Alcohol Increases Wheat’s Drought Tolerance, Providing a Cheaper Alternative to Genetic Modification
The University of Arkansas has conducted a study that shows that global wheat cultivation could suffer from water shortages, reducing crop yields by up to 60%. This is due to the increasing heat and dryness caused by climate change, even in moderate regions such as Germany. To combat this, scientists at the RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science (CSRS) have discovered that alcohol can increase wheat’s drought tolerance. Previously, researchers focused on genetically modified plants to protect them from drought. However, these modified crops are often too expensive for poorer countries to afford. Therefore, the team led by Motoaki Seki sought alternative methods to increase crop drought tolerance.
In experiments with wheat, rice, and the model organism Arabidopsis thaliana, the researchers found that plants treated with ethanol closed their stomata, similar to genetically modified plants. Stomata are small openings on plant leaves that regulate gas exchange with the environment. The researchers discovered that alcohol-treated plants could convert the alcohol into sugar and continue photosynthesis, which is usually limited when stomata are closed. In addition, 75% of the alcohol-treated plants survived a two-week drought, compared to less than 5% of untreated plants. Motoaki Seki believes that alcohol can help protect crops during droughts, stating that “we think that treating cereal plants with ethanol can increase yields during a drought.”
However, the researchers are still unsure of the potential environmental impact of using alcohol in agriculture. Radioactive markers on the ethanol showed that the plants activated their drought genes even when they had enough water, reducing water loss and preparing for future droughts. But the effects of alcohol residues on agricultural land, groundwater, and the environment are still unknown. The researchers suggest that further studies are necessary to investigate the potential consequences before alcohol is used as a drought protection method in agriculture.
In conclusion, alcohol could provide a cheaper alternative to genetically modified crops in increasing drought tolerance in wheat and other crops. However, further research is necessary to determine the potential environmental impact of using alcohol in agriculture.
