Mar. 30, 2017
Toyota and NARO Develop High-Precision Selection Technology
to Raise Efficiency of Strawberry Variety Improvement
Toyota City, Japan, March 30, 2017―Toyota Motor Corporation and the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO)1 conducted joint research and developed technology that uses DNA markers2 to raise the efficiency of strawberry variety improvement.
Strawberries are a horticultural product with one of the largest markets in Japan. Its domestic production is concentrated from December to May the following year, and almost all demand during the off-season period between July and October is met through imported products. As a result, it is necessary to develop appealing varieties that are highly disease resistant, can be produced in Japan during the off-season period, and can be delivered easily. The strawberry genome3 structure, however, is complex and it is difficult to analyze its genetic information. This has impeded progress in variety improvement through the use of DNA markers.
Despite these circumstances, Toyota and NARO have successfully developed the technology for analyzing strawberry genetic data with a high degree of precision using DNA microarray technology4 developed independently by Toyota. Both organizations have successfully developed DNA markers that can be used to select individual plants that are resistant to the main strawberry diseases (powdery mildew and anthracnose)5 as well as to select plants that are everbearing.6 Selective breeding of strawberries is performed by crossbreeding two different varieties that have favorable traits, then breeding thousands of the offspring from the seeds obtained, and narrowing down the best outcomes in stages.
By using the newly-developed DNA markers in selective breeding of strawberries, it will be possible to identify the offspring that have the necessary genes by performing a simple DNA test, which will greatly reduce the number of candidates during the initial evaluation stage. This will halve the time necessary to select disease resistant and everbearing properties, and to reduce cultivation area by two-thirds, therefore contributing to higher efficiency in strawberry variety improvement.
Toyota and NARO have announced the results at today's meeting of the Japanese Society of Breeding7. Information regarding the DNA marker announced at this time will be actively disclosed and provided so that it can be broadly used across the agricultural sector.
The production control techniques and process improvement expertise that Toyota has gathered with its experience in the automobile industry has been applied in the agricultural sector, such as the development and provision in 2014 of the cloud-based service that applies the concepts of the Toyota Production System to agriculture. Toyota also announced today that it has entered into a business tie-up agreement with two agricultural companies in Aichi Prefecture for the development of a cutting-edge agricultural model8 which has been conceived by Toyota. Going forward, Toyota remains committed to contributing to the sustainable growth of the agricultural industry.
1An institution that conducts research and development on various issues relating to foodstuffs in Japan as well as the problems faced by agriculture and agricultural communities, and promotes the adoption of its results.
2A distinctive DNA arrangement on the genome. Used as tags of distinctive arrangements associated with beneficial traits for variety improvement of plants and other applications.
3An arrangement of chromosomes that has the genetic information necessary for an organism to function as a species. The human genome structure is a combination of two sets of chromosomes, while the strawberry has a complex structure that combines eight sets of chromosomes.
4Technology for comprehensively and rapidly analyzing the genetic information of the target organism. Application for assessing human predispositions and cancer occurrence risk and other uses is progressing.
- 5Powdery mildew
- A disease that can cover leaves and fruit with spots of white powder. Fruit with powdery mildew becomes worthless.
- Anthracnose
- Dark brown spots appear on leaves and other plant areas, and as the disease progresses, wilting and plant death can occur.
6The property whereby flower buds form and bloom and fruit sets under low-temperature, short-day conditions and under high-temperature, long-day conditions. Everbearing strawberries can be harvested even during the summer and autumn off-seasons when market prices of strawberries are high.
7An academic organization dedicated to advancing research and developing technology relating to variety improvement, promoting exchanges and collaboration among researchers, as well as in disseminating knowledge.
8An agricultural model based on Toyota's IT management service initiative that incorporates the following three elements: (1) precision agriculture that links big data with cutting-edge technology, (2) (in addition to production,) improved logistics and sales processes, and (3) expansion to multiple product types in addition to rice.
