- Eating Bushmeat Improves Food Security in a Biodiversity and Infectious Disease “Hotspot”. What could possibly go wrong.
- Potential of multi-species livestock farming to improve the sustainability of livestock farms: A review. Depends on management, in particular stocking rate.
- Genotyping on the ark: A synthesis of genetic resources available for species in zoos. Use genomics to improve conservation.
- Dairy cows: in the age of the genotype, #phenotypeisking. “If I were a dairy or beef farmer, I would genotype all my animals and farm phenotypes for sale.”
- Enhancing African orphan crops with genomics. Use genomics to improve use.
- Strategies for Effective Use of Genomic Information in Crop Breeding Programs Serving Africa and South Asia. Use genomic selection to use genomics to improve use.
- The Vavilov Institute’s (VIR) contribution to the survey and study of Vavilovia formosa (Fabaceae). More seeds needed.
- ‘Gabreta’ saved from the ruins of oblivion. That’s a forgotten red currant from the Sudetenland.
- Genetic and genomic analysis for cocoon yield traits in silkworm. Even the wild species could contribute to higher yields.
- Propagation of lusala (Dioscorea hirtiflora), a wild yam, for in situ and ex situ conservation and potential domestication. Lots of options.
Brainfood: Bull, Durum, W2Px2, Urban hort, Maya ag, Nepal PGR, Bean GWAS, Pig landrace, DSI
- Reconstitution and modernization of lost Holstein male lineages using samples from a gene bank. Because all today’s bulls tracing back to exactly 2 born in the late 1880s is really not very good.
- Comparative population genomic analyses of the reconstructed local breed “Nero di Parma” with other commercial and autochthonous Italian pig breeds. I like the idea of reconstructing a breed, but this one needs some more work or it will end up as the above.
- Durum wheat in the Mediterranean Rim: historical evolution and genetic resources. What have the Romans ever done for us? Well…
- Drinking biodiversity: a choice experiment on Franciacorta sparkling wines. Willingness to pay for biodiversity friendliness of high value products has its limits.
- Benefits of conserving agricultural genetic resources in Finland: Summary of the recent Finnish research and setting it in the international context. Still, there is some willingness to pay.
- The hidden potential of urban horticulture. Yes, even in Sheffield.
- Maize Politics and Maya Farmers’ Traditional Ecological Knowledge in Yucatán, 1450–1600. The sustainability of milpa depends on politics. ‘Twas ever thus.
- Genomics-assisted breeding for pigeonpea improvement. How do you know when you have enough genomics data?
- Agrobiodiversity and its Conservation in Nepal. 25,000 accessions around the world. But are they enough?
- Genetic Associations in Four Decades of Multi-environment Trials Reveal Agronomic Trait Evolution in Common Bean. 2 large genomic regions have been ruthlessly selected in relentless pursuit of the ideotype. Doesn’t sound like enough.
- Implications of biological information digitization: Access and benefit sharing of plant genetic resources. “The solution lies in an international institution stepping forward, with a bold vision and strong mandate, capable of resolution.” Good luck with that.
Brainfood: Rotations, Sunflower conservation, Wild lentils, Iranian sheep, Crispy rice, Macrotyloma preferences, Cenchrus diversity, Livestock systems, Morning glories, Freezing nuts, SOTW-AB, ABS
- Long-Term Evidence Shows that Crop-Rotation Diversification Increases Agricultural Resilience to Adverse Growing Conditions in North America. Meaning higher maize yields in droughts.
- Gene banks for wild and cultivated sunflower genetic resources. Details from the US, France and Serbia, summary info from Argentina, Bulgaria, Germany, India, Romania, Russia, Spain. Reference genomes and high throughput phenotyping for the wild relatives on the horizon.
- Evaluation and identification of wild lentil accessions for enhancing genetic gains of cultivated varieties. About 10% of 96 wild lentil accessions conserved in India are good for something.
- Genetic structure of Iranian indigenous sheep breeds: insights for conservation. 8 breeds should be the focus of conservation efforts, as the trend is towards homogenization.
