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Rising food prices around the world have already impacted on the poorest communities. Here we highlight the many experts and research projects on food. Experts are listed in this article.
Water vapour in ‘hot-Jupiter’ atmosphere?, Heating far-off oceans, The stage is set for another food crisis, Antibody therapy helps SIV-infected monkeys, Changing its spots, Mirror image molecules made with ease, Melanoma mutation, Solid-state storage device for single photons and Bacterial clean-up job
Fed up of years of arguments about the pros and cons of GM crops, the African Union brought together key individuals and institutions to discuss the issue ; A new generation of lithium-ion batteries, coupled with rising oil prices and the need to address climate change, has sparked a global race to electrify transportation.
The global food crisis is putting more people at risk of contracting HIV/AIDS, argue food security experts.
Summaries of newsworthy papers in Nature and Nature research journals also including Combating muscle fatigue Ranking geo-engineering schemes
A new book helps make sense of the complexities and controversies surrounding agriculture-related intellectual property rights.
View article 'Jargon-Busters Cut Through Thicket Around Food'
Summaries of newsworthy papers including Nanotechnology: Look to the stars, Mutation associated with increased rice yield, How EGFR promotes skin cancer, A natural ligand for PPAR-gamma, Ingesting and digesting intracellular bacteria, Sensing light without eyes, Muscling in on disease imaging and Enzyme implicated in risk of common obesity.
Sarawak, which is free from the incidence of foot and mouth diseases, is embarking in livestock-oil palm integration as a strategy to increase local livestock production, and as a holistic approach to maximise land use and increase farm income. A research in UNIMAS was conducted to look at the potential.
View article 'Livestock And Oil Palm Integration In Sarawak'
As our global poverty rate continues to rise, so with it will our global hunger...... Read Kristin Schaaf's winning essay on "Feeding the poor today and everyone on the planet tomorrow: What are the issues, and what can be done to avert a global food crisis?"
IDRC believes that poverty alleviation, food security, and environmental sustainability go hand in hand. This article outlines some notable IDRC supported research towards food security.
View article 'A Multipronged Approach to Ensuring Food Security'
Summaries of newsworthy papers include Evolution: New look at human family tree, Your number of fat cells stays constant in adulthood, Starting out on the road to maleness, Earth’s early magnetic field, Genetic susceptibility to obesity and Generating human autoimmune cells
View article 'Natural genetic variant regulates yield potential in rice'
Papayas are not just exotic fruits with nutritional and medicinal benefits, they are also model plants for studying genetics and evolution. Summaries of newsworthy papers include Beetle key to carbon switch, Test-tube recipe makes functioning heart cells, Linking events across a key climate transition and more
Sarawak is the world's largest exporter of sago, exporting up to 40,000 ton sago a year. Sago mills that produced sago starch through debarking and processing of sago trunk, generates effluent which is channelled into nearby rivers. A research conducted in UNIMAS currently looks at turning this potential pollutants into commerciable entities.
View article 'Sago starch factory effluent: salvaging a potential pollutant'
Rice research community seeks to reach 18 million households with improved rice varieties, increase yields by 50% within 10 years
Spectacular rice terraces, some of which are thought to be more than 1,000 years old, are the landscape signature of Ifugao Province in the northern Philippines. The new issue of Rice Today combines anthropology and photography to explore the cultural and scientific significance of rice farming in this fascinating place.
Garcinia atroviridis known in Malaysia as Asam Gelugor is popularly used as seasoning in curries, sour relish and fish dressing. FRIM researchers have discovered that it also has the ability to help reduce weight and have developed it into a herbal tea.
Manila – A new international research initiative, linking the private and public sectors for the first time and launched today at the 2007 Asian Seed Congress, aims to boost the research and development of hybrid rice for the tropics.
View article 'New hybrid rice group aims to raise rice yields in the tropics'
ALEPPO, Syria: A low-cost technology developed by scientists at ICARDA to treat high level of magnesium in soil by using calcium has demonstrated the potential to double the crop yield in magnesium-rich soils in Central Asia.
View article 'A low-cost technology boosts farm income in Kazakhstan '
One of the keys to China’s food security in recent decades is the country’s development of high-yielding hybrid rice varieties, which helped pull millions out of the hunger of the 1960s. The new issue of Rice Today looks at the fascinating history of hybrid rice, documenting how China, with help from IRRI, has become the hybrid world leader.
View article 'The China challenge—how to feed one-fifth of humanity? '
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – The world’s major rice-producing nations – including China and India – are calling for closer collaboration in efforts to feed Asia’s billions of rice consumers in the face of unprecedented new challenges.
View article 'Rice-producing nations call for increased focus on production'
Hanoi, Vietnam – In the face of growing pressure on one of Asia’s most important food production systems, experts are warning that farmers must get more help to make them more efficient.
View article 'Important rice production system under pressure'
Early farmers in eastern China used fire and flood control to manage coastal swamps and turn them into the first known rice paddy fields. Summaries of other newsworthy papers include MicroRNAs & metastasis, Effective gene silencing, Processing with superconducting circuits, Lovelock proposes global warming fix, Taking dendritic cells into medicine
Infectious bursal disease (IBD) also known as Gumboro disease is the second most important poultry disease after Newcastle disease. In this study, we reported for the first time the use of Sybr Green I based real-time PCR to differentiate different strains of IBD virus.
Determination of the diet composition of 15 fish species in the Visayan Sea reveals unlimited food resources and a wide range of habitats available to fish communities.
A new kabuli chickpea variety, Gokce, developed by the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), in collaboration with Turkish national scientists, has withstood severe drought in Turkey and produced an impressive yield in adverse weather conditions.
View article 'New Chickpea Variety Survives Drought in Turkey'
Palm oil is rich in carotene. However current commercial production of edible oil results in the loss of carotenes. Now, researchers have found a way to recover carotenes from crude palm oil.
Japanese researchers identify genes controlling health-giving compounds in common food crops. Vegetables like cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower are anti-carcinogenic with antioxidant properties and offer a natural defense against crop pests, potentially reducing the need for synthetic pesticides.
Researchers in Universiti Teknologi Mara are working on pre-nanoemulsion gel from coconut oil which can help repair skin damage and chewable vitamin C tablets and herbal tea made from hibiscus.
The latest from Rice Today, the magazine of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)
View article 'Coping with climate change—the continuing battle to feed the world’s rice consumers. '
UPM scientists are researching the possibility of using "tapai ubi", or fermented tapioca, as a prevention against cancer. Preliminary tests indicated that seven types of cancer, including cervical, ovarian, breast and leukaemia, could be prevented by eating tapai ubi.
A major international initiative is being launched to try to boost the income of the world’s millions of poor rice farmers and at the same time provide consumers with more nutritious, better tasting food.
View article 'New Knowledge Improves Rice Quality - Could Help Poor Farmers Boost Income '
Saraswati Adhikari has reason to be proud: 16 times the Nepali farmer and her husband Surya Nath have successfully improved local varieties of rice by cross-breeding, in the process helping to conserve agricultural biodiversity.
Efforts by Indonesia to avoid food shortages by increasing its rice production have received an important boost with the signing of a new agreement to help the nation’s millions of poor rice farmers with new technologies.
View article 'New agreement to boost rice production, avoid food shortages in Indonesia'
ICARDA and its partners in Afghanistan are promoting mint and mint products as a profitable alternative to cultivation of opium poppies. Research focuses on mint production technologies, processing methods, value addition, training, and development of markets and trade capacity – and mint cultivation is expanding rapidly.
Next week, some of Australia’s and the world’s foremost experts in the field of rust diseases will be in Sydney to attend a symposium on the topic – “Rust Diseases: Threats to Global Food Security in the Context of Climate Change.”
View article 'Rust diseases – a threat to global food security'
As the world marks this year's World Wetlands Day on February 2, the Director General of WorldFish Center, based in Penang, and the Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme jointly write a piece to create awareness on the plight of wetland fisheries worldwide, as well as mobilize appropriate action.
Summaries of newsworthy papers from Nature Research Journals include New breast cancer susceptibility gene identified, Evidence for a stem cell origin of cancer, Genetic risk factor for Crohn disease found and Tolerating the gut
Singapore – Rice production in Southeast Asia – arguably the region’s most important industry – has received a major boost with the endorsement of three new strategies by the Ministers of Agriculture and Forestry of the ten-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
View article 'ASEAN endorses major initiatives to boost regional rice production'
New Delhi, India – More income for the world’s millions of poor rice farmers and consumers is the first goal of a major new revamp to the agenda of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) – the largest and most successful international agricultural research institute in Asia.
View article 'A New Vision for International Rice Research Attacks the Roots of Poverty '
Some three million people die from water-related diseases each year. This research from the National Atomic Energy Commission (CNEA) in Argentina is beneficial to millions. On sunny days, the SOLWATER reactor is able to disinfect about 20 litres of water in four to six hours.
Summaries of newsworthy papers from Nature. Frozen rocks spotted by X-ray blocking, New technique glimpses half-billion-year-old embryos, Egg donation, compensation and regulation, The case of the missing lithium may be solved, Watching a crystal shake with light, Controlling the super-traffic, Origins of body patterning
View article 'Submersible rice offers crop safeguard against flood'
The mangrove red snapper (Lutjanus argentimaculatus), is an important food fish in Southeast Asia. Several trials were conducted to evaluate the efficacy of hormones to induce spawning of mangrove red snapper.
This policy paper on Aquaculture Productivity determines sources of growth of the aquaculture industry, identify problems constraining the growth and threshes out issues and concerns that must be attended to for sustained growth of the aquaculture industry.
The recent fish kill that wiped out 80% of the fish cages in Lake Taal, Batangas with an estimated loss of P50 million was caused by a phenomenon known as lake overturn, according to specialists of the Los Baños-based PCAMRD
View article 'Science Council Explains "Fish Kill" Phenomenon in the Philippines'
In an attempt to understand the potential cause of rickets in Bangladesh, SARPV conducted a study of 70 households. The results show that diet, food preparation, sunlight exposure and breastfeeding are all major possibilities
View article 'RICKETS IN BANGLADESH: RAPID ASSESSMENT OF TRIBAL COMMUNITIES'
The fertilizer produced was found to be comparable to those available in the market and can be used in the palm oil plantation, reducing the cost of fertilizer.
The application and utilization of agricultural and other domestic wastes through fermentation processes and enzymatic conversation are limited due to their low volume systems. Therefore, a good and reproducible solid-state fermentation (SSF) is badly needed.
View article 'FERMSOSTAT – A New industrial innovation in solid state fermentation'
The main advantages of the desert are intensive sun radiation, wasteland and a very low population density. The main disadvantages are not only scarcity of water resources but also the high salinity, as well as frequently occurring extreme climate conditions.
View article 'Farming in the desert-advantage and limitation, the Israeli experience'
This paper examines the potential for improved water productivity in rainfed and irrigated agriculture as well as in the marginal drylands, with examples of on-farm water management, germplasm improvement and agronomic practices within an integrated natural resource management framework.
View article 'Opportunites for producing more food with less water in dry areas'
Case studies in Iran shows that all agriculture management cases based on sustainable development, resulted in increased yield. Researchers in India show the integrated use of geophysical techniques for sustainable management of ground water
View article 'Sustainable development: agricultural management and groundwater recharge'
Land degradation (including desertification in drylands) is estimated to affect at least one-third of the 328 mha geographical area in India.
