New Delhi, India
August 29, 2007
Source:
The Hindu
Business Line via
Checkbiotech
JK Agri
Genetics Ltd says it would be in a position to commercially
launch an improved version of its Bt cotton, containing a
stacked combination of cry1Ac and cry1EC genes, by 2010.
The new ‘event’ has already been approved for multi location
research trials (MLRT) at 16 locations in Maharashtra, Madhya
Pradesh, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu
during the current kharif season.
“If things proceed as per schedule (one year of MLRT and two
years of large scale field trials), the new stacked gene event
should hit the market in kharif 2010,” said Mr P.S. Dravid,
President of the Rs 85-crore Hyderabad-based company, which is
part of Mr H.S. Singhania’s JK Organisation.
First event
JK Agri had introduced its first event — involving incorporation
of the cry1Ac gene from the soil bacterium, Bacillus
thuringiensis (bt), in four cotton hybrids — during the 2006
season. The gene construct technology for this event was sourced
from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. The company
got the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee’s (GEAC)
clearance to market four more hybrids based on the same event in
the current season.
“In kharif 2006, we sold around two lakh packets, each
containing 450 grams of our Bt hybrid cotton seeds. This year,
we have done around six lakh packet,” Mr Dravid told Business
Line. At Rs 750 per packet, it would translate into a business
of roughly Rs 45 crore.
Hybrids
JK Agri is next targeting the commercialisation of an improved
Bt cotton version, entailing pyramiding of a new cry1EC gene on
the existing cry1Ac gene-based hybrids. The technology for the
new gene construct has been obtained from yet another publicly
funded laboratory – the Council of Scientific and Industrial
Research’s (CSIR) National Botanical Research Institute at
Lucknow.
The cry1Ac gene synthesises proteins that are toxic to the
dreaded Helicoverpa armigera or American bollworm insect pest,
thereby, reducing reliance on spraying pesticides. The cry1EC
gene, on the other hand, is said to confer resistance to
spodoptera (tobacco caterpillar or armyworm) larvae. The stacked
combination of both genes is seen to not only broaden insect
resistance coverage, but also lead to enhanced protein
expression through synergetic action.
While JK Agri’s first event was a variant of Monsanto’s
Bollgard-I (featuring the same cry1Ac gene and cleared for
commercial release in 2002), the new event is expected to
provide competition to the US life sciences major’s Bollgard-II.
The latter, which is a stacked event of cry1Ac and cry2Ab genes,
was launched in 2006.
According to industry estimates, the total sale of Bt cotton
hybrid seeds will go up from around 92 lakh packets in 2006 to
over 150 lakh packets or Rs 1,120 crore plus this year. And out
of the 150 lakh packets, Bollgard-II is likely to account for
12-13 lakh, up from last year’s 2.5-3 lakh. “Most of the recent
GEAC commercial approvals have been for hybrids incorporating
the Bollgard II event. With new events such as those of JK, the
share of multiple gene-based products will only go up further,”
noted Mr Bhagirath Choudhury of the
International Service for the
Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA).
© 2007, The Hindu
Business Line |
|
