Difference between revisions of "Team:Valencia UPV/HP/Gold"

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<html>
 
<html>
 
<body>
 
<body>
 +
 +
<section class="page-header dark" style="margin-top: -2px">
 +
<div class="container">
 +
<h1>Study of impact</h1>
 +
</div>
 +
</section>
 +
<section>
 +
<div class="container">
 +
<div class="row">
 +
<div class="col-md-2 col-sm-3">
 +
<div class="side-nav margin-bottom-60 margin-top-30">
 +
<div class="side-nav-head">
 +
<button class="fa fa-bars"></button>
 +
<h4>Index</h4>
 +
</div>
 +
<ul class="list-group list-group-bordered list-group-noicon uppercase">
 +
<li class="list-group-item">
 +
<a href=
 +
"https://2016.igem.org/Team:Valencia_UPV/HP/Gold#Theproblem_id"><span class="size-11 text-muted pull-right">
 +
</span>The problem</a>
 +
</li>
 +
<li class="list-group-item">
 +
<a href=
 +
"https://2016.igem.org/Team:Valencia_UPV/HP/Gold#Theproblem_id#Thesolution_id">
 +
<span class="size-11 text-muted pull-right"></span>The solution</a>
 +
</li>
 +
</ul>
 +
</div>
 +
</div>
 +
<div class="col-md-10 col-sm-9">
 +
<br>
 +
<p></p>
 +
</div>
 +
<div class="blog-post-item" id="Theproblem_id">
 +
<h3>The problem</h3>
 +
<p>World population is expected to grow over a third during the next few
 +
years, while natural resources exploited to produce food are expected to
 +
be reduced. Biotechnology includes solutions to increase productivity and
 +
nutritional quality of crops, but few enterprises can afford those
 +
strategies. Probably due to high costs of using these production systems,
 +
those producers focus on demand nucleus that can return them the highest
 +
possible benefit. But as the proverb says, one man’s meat is another man’s
 +
poison.<br>
 +
<br>
 +
Unfortunately, the improvement of some plant traits may benefit the vast
 +
majority, but it might not be the solution for everyone. <b>Food and
 +
nutrition</b> issues change according to different circumstances. For
 +
instance, food poverty and malnourishment still cause 5 million deaths
 +
annually, while in developed countries malnourishment is more related to
 +
cardiovascular illnesses and metabolic disorders. The truth is that both
 +
nutritional necessities must be fulfilled and chronic diseases caused by
 +
unhealthy diets must be fought since they remain for the rest of patient’s
 +
life, deeply compromising the sustainability of <b>social systems</b>.<br>
 +
<br>
 +
Other aspects apart from social ones can be related to the centralization
 +
of crops engineering. <b>Environmental</b> factors such as plagues or
 +
extreme climate conditions, can prevent crops from growing. Even though we
 +
may think about remote areas, every fertile land is threatened by the
 +
already-coming climate change, including today’s biggest crops producers.
 +
In addition, this negatively affects biodiversity as well, by causing the
 +
loss of varieties which are not resistant .<br>
 +
<br>
 +
Until today, local producers and farmers have been taking care of those
 +
local crops. However, lack of affordable and effective modern
 +
biotechnological strategies to boost plants properties leads to the
 +
disappearance of small and middle agricultural businesses, which are the
 +
main economic supply for many families. This extinction would have even
 +
more dramatic consequences in those places where major crop producers
 +
cannot arrive.<br>
 +
<br></p>
 +
</div>
 +
<div class="blog-post-item" id="Thesolution_id">
 +
<h3>The solution</h3>
 +
<p><br>
 +
The future is waiting for us with more population to be fed, less
 +
resources to be exploited, more demanding markets to be satisfied and
 +
ever-changing climate conditions to be faced. Nevertheless, there are
 +
enough natural resources to achieve nutritional requirements worldwide.
 +
The sustainability and productivity of their use relies on farmers, who
 +
are the main global food producers.<br>
 +
Sustainability implies in a great part having concern to environment. If
 +
plants were resistant to extreme environmental conditions or plagues, it
 +
would reduce pesticides and water used. Moreover, conserving local
 +
varieties keeps biodiversity. Local conservation means productivity, as
 +
non-productive lands could be recovered, but also quality, as plant
 +
breeders from anywhere could enhance crops traits according to their
 +
particular circumstances. Considering a spreaded local range is the best
 +
way to reach remote places like regions of Africa, where enhancing crops
 +
has the potential to improve the health of over 300 million people.<br>
 +
Thus, in HYPE-IT we believe that the first step to satisfy nutritional
 +
necessities everywhere is providing local and affordable ways of
 +
production. As the proverb says: “<i>Give a man a fish, and feed him for a
 +
day; teach a man to fish, and feed him for a lifetime</i>”. Each region
 +
should be able to supply itself by growing crops that respond to specific
 +
needs of that location. But how can we make this possible everywhere? Is
 +
there a magic “fishing rod” able to overcome the circumstances which are
 +
preventing right now proper crops production?<br>
 +
Biotechnology has already overcome these issues by the introduction of New
 +
Plant Breeding Techniques. One of them is CRISPR/Cas9, which is probably
 +
one of the simplest and fastest ways of improving plants without
 +
transgenesis, avoiding social and legal rejection towards transgenics.
 +
This is the reason why the aim of HYPE-IT is to improve the accessibility
 +
of CRISPR/Cas9 technology for local plant breeders, allowing any plant
 +
variety to be improved.<br>
 +
<br></p>
 +
</div>
 +
</div>
 +
</div>
 +
</section>
 +
 
