The next Inaugural lecture for this semester will be delivered by Professor Samuel Kwame Offei, (BSc (Agric) (Gh), MPhil (Lond), PhD (Lond) DC) our Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs.
Topic:
Managing the Enemies of Plants to Enhance Food Security: Genetic Improvement as a Counter Offensive Strategy
Date: Thursday, February 18, 2016
Venue: Great Hall
Time: 5:00 pm
Chairman: Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, Vice-Chancellor
All are cordially invited.
Abstract
Food production is under intense pressure from the world population growth and its attendant increasing demand for food, reduction of arable land because of the increasing cultivation of bio-fuel crops, industry, urbanization and various forms of human activities which are inimical to, or adversely affect sustainable food production. In the midst of these adversities, food production would be required to be more efficient as the world population would grow by nearly 50 percent to more than 9 billion people by 2050. Greater focus would have to be placed on technologies and solutions to enhance food production and accessibility.
The trend in modern agriculture to move away from mixed-cropping towards continuous intensified cultivation of crops of uniform genotypes leads to reductions in genetic diversity and provides a suitable environment for rapid spread of crop pests and diseases. With the loss of biodiversity in most of our farming cultures, new plant and animal diseases are emerging which require the application of modern technologies in their management and control. The epidemics associated with these diseases reduce food availability thereby leading to increases in food prices. It is known that in some situations new diseases have caused total crop losses due to poor diagnosis and inadequate management practices. One-third of the food that we produce globally is lost between the time it is harvested and consumed, and as much as half of harvested crops are lost between the field and the consumer in developing countries. These pose grave danger to rural livelihoods and worsen food security problems.
Modern tools in agricultural biotechnology used in combination with conventional breeding methods offer efficient and cost-effective opportunities to increase crop productivity, enhance resistance to pests and diseases, develop resilient varieties with high tolerance to adverse weather conditions, improve the nutritional value of some foods, and enhance the durability of products during storage. The use of molecular techniques in disease diagnostics and analysis of host-pathogen interactions present a very efficient approach to the understanding and development of management strategies. Application of modern technologies in the exploitation and utilization of variations in genetic resources is a necessary step to sustain productivity to meet the increasing food needs, make more efficient use of land already under cultivation, and reduce losses due to these diseases.
In this lecture, I present results of research undertaken on the application of biotechnological tools in dissecting the infection processes of some major plant pathogens and the application of molecular markers and DNA finger printing techniques in combination with conventional plant breeding to develop superior crop genotypes. I argue that significant improvements in yields can be achieved, by exploiting the genetic potential warehoused in the plant germplasm, using genetic modification of crop plants. Evidence of our efforts in genetic analysis of the wealth of variation inherent in plants and introgression of major economically important traits into crops will be highlighted. These studies have contributed to efficient use of genetic resources and development of safe varieties that are well adapted to changing environmental conditions.