The use of climatic data could help in providing tools for proper pest management through the possibility of forecasting the incidence of pests and diseases, and hence reduce the risk in plant production and help to minimize the amounts of chemicals used to control pests.
View article 'The use of spatial data for integrated agricultural planning and management'
The process of Astaxanthin extraction is not only expensive but environementally unfriendly as well. This new research offers an environmentally friendly and cheap alternative
View article 'A Natural Colorant for the Aquaculture Industry'
Nearly 50% of the arid regions globally, including one-quarter of the irrigated land, one-half of the rainfed cropland and three-quarters of the rangeland, are estimated to be degraded. Unless this trend is checked, the food security of the people in the dry areas will continue to be under threat.
View article 'Future challenges to the sustainable use of natural resources in the dry areas '
Summaries of newsworthy papers from Nature. Vol.440 No.7083 Dated 23 March 2006
Recent advances in the use of lactic acid for the production of biodegradable thermoplastics and cosmetics (skin care, toiletries, hair care products) have created an impetus in the lactate industries, which spurs the growth of sago industries.
The Tragedy of the Tsunami of 26th December 2004; Health and Nutrition Status of Earthquake-affected Population in Pakistan
HIV in Bangladesh-Current Scenario; Nutrition and HIV: Science vs Hyperbole- Where Is the Intersection?; Management of Severe Malnutrition in HIV-infected Children: Recent Review of Current Evidence; Nutrition and HIV Programming Framework-Evidence and Policy Implications
Maternal under-nutrition and low birth-weight are highly prevalent in developing countries. Many countries have nutritional supplementation programmes during pregnancy to improve the situation. However, the impact of prenatal supplementations on infants’ developmental outcome has not been adequately studied.
Breastfeeding practices have wide sociocultural connections and vary according to geographic regions. Published literature on breastfeeding initiation and exclusive breastfeeding is not available for urban population of western Nepal.
Simple behavioural change interventions may reduce early hospital deaths among children admitted with severe malnutrition but do not reduce case fatality.
The study has shown that the home-made complementary feeding preparation with high energy density is more effective in improving the weight gain of infants than conventional weaning foods.
The study was carried out to demonstrate the potential to improve zinc nutrition of children through a series of improvements to agricultural production, rice varieties, processing and cooking of rice, and improvements to water sources.
Summaries of newsworthy papers from Nature. Vol.438 No.7072 Dated 5 January 2006 including Cancer: Caspase-8 as a metastasis suppressor gene; Nanoparticles assemble themselves and Bees show how pollen and nectar collectors diverge.
Japanese researchers have found that a rice plant that grows with its shoots more erect will produce more grains than normal.
Researchers describe the discovery in China of a bowl of beautifully preserved, thin yellow noodles that are half a metre long and about 4,000 years old.
NATURE AND THE NATURE RESEARCH JOURNALS - Press release for papers that will be published online on 21 August 2005
The completed rice genome sequence and the gene characteristics will hopefully lead to improvements in rice production; The red pigment in roses also makes cornflowers blue, which has puzzled scientists until now.
Dioxin levels in chicken eggs from Peshawar was almost 3-times higher than the background levels and levels of DDT was more than four and a half times higher than the EU limit
Serious infestation of weedy rice or locally known as "padi angin" had been reported to reduce rice yield up to 75%. UPM researchers have developed a novel seed treatment to counter the infestation
Newcastle disease is one of the most important viral diseases of poultry in the world. It occurs in most countries and has a devastating effect on poultry production.
Detection kit for White spot syndrome virus (WSSV) which causes millions of dollars losses to the shrimp industry in Asia.
View article 'Fast Target White Spot Syndrome Virus Detection Kit'
A new tool is available to contribute to the genetic improvement of banana in Malaysia.
View article 'Agro biotechnology for Fusarium-tolerant in Banana'
Digital meter to measure ripeness of oil palm fruits
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