Biotechnology, a field that harnesses the power of living organisms and their byproducts for technological advancements, is rapidly gaining traction in Turkmenistan.
This is a relatively new direction in the world and scientists of Turkmenistan have joined experiments on the introduction of biotechnological methods in agricultural production.
Olga Arzyamova, a Candidate of Biological Sciences and researcher at the Biodiversity Laboratory of the National Institute of Deserts, Flora and Fauna of the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan, shed light on these developments in an article published in the newspaper “Neutral Turkmenistan.”
Genetic engineering techniques employed in biotechnology have the potential to produce high-yielding cotton varieties resistant to pests and herbicides.
Turkmen botanists have studied the feasibility of cultivating cotton seeds through tissue culture, a technique involving the growth of plant tissues in a controlled environment.
This intricate process involves a series of sequential steps. Following the removal of lint from the seeds using concentrated sulfuric acid and thorough rinsing with distilled water, germination is initiated in Petri dishes containing a sterilized nutrient medium.
After 48 hours, the cotton seedlings undergo a peeling process, followed by disinfection, washing, and placement in sterilized test tubes. For the initial two days, the embryos are kept in a dark room.
Subsequently, the samples are exposed to light and maintained at a temperature of +27 °C and an air humidity of 70 percent.
Next, cuttings are performed to eliminate sections of the root system affected by harmful microorganisms, with the addition of a root formation stimulant.
The primary objective of this experiment is to establish a pure culture.
By isolating a biologically pure cotton strain and integrating molecular biology and genetic engineering tools, scientists envision developing cotton varieties with tailored characteristics, including enhanced fiber quality and yield, resilience to plant diseases and pests, salinity and drought stress.
Additionally, research on plant microcloning (in vitro) is underway at the Institute of General and Applied Biology of the Oguz Khan University of Engineering and Technology of the Academy of Sciences of Turkmenistan. ///nCa, 4 December 2023