Genome editing technology will advance Nigeria’s food production —Dr Gidado

Published by

2 years ago

As Nigeria continues its quest to get a lasting solution towards achieving food security, the Director, Agricultural Biotechnology at National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), Dr Rose Gidado speaks on the benefits of genome editing and biotechnology in advancing food production. COLLINS NNABUIFE brings excerpts.

What are your expectations this planting season?

I am expecting a bountiful harvest that is more bountiful I can say. And we are hoping that farmers should realise more than what they realised last season.

In terms of development of new crops, what are we expecting this year?

We are expecting more crops but not this year, this year is still going to be the same as last year where we will focus on BT Cowpea and BT Cotton. By 2024, we are expecting that Tela maize which was developed by Institute of Agricultural Research (IAR), Zaria and the African Agriculture Development Foundation (AATF) will be released by the National Varietal Release Committee.

What level are we at Genome editing development?

We’re just a new level of communication. We’re engaging in science communication, to let people understand the technology first before the products come into play, so that’s we don’t make the mistakes that we made with the genetic modification technology where communication about it did not take place people didn’t know much, people didn’t know anything, so we have a lot of challenges with consumer acceptance, so this time around, scientists are trying to avoid such mistakes they want to start with communication and that is exactly what is going on with the genome editing.

And why is communication going on now? Of course, some countries have actually started really.

What are we expecting differently from genome editing?

The genome editing is more precise, concise, it’s less time consuming. Just within one year, you are done with it and there is no regulation around it, regulation makes the GM technology longer, because you are bringing a gene from an unrelated species to an unrelated species so of course you have to look at safety aspects.

So in this case, you’re not bringing genes from anywhere, you’re just working within the genome of that crop or animal or whatever, working within the system, we are not transferring any gene. So there is no issue of either trans-gene or GMO.

Let me give you an example, someone is sick, and maybe it’s been discovered that something is responsible, they’ve done some Diagnosis, the doctor has done some checks, and is suspecting that there’s something in his system that needs to be removed for you to get well. So you open up his body, cut some pieces, and once you find the thing, you take it out. So that’s just like genome editing, you open up the plant, what is making this plants to have certain diseases or what is making this plant not been drought tolerant, look for the gene because in life sciences, genes are the blueprint of life and genes are located in the DNA, they’re responsible for every thing around us every happening inside us. So you locate a gene that’s making that plant to be susceptible to a certain disease, maybe Bacteria Blight in Irish potatoes, and then you have the Fall Armyworm and stem borer. So you open, then you go for that gene that is making that maize to be attacked by Fall Armyworm and you take off the gene and once you do that, the plant will be resistant to Fall Armyworm or stem borer or the bacteria blight in potatoes.

So that’s it, you’re not bringing anything else outside and there’s no transgenesis at all. So it’s safe, it’s everything, and once you do that, the next time is to prepare it for farmers, so it doesn’t go through any regulatory process, so it’s faster for farmers to use it. Except if your potato is already a transgenic crop, like now we have Cowpea that is already resistant to Maruca, but I still want to use genome editing on the BT cowpea to have another trait.

You know, every crop is susceptible to several insects and several other diseases, so it’s not just one, if you will take care of one, there are several others. So, I took care of Cowpea to resist Maruca, but I still want to use that Maruca resistant cowpea for another thing, but I want to use gene editing, in that case, because the cowpea is already regarded as a GMO, I have to go through a lot of regulatory processes, even though I am using gene editing, but because it’s already a GMO, so I have to go through a lot of regulatory processes as I’m applying genome editing.

Are you getting feedback from the farmers that planted GMO?

As far as I am concerned, the farmers that I have spoken to have given me good feedbacks, anyone who has feedback that is contrary is possible the person did not manage his farm well, because even though it is Maruca resistant it has been improved, you still have to apply good agronomic practices otherwise you will not get the yield that you desire. They have to plant at the right time, and they have to weed and then they have to do one or two sprays to care for other insects aside from Maruca.

READ ALSO FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE