Hindupur: In a first of its kind in the globe, the silkworm has been the first genetically modified insect being considered for commercial scale production in the country.
The Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM) has conveyed approval a few months ago to the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) and the Andhra Pradesh State Sericulture Research and Development Institute (APSSRDI) to go in for field trials of transgenic silkworms that were not only resistant to diseases, but would also help boost overall production of indigenous silk.
The APSSRDI has developed four new hybrid transgenic silkworm varieties that are resistant against Bombixmori Nueclio Polyno Virus (BmNPV). Multi-locational field trials of transgenic silkworm have been initiated in 'contained facilities' after the RCGM's approval at four locations.
APSSRDI, located at Kirikera near Hindupur in the district, was leading the activity by supplying silkworms for trials being conducted at the Central Sericultural Research and Training Institutes (CSRTI) in Mysore, Berhampore and Pampore since the last one year.
Since grasserie disea-se is responsible for up to 40 per cent crop loss, the loss of silkworms to diseases prompted research groups at the CDFD, Hyderabad and APSSRDI to develop transgenic silkworms resistant to the BmNPV virus.
A team of scientists - Dr K. Ibrahim Bhaah, Dr J. Seetharamulu, Dr H. Lakshmi and Dr C. Ramesha - led by director Dr P.J. Raju are on a mission and are supervising field trials. About Rs.3.50 crore was sanctioned for the project.
This type of silkworms can be reared by the farming community through the year.
A transgenic animal is one that carries a foreign gene that has been deliberately inserted into its genome. "This is the first time that the RCGM gave permission to conduct field trials on any animal or insect," APSSRDI director Dr Raju said, adding that Indian silkworms had the resistance to fight diseases.
Silkworms from China and Japan have the capacity to produce good quality silk but, if introduced in the tropical climate of India, they succumb to diseases as their resistance level is low, causing crop damage at a peak stage.
Of late, Indian agriculture has seen significant improvement in the production of bivoltine silk. However, the rearing of bivoltine silkworm hybrids is not possible through the year, leading to dependence on inferior cross-bred hybrids especially during summer because a crop loss to the extent of 30-40 per cent takes place due to BmNPV infection.
"This crucial factor prompted the research groups of CDFD and APSSRDI to develop transgenic silkworms resistant to BmNPV which can be reared by the farming community throughout the year," Mr Raju said.
"With the introduction of transgenic silkworm hybrids, the quality parameters with reference to silk grade will improve as compared to the present commercial hybrids," Dr Ibrahim, pathology expert, said.
Asia is the main producer of silk in the world, contributing over 95 per cent of the global output though there are over 40 countries on the world map of silk, a bulk of it being produced in China and In-dia, followed by Japan, Brazil and Korea. China is the leading supplier of silk to the world. India is the second largest producer of silk and accounts for nearly 18 per cent of global raw silk production.
