Dear Subscribers,

 

Here is the third update of FAO-BiotechNews for the year 2021.

 

As usual, we welcome your feedback.

 

With best wishes

 

John Ruane

The Coordinator of FAO-BiotechNews, 11-5-2021

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO),

E-mail address: [log in to unmask]

FAO Biotechnology website: http://www.fao.org/biotech/ (in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Russian)

 

*** NEWS *** (http://www.fao.org/biotech/biotech-news/en/)

 

1) Rearing improved sterile male strains for the sterile insect technique

 

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in cooperation with FAO, has been researching and improving the sterile insect technique (SIT) for the last 60 years to help countries combat diseases that insects carry. The SIT uses ionising radiation to sterilize male insects which are then released into target areas to breed with wild females, that then do not produce any offspring. The daily production and release of millions of sterile males that are healthy and can compete against wild males is key to a SIT programme’s success. To assist in this area, an IAEA/FAO coordinated research project entitled “Comparing rearing efficiency and competitiveness of sterile male strains produced by genetic, transgenic or symbiont-based technologies” was undertaken from 2015 to 2019, involving 18 scientists from 13 countries. Its aims were to develop novel genetic sexing strains (i.e. strains that make it possible to release sterile males only) or refine existing ones; perform quality control analysis of different strains, mainly in respect to their rearing efficiency and mating competitiveness; and assess the genetic stability of the strains. A recent IAEA news story reports that the results of the project’s research have been published in a collection of open-access journal articles. See the news story, in English and Spanish, at https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/iaea-advances-in-genetic-sex-separation-in-insect-pests-highlighted-in-new-publication or contact [log in to unmask] for more information.

 

2) Meetings of Convention on Biological Diversity’s subsidiary bodies

 

The twenty-fourth meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA 24) and the third meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI 3) take place virtually in the period 3 May to 13 June 2021. The SBSTTA 24 plenaries take place 3-4 May, 23-26 May and 7-9 June. The SBI 3 plenaries take place 16-18 May, 28-30 May and 11-13 June. The SBSTTA 24 provisional agenda includes items on 'Synthetic biology' and 'Risk assessment and risk management of living modified organisms'. The SBI 3 provisional agenda includes an item on 'Assessment and review of the effectiveness of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety'. Official meeting documents (in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish) and information documents (in English) for these two subsidiary bodies of the Convention on Biological Diversity are available at https://www.cbd.int/meetings/SBSTTA-24 and https://www.cbd.int/meetings/SBI-03 respectively. A media primer about the relationship between these two meetings and Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety issues is also available at https://www.cbd.int/doc/press/2021/pr-2021-05-02-bs-en.pdf. Contact [log in to unmask] for more information.

 

3) The microbiome in food and agriculture

 

Thanks to the development of rapid and affordable genomic sequencing technologies, it is now possible to identify the presence and function of a huge array of bacteria, viruses, protozoa and fungi as well as their theatre of action in different ecosystems. Research has shown that the gut microbiome, referring to the genomes of all microorganisms living in the gut, can influence human and animal nutrition and health. In a similar way, it has also been shown that the microbiomes of soils, rivers, lakes and oceans can affect environmental health. A recent FAO story looks at the importance of the microbiome across the food system and for the bioeconomy and discusses FAO’s role in bringing microbiome science into policy debates. See http://www.fao.org/fao-stories/article/en/c/1393101/ (in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish) or contact [log in to unmask] for more information.

 

4) Peer review of technical document on synthetic biology

 

As part of its CBD Technical Series, the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) published a 118-page document on synthetic biology in 2015. At its fourteenth meeting in November 2018, the Conference of the Parties to the CBD requested the Executive Secretary to update the document for consideration by the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice, based on the peer review of scientific information and other relevant information. Accordingly, the Secretariat updated the document. The draft is available for peer review from 3 May to 15 June 2021. Parties and observers are invited to participate in the peer review process. The draft is available at https://bch.cbd.int/synbio/peer_review. Contact [log in to unmask] for more information. The 2015 publication is available at https://www.cbd.int/doc/publications/cbd-ts-82-en.pdf.

 

5) Pocket guide on access to information and public participation regarding GMOs

 

The Secretariats of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (the Aarhus Convention) and the Convention on Biological Diversity have jointly published a 12-page pocket guide aiming to help governments and stakeholders strengthen their capacities for effective access to information and public participation in decision-making processes regarding living modified organisms (LMOs)/genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The guide aims to support efforts to implement article 23 of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Aarhus Convention, including its amendment on public participation in decisions on the deliberate release into the environment and placing on the market of genetically modified organisms (GMO amendment). It is available in English (with Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish to come) at https://unece.org/environment-policy/public-participation/gmos and http://bch.cbd.int/onlineconferences/portal_art23/resources.shtml. Contact [log in to unmask] or [log in to unmask] for more information.

 

6) Virtual training courses on transboundary animal diseases

 

The European Commission for the Control of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (EuFMD) website hosts a platform offering a wide variety of online training courses that support the control of foot-and-mouth disease and similar transboundary animal diseases (FAST), including bovine ephemeral fever, lumpy skin disease, peste des petits ruminants, rift valley fever and sheep and goat pox. These also include open access online courses that can be taken anytime. See https://eufmdlearning.works/ or contact [log in to unmask] for more information. The EuFMD is an independent commission, established under the auspices of FAO in 1954, which currently has 39 Member Nations. Its work focuses on improving preparedness for management of FAST disease crises by Members and across Europe; reducing risk to Members from the FAST disease situation in the European neighbourhood; and sustaining and enhancing progress in the roll out of the Global Framework for Progressive Control of Transboundary Animal Diseases (GF-TADs) Global Strategy for control of FMD, and on increasing security in the supply of effective FMD vaccines.

 

7) Digital sequence information on genetic resources: Webinar recordings and discussion forum

 

The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity organised four webinars and an online discussion forum to share information related to digital sequence information on genetic resources, in collaboration with the ABS Capacity Development Initiative. The series of webinars took place on 1 and 9 December 2020 and 11 February and 21 April 2021. The series was not part of the formal process and was organised by the co-chairs of the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework with the support of the Secretariat to facilitate broader understanding and exchange of ideas among parties and stakeholders. Following the fourth webinar, a discussion forum on proposed policy options and criteria framework for digital sequence information on genetic resources ran from 21 April to 2 May 2021. The webinar recordings and documents, as well as links to the discussion forum, are available at https://www.cbd.int/article/dsi-webinar-series-2020. Contact [log in to unmask] for more information.

 

*** EVENTS *** (http://www.fao.org/biotech/biotech-events/en/)

 

28 June to 2 July 2021, virtual. International symposium on sustainable animal production and health - Current status and way forward. Organised by the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre (Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture), the objectives of the symposium are to provide information and share knowledge on modern and novel technologies in animal production and health, and their application to support sustainable livestock production systems. Topics to be covered include the use of assisted reproductive technologies for enhanced livestock productivity, radiation hybrid mapping and gene-marker selection in animal characterization and breeding programmes. Originally planned to take place in Vienna, it will now be held virtually because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is free of charge and observers can register to follow the event. See https://www.iaea.org/events/aphs2021 or contact [log in to unmask] for more information.

 

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