World Population explosion that is expected to hit 8
billion by the end of year 2016 comes with dire consequences. To sustain it, properly
structured food security parameters are required. Current food supply in most
parts of the world cannot meet the growing demands.
Africa has had a lion share of the food crisis
necessitating scientific intervention which lies in harnessing indigenous and
orphan crops. This is what Genetics
Technologies International Ltd; a privately owned Kenyan company is living up
to. “We are sitting at a strategic position to link farmers to the best plant varieties;
we specialize in Micro propagation of disease and pest-free planting materials through
Tissue Culture and Aeroponics Technologies. Our annual production capacity is 20
million plants”, says Mr. Edward Mbugua, the officer in-charge of the facility.
A visit to
‘GTIL’ as the employees call it ushers you to the wonders of science. The lush
potted flowers along the driveway, manicured lawns, vast shades provided by the
canopy of indigenous trees strategically planted in the compound is enough to
win a slot in the worlds scenic beauty magazine. Situated along Lower Kabete
road, opposite Telekom building, 30minutes drive from Nairobi CBD; it boasts of
having an ultra modern laboratory, “the biggest private tissue culture lab in
east Africa region”, Mr. Edward confidently interjects.
“This
laboratory has been tasked with the responsibility of mass multiplication of
cassava varieties that are resistant to the devastating cassava viral diseases
both Cassava Mosaic Virus (CMV) and Cassava Brown Streak Virus (CBSD) that have threatened to wipe out cassava in
Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda. These countries have been
severely affected by cassava brown streak disease and cassava mosaic disease,
have joined forces under the 5 CP project to help tackle the menace by sharing
top five varieties with high tolerance to these diseases. The 25 varieties will
then be evaluated in each country to identify those that are well adapted to
the various growing regions and acceptable to the local communities. The first
19 tissue culture virus-tested plantlets, from those countries, were multiplied
by GTIL and handed over in March 2014 to
the lead organization in the 5CP project International Institute of
Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI)”, Mr.
Edward said.
“Tissue culture lab is a very
sensitive place where high level of sterility is required. Every visitor has to
undergo thorough sanitization process and put on appropriate personal
protective clothing to avoid contaminating the cultured plants. We tend to
minimize the frequency of visitors entering and leaving the laboratory because,
the moment we open and close the door, the air outside the lab is contaminated
and may find its way in thereby exposing our cultured plants to the pathogens
which would render all our work
useless”, says Ms Judith Kilonzo the Laboratory Manager.
Tissue refers to a collection of cells with similar
characteristics. Tissue culture is therefore a process that involves
multiplying the desired plant tissue in a specific regimen of nutrients,
hormones and light, under sterile conditions (in-vitro) to produce new plants,
over a very short period of time. This method
is known as micro-propagation.
Plants varieties that are used have to undergo
cleaning, screening and diagnostic processes which is done by independent labs which
verify if they are fit for multiplication. KEPHIS lab in Kenya and Natural
Resources Institute lab in the UK help them in doing this.
The first stage which is referred to as initiation, involves
the introduction of the explants to the tissue culture container. These
containers have to be sterilized properly to avoid contamination. “We boil the
media to kill pathogens inside, then put it in an autoclave before dispensing
it for use”, says one of the employees. For cassava, internodes are used. They
are carefully removed and gently placed inside the container that contains a
gel called media under a lamina air flower cabinet to avoid any possible
contamination “one technician avers. Coding is also done at this stage for
traceability purpose.
Multiplication stage which is the second stage
occurs after about two weeks after the initiation stage. It involves the
transfer of the cultures to new containers and media as they have used up what
was in the initial containers. Re-dividing the vitro plant and placing it in a
medium with plant growth regulators which induce the proliferation of multiple
shoots is done at this stage. It is repeated severally until the desired plant
numbers is achieved. All this is done under a lamina air flow cabinet.
The third stage which is referred to as the rooting
stage involves inducing root formation. Plantlets are taken to a growth room
which has timers that regulate light. “Plants, like human beings require rest
to enable them grow. We have automatic timers that regulate the time when they
should wake up and sleep. This is essential for the development of the whole
plant”, the technician notes.
The final stage involves removal of the plant clones
from the culture containers and transplanted to acclimatize in an ambient
environment after which they are transferred to the place of planting.
Mr.
Edward noted that currently the cassava yield in the five countries is very low
less than 10 tons per hectare but with the new varieties, the yield can go up
to 20tons per hectare.
Aeroponic Technology
Aeroponic
process refers to growing plants suspended in a closed or semi-closed
environment by spraying the plant's dangling roots and lower stem with an
atomized nutrient-rich water
solution. The canopy extends above the plant support system while roots are
left below. Closed cell foam is compressed around the lower stem and inserted
into an opening in a chamber which decreases labor and expense; for larger
plants, trellising is used to
suspend the weight of vegetation and fruit.
The
advantage of this method is that the environment is kept free from pests and diseases so that the
plants may grow healthier and more quickly as there is increased exposure to
air around the roots. It reduces harvesting labor by half as the tubers are
dangling and easy to pick.
Embracing
scientific research is required to secure the starving population from the
looming food security crisis. It is through innovations that we will be able to
harness agriculture and make it more productive thereby improving development.
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