A team of Chinese scientists has taken a gene from a desert moss that can survive extreme drought and heat and inserted it into cotton plants grown in Xinjiang. The result is cotton that fights off a common fungal infection and produces more fiber.
The researchers published their findings in a peer reviewed journal after field trials showed the modified cotton resisted verticillium wilt, a soil borne fungus that can devastate crops. Infected plants typically wilt, yellow, and die. The new cotton stayed healthy.
A gene from a plant that thrives where little else can
The gene came from Syntrichia caninervis, a desert moss found in harsh environments like the Gobi Desert and Antarctica. This moss can lose nearly all its water and then bounce back when moisture returns. The gene the team used helps the moss tolerate stress.
The scientists inserted that gene into a commercial cotton variety widely planted in Xinjiang, China's main cotton producing region. They then grew the modified plants in fields and in greenhouses alongside regular cotton. Both were exposed to the fungus.
Higher yield and stronger resistance in field trials
In the field, the genetically modified cotton showed a disease index reduction of more than 30 percent compared with unmodified plants. The yield per plant also increased. The scientists measured higher levels of antioxidant enzymes in the modified cotton, which helped it neutralize the damage caused by the infection.
The team included researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Xinjiang University. They said the approach could be applied to other crops threatened by fungal diseases.
For farmers in Xinjiang, where cotton is a major economic driver, a fungus resistant plant means less reliance on chemical fungicides and more stable harvests. The region produces a large share of China's cotton, and verticillium wilt has long been a problem there.
The study adds to a growing body of work that uses genes from extremophile plants to improve agricultural crops. Desert mosses, which have evolved to survive in some of the planet's most punishing conditions, may hold keys to making food and fiber crops more resilient as the climate changes.