</body>
 
</body>
 
</html>
 
</html>
 
{{:Team:Valencia_UPV/Templates:footerUPV}}
 
{{:Team:Valencia_UPV/Templates:footerUPV}}

Revision as of 12:35, 24 September 2016

Study of impact

Index


The problem

World population is expected to grow over a third during the next few years, while natural resources exploited to produce food are expected to be reduced. Biotechnology includes solutions to increase productivity and nutritional quality of crops, but few enterprises can afford those strategies. Probably due to high costs of using these production systems, those producers focus on demand nucleus that can return them the highest possible benefit. But as the proverb says, one man’s meat is another man’s poison.

Unfortunately, the improvement of some plant traits may benefit the vast majority, but it might not be the solution for everyone. Food and nutrition issues change according to different circumstances. For instance, food poverty and malnourishment still cause 5 million deaths annually, while in developed countries malnourishment is more related to cardiovascular illnesses and metabolic disorders. The truth is that both nutritional necessities must be fulfilled and chronic diseases caused by unhealthy diets must be fought since they remain for the rest of patient’s life, deeply compromising the sustainability of social systems.

Other aspects apart from social ones can be related to the centralization of crops engineering. Environmental factors such as plagues or extreme climate conditions, can prevent crops from growing. Even though we may think about remote areas, every fertile land is threatened by the already-coming climate change, including today’s biggest crops producers. In addition, this negatively affects biodiversity as well, by causing the loss of varieties which are not resistant .

Until today, local producers and farmers have been taking care of those local crops. However, lack of affordable and effective modern biotechnological strategies to boost plants properties leads to the disappearance of small and middle agricultural businesses, which are the main economic supply for many families. This extinction would have even more dramatic consequences in those places where major crop producers cannot arrive.

The solution


The future is waiting for us with more population to be fed, less resources to be exploited, more demanding markets to be satisfied and ever-changing climate conditions to be faced. Nevertheless, there are enough natural resources to achieve nutritional requirements worldwide. The sustainability and productivity of their use relies on farmers, who are the main global food producers.
Sustainability implies in a great part having concern to environment. If plants were resistant to extreme environmental conditions or plagues, it would reduce pesticides and water used. Moreover, conserving local varieties keeps biodiversity. Local conservation means productivity, as non-productive lands could be recovered, but also quality, as plant breeders from anywhere could enhance crops traits according to their particular circumstances. Considering a spreaded local range is the best way to reach remote places like regions of Africa, where enhancing crops has the potential to improve the health of over 300 million people.
Thus, in HYPE-IT we believe that the first step to satisfy nutritional necessities everywhere is providing local and affordable ways of production. As the proverb says: “Give a man a fish, and feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, and feed him for a lifetime”. Each region should be able to supply itself by growing crops that respond to specific needs of that location. But how can we make this possible everywhere? Is there a magic “fishing rod” able to overcome the circumstances which are preventing right now proper crops production?
Biotechnology has already overcome these issues by the introduction of New Plant Breeding Techniques. One of them is CRISPR/Cas9, which is probably one of the simplest and fastest ways of improving plants without transgenesis, avoiding social and legal rejection towards transgenics. This is the reason why the aim of HYPE-IT is to improve the accessibility of CRISPR/Cas9 technology for local plant breeders, allowing any plant variety to be improved.

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