WASHINGTON, Oct. 29 (UPI) -- The U.S. National Academies have released a new primer on the achievements and promise of plant genome sciences.
Officials said the primer, based on an expert consensus report from the National Research Council, explores the potential of the National Plant Genome Initiative , a federal multiagency project that coordinates research in plant sciences to understand and ultimately harness plants' properties to help meet agriculture, nutrition, energy and human health needs.
"For example," officials said in a statement, "by knowing how plants cope with less water, rising temperatures and other environmental stresses, scientists could develop crops that withstand changing climate conditions."
Among other things, the booklet examines mutations and manipulations of food crops, the promise and challenges of biofuels, environmental stewardship, biomedical advances and how scientists can maximize the use of plant sciences.
Free electronic and hard copies of the booklet are available at http://nas.edu/plant_genome/.
