the sixth most important cereal crop globally.<\/p>\n

It was at this time \u2013 in 2005 \u2013 that the CGIAR Generation Challenge Programme (GCP)<\/a> stepped up to invest in more genetic research for pearl millet (along with finger and foxtail millet).<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Newly harvested pearl millet heads in Niger.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The use of genetic technologies to improve pearl millet had already made some advances through work carried out in the United Kingdom. The GCP initiative was established to improve food security in developing countries by expanding such available genetic work to create crops bred to tolerate drought, disease and poor soils.<\/p>\n

With financial support from GCP, and with the benefit of lessons learnt from parallel GCP genetic research, ICRISAT scientists were able to develop more advanced tools for breeding pearl millet.<\/p>\n

\"Pearl<\/a><\/p>\n

Protein in pearl millet \u2018critical\u2019 for nutrition<\/h3>\n
\"Photo:<\/a>
A farmer harvests millet in Mali.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Mark Laing, Director of the African Centre for Crop Improvement (ACCI)<\/a> at the University of KwaZulu-Natal<\/a> in South Africa, says the GCP-supported work on pearl millet will have long-term impacts.<\/p>\n

He says it is the high protein content of pearl millet that makes it such a crucial crop for developing countries \u2013 in Africa, this is the reason people use pearl millet for weaning babies.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was interesting to us that African people have used pearl millet as a weaning food for millennia. The reason why was not clear to us until we assessed the protein content,\u201d says Mark. \u201cIts seed has 13\u201322 percent protein, remarkable for a cereal crop, whereas maize has only eight percent protein, and sorghum has only two percent digestible protein.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Pearl millet growing in Kenya.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Tom Hash agrees, adding: \u201cMore importantly, pearl millet grain has much higher levels of the critically important mineral micronutrients iron and zinc, which are important for neurological and immune system development.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese mineral micronutrients, although not present in a highly available form, can improve blood iron levels when used in traditional pearl millet-based foods. Pearl millet grain, when fed to poultry, can provide a potentially important source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are also essential for normal neurological development.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pearl millet endowed with genetic potential<\/h3>\n
\"Photo:<\/a>
A farmer with his pearl millet harvest in India.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In a treasure-trove of plant genetic resources, thousands of samples, or accessions, of pearl millet and its wild relatives are kept at ICRISAT\u2019s gene banks in India and Niger.<\/p>\n

For pearl millet alone, in 2004 ICRISAT had 21,594 types of germplasm in its vaults at its headquarters in India. This represents a huge reservoir of genetic diversity that can be mined for data and for genetic traits that can be used to improve pearl millet and other crops.<\/p>\n

Between 2005 and 2007, with support from GCP, scientists from ICRISAT set to work to do just that, mining these resources for qualities based on observed traits, geographical origin and taxonomy.<\/p>\n

Hari D Upadhyaya, Principal Scientist and Director of Genebank at ICRISAT, led the task of developing and genotyping a \u2018composite collection\u2019 of pearl millet. To do this, the team created a selection that reduced 21,594 accessions down to 1,021. This collection includes lines that are tolerant to drought, heat and soil salinity; others resistant to blast, downy mildew, ergot, rust and smut; and accessions resistant to multiple diseases.<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
A traditional pearl millet variety growing in India.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The collection also includes types of pearl millet with high seed iron and zinc content (from traditional farmer varieties, or landraces, from Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana and Togo), high seed protein content, high stalk sugar content, and other known elite breeding varieties.<\/p>\n

The final collection comprised 710 landraces, 251 advanced breeding lines, and 60 accessions from seven wild species.<\/p>\n

The GCP-supported scientists then used molecular markers to fingerprint the DNA of plants grown from the collection. Molecular markers are known variations in the sequence of the genetic code, found in different versions within a species, which act as flags in the genome sequence. Some individual markers may be associated with particular useful genes, but markers are useful even without known associations, as the different flags can be compared between samples. In the pearl millet research, scientists searched for similarities and differences among these DNA markers to assess how closely or distantly related the 1,021 accessions were to each other.<\/p>\n

