It may sound like a mandate straight out of an agricultural comic book, but this task is for real. If done right, it could end up improving hunger problems in one of the Western Hemisphere's most impoverished countries.
The scientists have been tapped to enhance and strengthen breeds of quinoa, a grain that boasts a balance of protein that is native to the highlands of Bolivia and a staple of the Bolivian diet.
It has been dubbed a "supergrain" because, unlike most of its cousins, it has sufficient amounts of every essential amino acid the human body can't produce itself.
"Wheat, barley, potatoes - all these crops have been bred by humans for centuries," says Rick Jellen, a biologist on the team. "Since the late 1700s, they have been the subject of intensive improvement.
"Quinoa hasn't [been improved] - it's locked still in the 15th century because it's been neglected by breeders" who, over the centuries, have focused on improving other more common crops.
Already the scientists say they are helping to shape a promising future for Bolivian farmers by producing new, hardier varieties of quinoa that can result in doubled and tripled yields of grain.
"By giving the Bolivian farmers a genetically superior plant, we hope they will reap increased yields that will lead to better nutrition and potentially a new source of income," says Daniel Fairbanks, a scientist on the team. "All they need are improved seeds."
A grain harvested high in the mountains of Bolivia and Peru, quinoa can be boiled like rice or pounded into a flour for use in various foods. Still, Bolivians themselves value other grains, such as rice, over quinoa, even though the plant is better for them.
It turns up in the form of Bolivian granola bars, soups, cereals, cookies and pasta. It can even be found in the U.S. as a novelty item in health stores.
Armed with funds from a $900,000 McKnight Foundation grant supplemented by private donations, the scientists are breeding stronger strains of quinoa by crossing varieties with the right complementary traits - a process used for centuries to bolster plant products.
With BYU alumnus and lead quinoa plant breeder Alejandro Bonifacio on the ground in Bolivia, the science is being put to work and producing results. His Provo-based colleagues say Bonifacio has introduced a variety of quinoa that can be planted later in the year when the soil is moist. This results in better germination and more established roots.
"There's an observable difference," team scientist Craig Coleman says of the enhanced quinoa. It's "more robust and would easily out-yield the traditionally grown varieties."
Back at the BYU labs, the scientists and their students monitor the new growth for genetic markers that indicate particular traits - such as the resistance to mildew - essentially using the DNA as a window to identify strands with improved characteristics.
By having 50 undergraduate students and six graduate students actively involved in creating a genetic map of the plant and tracking the results of each new strain, the project is providing great opportunity for learning, according to BYU scientist Jeff Maughan.
"Not a lot of people are working on [quinoa], so it 's a great vehicle for students to work on it and get [published]," he said.
Already the BYU researchers are getting published. In the cover article of the most recent edition of Crop Science, the team reports the development of key genetic markers.
Giving students practical research experience and getting published, however, is only part of the reason this project means so much to those involved.
The scientists say the greatest part of their work is the humanitarian aspect: helping to provide solutions to world problems.
For example, Jellen said plans are in the works to introduce the plant to the North African nation of Morocco.
"In 10 or 15 years, we may be able to increase yields so significantly that hunger and nutrition won't be the concerns they are today," Maughan says. "It's a real project where you're touching people's lives. That's worth it to me."
thollingshead@sltrib.com
