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ARTICLE: The rice that could reduce world hunger: Scientists take a major step towards creating a 'supercharged' grain that is 50% more productive

The following is an exceprt of an article in the Daily Mail (UK) about a new rice with increased yield that could help alleviate hunger globally. 

Researchers from Oxford University have taken an important step in a long-term project aimed at improving photosynthesis in rice.

In their study, the team introduced a single maize gene to the plant to make it more efficient at photosynthesis.

Rice normally uses a photosynthetic pathway called C3, which in hot and dry environments is much less efficient than the C4 pathway using by other plants.

But if rice could be 'switched' to use C4 photosynthesis, it could increase productivity by 50 per cent.

Professor Jane Langdale, lead author of the study, said: 'Over three billion people depend on rice for survival, and, owing to predicted population increases and a general trend towards urbanisation, land that provided enough rice to feed 27 people in 2010 will need to support 43 by 2050.

'In this context, rice yields need to increase substantially over the next 35 years.

'Given that traditional breeding programmes currently achieve around a one per cent increase in yield per annum, this is not a trivial endeavour.'

To read the entire article, please visit the Daily Mail, or read the original study here