New gene technology increases plants by 20% and increases food production by 70% after 20 years

One of the reasons why GM crops are often attacked is that GM technology does not significantly increase crop yields – a farmer can produce the same amount of corn or wheat on a hectare. But now, scientists have improved the photosynthesis efficiency of tobacco. They have succeeded in cultivating a class that is 20% larger than regular tobacco - stems are taller, leaves are larger and roots are thicker. According to Guardian, this is the first study to significantly improve the efficiency of plant photosynthesis. Plants based on this technology can meet the needs of UN projects – achieving a 70% increase in food production over the next 20 years.

Researchers have used genetic engineering techniques to achieve an increase in tobacco production. Plants use photosynthesis to convert sunlight and dioxide into energy and carbohydrates. However, in bright light, plants automatically remove unwanted photons.

When the weather turns negative, they will slowly restart photosynthesis. And this process is for scientists to try to improve efficiency. They replicated the genes responsible for the transformation and shortened the so-called "photosynthesis recovery time." In this way, plants can make better use of light.

According to Science magazine, the team has successfully implanted genes into rice and corn, and may find it possible to further increase the rate at which plants respond to changes in lighting conditions.

“We can't be 100% sure that this technology works for other crops. But because we experimented with a process that all crops have (photosynthetic), we believe it will work.” Stephen Long, University of Illinois leads the project. The institute said to Guardian.

After 3 weeks of growth in the experimental soil at the University of Illinois, the plant grew 14-20%. In comparison, this is a huge increase in production for a single step.

Long told the New York Times that he believes that through genetic engineering, "final production can be increased by 50%." This technology can create a second “green revolution” – a general term that has significantly increased crop yields compared to the last century.

The study was also conducted by Krishna Niyogi of the University of California at Berkeley and invested by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Another research group, known as the “C4 Rice Union”, has also been trying to change the photosynthesis efficiency to increase rice and wheat production by 50% and use less water and fertilizer.