A research group from the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO), National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology (QST), University of Tsukuba, the University of Tokyo and RIKEN, has revealed that Vigna riukiuensis, a closely related species of azuki bean, accumulates in its leaves special starch, which traps and sequesters sodium, making it harmless. This newly elucidated mechanism of salt tolerance is different from known mechanisms, such as the suppression of sodium influx into the leaves, and hence it is expected to be applied to the development of salt-tolerant crops in the future. Read more
National Agriculture and Food Research Organization(NARO) and Farmers Factory, an agricultural enterprise, has succeeded in avoiding the loss “Banshu shiro mizuna(Potherb Mustard)” from Hyogo prefecture. “Banshu shiro mizuna” is a landrace of Brassica rapa that has been inherited from generation to generation in Hyogo Prefecture. However, in recent years it has not been cultivated and it was about to lost due to lack of seeds to germinate. “Banshu shiro mizuna” can be produced again with the seeds harvested this time. This result is expected to lead to the succession of local food culture and the development of local communities. Read more
The Genebank Project is a national project of Japan operated by the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO) since 1985. The NARO Genebank is responsible for the conservation of plant genetic resources to provide materials for both scientific research and plant breeding to improve food and feed production. In this study, NARO analyzed the germination test results over 30 years and estimated the seed longevity, the time until the germination percentage falls below 85% of the initial value, of orthodox seeds of approximately 80,000 accessions from 50 species. Read more
The National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO) has completed and opened access to the whole-genome sequencing data of the 69 accessions of the World Rice Core Collection (WRC) in Research Center of Genetic Resources (NGRC). It enables users to identify the genome information of target trait in these accessions, and it is expected to promote various breeding and research projects. Read more