Ren-Seq technology a ‘game-changer’
THE application of a gene sequencing technique – first outlined 10 years ago – is playing a key role in helping potato breeders identify genes which are resistant to specific pathogens.
Speaking to the SACAPP conference, the joint head of potato research at the James Hutton Institute, Dr Ingo Hein, said that the Ren-Seq (resistance gene enrichment and sequencing) method represented a game-changer for breeders working in the sector as it helped identify the ‘needle in a haystack’ of resistant genes.
Dr Hein said that the potato genome, which had first been published in 2011, contained more than 840m base pairs – a list, which if printed out in normal sized type on A4 sheets of paper would stretch for over 2400km. But the use of the RenSeq techniques helped identify whether or not resistance genes were present and where they lay in the sequence.
Along with this ability to identify useful resistance traits, the development of gene markers allowed breeders to confirm that these genes were present in parent stock, speeding up the process of breeding resistance characteristics into new varieties when normal breeding techniques were used.
Admitting that the use of genetic engineering would further speed up the process of ‘switching on’ resistant genes which might be lying dormant, he added that the registration procedure for such varieties was currently likely to take upwards of five years, considerably reducing any head start offered by genetic engineering.
“While genetic engineering technology is undoubtedly gaining traction, with no commercial market for varieties bred using genetic engineering techniques currently available in the UK and the rest of Europe, breeders have still been able to utilise the benefits of Ren-Seq using traditional breeding techniques.”
But Dr Hein added that while traditional breeding techniques still offered the opportunity to see the resistant gene used in breeding projects with existing varieties, any line to emerge with the resistance would no longer necessarily contain all the other desirable traits of the commercial parent – whereas gene editing would allow the same genes to be activated if they were present in existing varieties.
“As scientists we can’t ignore genetic engineering – but we can’t jump into the use of this technology when the public and policy makers don’t yet appear to be widely ready to accept its use,” he pointed out.