- CRISPR-mediated accelerated domestication of African rice landraces. Started with well-known African sativa landrace Kabre and messed with total of 4 loci for plant height, seed size and yield, resulting in mutants with better grain yield.
- Farmers’ Preferences for Genetic Resources of Kersting’s Groundnut [Macrotyloma geocarpum (Harms) Maréchal and Baudet] in the Production Systems of Burkina Faso and Ghana. They depend on the ethnic group.
- Genotyping-By-Sequencing Reveals Population Structure and Genetic Diversity of a Buffelgrass (Cenchrus ciliaris L.) Collection. Structure in the ILRI collection is not straightforwardly geographical. My guess is that rainfall is involved. Oh, and we have a core collection now.
- Improved feeding and forages at a crossroads: Farming systems approaches for sustainable livestock development in East Africa. We need the above, and more, at scale.
- A foundation monograph of Ipomoea (Convolvulaceae) in the New World. 425 spp, many of them, in different clades, with storage roots, and little known.
- Morpho-Physiological and Genomic Evaluation of Juglans Species Reveals Regional Maladaptation to Cold Stress. Gonna need a bigger collection.
- Declining biodiversity for food and agriculture needs urgent global action. The The State of the World’s Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture summarized: it’s essential, it’s declining, we’re not doing enough.
- Rethink the expansion of access and benefit sharing. Just maybe this is a/the reason?
Nibbles: Darshan Brar, Pest & diseases, Niebé, Indian mango, Botany school
- Pioneering IRRI rice breeder passes away.
- Climate change makes pests and diseases worse. Why we need the above.
- Cowpea gets a boost. Again why we need breeders.
- Everything about mango in India. Literally everything, I’m not kidding.
- Materials for teaching botany. Alas, not much on breeding and agriculture. At least for now.
Brainfood: Gap analysis, Faba re-collecting, Selfing, Perennials, Seed longevity, QMS, Fish cryo, Chicken domestication, Wheat evolution, Crossing over, Heat stress, Spinach, Mungbean, Wild chickpea, Satoyama
- A gap analysis modelling framework to prioritize collecting for ex situ conservation of crop landraces. Kinda proud it only took me 30 years to get this done. For comparison, this is where we were 15 years ago. Seems like a lifetime. Well, a career.
- Serendipitous In Situ Conservation of Faba Bean Landraces in Tunisia: A Case Study. Comparison between newly collected and genebank materials reveals overlap. The above is thus unnecessary. Life comes at you fast.
- Why Self-fertilizing Plants Still Exist in Wild Populations: Diversity Assurance through Stress-Induced Male Sterility May Promote Selective Outcrossing and Recombination. Stress makes plants incels.
- Roadmap for Accelerated Domestication of an Emerging Perennial Grain Crop. Instead of making wheat perennial, make a perennial wild relative of wheat domesticated.
- An SNP based GWAS analysis of seed longevity in wheat. Could increase seed longevity by just over 10%. Hardly seems worth it.
- Quality Management Practices of Gene Banks for Livestock: A Global Review. 30% of 90 genebanks have a QMS, 15 involving formal certification, but mainly for material entering, not leaving.
- Cryopreservation of fish gametes: A remarkable tool for breeding conservation. No doubt QMS coming soon.
- The wild species genome ancestry of domestic chickens. Not just Red Junglefowl, Charles.
- Genome‐wide sequence information reveals recurrent hybridization among diploid wheat wild relatives. Kinda like chickens? No, not really, but almost.
- Molecular and genetic bases of heat stress responses in crop plants and breeding for increased resilience and productivity. We’re this close. This close to a breakthrough, I tell you.
- A review on the genetic resources, domestication and breeding history of spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.). Gonna need more wild relatives.
- Mungbean Genetic Resources and Utilization. Gonna need more wild relatives.
- Population genetic variability and distribution of the endangered Greek endemic Cicer graecum under climate change scenarios. Serendipity has its limits.
- Counting on Crossovers: Controlled Recombination for Plant Breeding. Increasing recombination could be especially useful when doing crosses with wild relatives (see above).
- Nature-oriented park use of satoyama ecosystems can enhance biodiversity conservation in urbanized landscapes. Abandoned satoyama can still do some good.