GMO Compass: Professor Spangenberg, you recently obtained the regulatory approval for controlled field trials with genetically modified, drought-tolerant wheat. What's the purpose of these releases?

German Spangenberg: The purpose of this controlled field trial is to conduct proof-of-concept research to assess the performance of genetically modified (GM) wheat lines that express one of fifteen different candidate genes for drought tolerance derived from the plants thale cress and maize, a moss and yeast. The GM wheat lines will be evaluated under rain-fed, drought-prone conditions in Victoria, Australia.

German Spangenberg: Yes, we undertook Australia’s first field trial with GM wheat for drought tolerance in 2007. In this field trial twenty-four lines of GM wheat were tested and seven of these were identified as providing higher yields under drought stress. Two GM wheat lines exceeded the yield of the control experimental variety by 20 per cent under drought stress, with no apparent yield penalty under irrigated conditions. These initial results are very promising, and have encouraged us to include these lines for further evaluation in the 2008 field trial, which we have just completed planting.

GMO Compass: How does the genetically introduced drought tolerance work?

German Spangenberg: The introduced genes encode proteins that are intended to enable normal plant growth with reduced amounts of water, thus conferring drought tolerance either by regulating gene expression or modulating biochemical pathways in the GM wheat plants.

GMO Compass: So, would you say agricultural biotechnology is indispensable to cope with the challenge of a worldwide growing demand for food, feed and energy?

GMO Compass: Could you elaborate a little bit on the environmental and consumer benefits you expect from these plants?

German Spangenberg: Let me elaborate on two examples of GM forage grasses and their potential environmental and public health benefits.
We have developed GM forage grasses, namely perennial ryegrass and tall fescue, with modified fructan and lignin biosynthesis for enhanced herbage quality for ruminant livestock production and for reduced greenhouse gas emissions per unit of animal produce. These GM grasses thus are expected to provide not only productivity gains (that means, increased animal productivity) but also environmental benefits from a per-unit reduction of enteric methane emissions. This is relevant if we consider that globally, the single largest source of methane emissions is enteric methane from domestic ruminant livestock. Enteric methane is produced by fermentation in the rumen by methanogens. It has a shorter lifetime in the atmosphere and higher global warming power, being 21fold more potent than carbon dioxide. In addition, methane emissions represent a significant loss of energy for animal production – as example, for a dairy cow that produces between 90 and 140 kg methane per year, that would be equivalent to 24 to 38 grazing days of energy lost per animal.
The plant gene technologies and methodologies that we have developed to modify lignin and fructan biosynthesis in a targeted manner in the key forage grasses of world’s temperate grassland agriculture, perennial ryegrass and tall fescue, are also applicable to other grasses, such as warm-season C4 forage grasses for livestock production. They are applicable as well to dedicated bioenergy perennial grasses to be used as feedstocks for lignocellulosic bioethanol production.
I referred to our R&D program on the development of GM ryegrass with down-regulation of the two main pollen allergens, Lol p1 and Lol p2, for enhanced public health outcomes. Ryegrass is a major source of pollen allergens that trigger hayfever and seasonal allergic asthma. These afflict up to 25 per cent of the population in cool temperate climates around the world; with grass pollinosis having significant public health impact.