This was not only a big step forward for the body of scientific knowledge on pearl millet, but also for the knowledge and skills of the scientists involved. \u201cThe GCP work did make some significant contributions to pearl millet research,\u201d says Tom, \u201cmainly by helping a critical mass of scientists working on pearl millet to learn how to appropriately use the genetic tools that have been developed in better-studied fungi, plants and animals (including people).\u201d<\/p>\n

GCP extends know-how to Africa<\/h3>\n
\"Photos:<\/a>
Comparisons of good and bad pearl millet yields in Ghana’s Upper West Region, which has suffered failed rains and rising temperatures.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The semiarid areas of northern and eastern Uganda are home to a rich history and culture, but they are difficult environments for successful food production and security.<\/p>\n

In this region, pearl millet is grown for both commercial and local consumption. Its yields, although below the global average, are reasonable given that it is grown on poor sandy soils where other crops fail. Yet despite being a survivor in these harsh drylands, pearl millet can still be affected by severe drought and disease.<\/p>\n

GCP helped kick-start work to tackle these problems. With financial support from GCP, and through ACCI, Geofrey Lubade, a scientist from Uganda, was able to study and explore breeding pearl millet that would be suitable for northern Uganda and have higher yields, drought tolerance and rust resistance.<\/p>\n

Geofrey now plans to develop the best of his pearl millet lines for registration and release in Uganda, which he expects will go a long way in helping the resource-poor.<\/p>\n

But Geofrey\u2019s success is just one example of the benefits from GCP-support. Thanks to GCP, Mark Laing says that his students at ACCI have learnt invaluable skills that save significant time and money in the plant-breeding process.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany of our students, with GCP support, have been involved in diversity studies to select for desirable traits,\u201d says Mark \u2013 and these students are now working on releasing new crop varieties.<\/p>\n

He says that African scientists directly benefitted from the GCP grants for training in biotechnology and genetic studies.<\/p>\n

Their work, along with that of a number of other scientists, will have a huge impact on plant breeding in developing countries \u2013 long term.<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
A farmer inspects his millet crop in northwest Ghana.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As Mark explains, once breeders have built up a head of steam there is no stopping them. \u201cPlant breeders take time to start releasing varieties, but once they get started, then they can keep generating new varieties every year for many years,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd a good variety can have a very long life, even more than 50 years.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have already had a significant impact on plant breeding in some African countries,\u201d says Mark. But perhaps more importantly, he says, the work has changed the status of plant breeding and pearl millets as a subject: \u201cIt used to be disregarded, but now it is taken seriously as a way to have an impact on agriculture.\u201d<\/p>\n

For research and breeding products, see the GCP Product Catalogue<\/a> and search for pearl millet.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pearl millet is the only cereal crop that can be grown in some of the hottest and driest regions of Asia and Africa. It is a staple provider of food, nutrition and income for millions of resource-poor people living on these harsh agricultural lands. Even though pearl millet is well adapted to growing in areas […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[87,88,47,160,385,340],"tags":[16,18,86,11,9,387,575,576,371,31,69,390,23,223,391,111,24,143,106,383,112,364,72,203,386,210,392,129,142,389,323,36,345,196,344,356,374,221,388,367],"class_list":["post-4118","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-africa","category-asia","category-capacity-building-2","category-genetics","category-pearl-millet-2","category-phase-i-crops","tag-capacity-building","tag-crop-breeding","tag-drought-tolerance","tag-food-security","tag-partnerships","tag-acci-south-africa","tag-africa","tag-asia","tag-benin","tag-breeding-tools","tag-burkina-faso","tag-composite-collection","tag-crop-genetic-diversity","tag-disease-resistance","tag-drylands","tag-genebanks","tag-genetic-diversity","tag-genetic-maps","tag-genetic-resources","tag-genetic-stocks","tag-genetic-tools","tag-genetics-2","tag-ghana","tag-heat-tolerance","tag-high-protein-content","tag-icrisat","tag-imp","tag-india","tag-molecular-markers","tag-nutritional-value","tag-pearl-millet","tag-phase-i","tag-poor-soils","tag-salinity","tag-south-asia","tag-staple-foods","tag-togo","tag-uganda","tag-university-of-kwazulu-natal","tag-west-africa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4118","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4118"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4118\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5182,"href":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4118\/revisions\/5182"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4118"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4118"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.generationcp.org\/sunsetblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4118"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}