University of Essex

BS323-7-PS-CO:
Plant Biotechnology

The details

Year: 2023/24

Department: Life Sciences (School of)

Campus: Colchester Campus

Term: Spring & Summer

Level: Postgraduate: Level 7

Status: Current

Start date: Monday 15 January 2024

End date: Friday 28 June 2024

Credits: 15

Last updated: 14 February 2024

Requisites for this module

Pre-requisites: (none)

Co-requisites: (none)

Pre and / or co-requisites: (none)

Prohibited modules: (none)

Key module (requisite for): (none)

Key module for

MSC C56012 Biotechnology

Module description

This module will give an introduction to plant metabolism and how molecular and gentic approaches can be used to improve productivity and/or resilience.

This module will cover state of the art technologies to address these challenges, and present alternative production systems to field and glasshouse grown crops such as vertical farms. It will provide insights into how biology and technology can increase crop production whilst also meet our global commitment to zero carbon and how we might balance these processes.

Module aims

The aim of this module is:

To provide students with a thorough understanding of both the theory underpinning plant biotechnology and the applications of plant biotechnology, and how these applications can be used for sustainable agricultural development.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:

Develop a systematic understanding of the links between agriculture, plant biology, technology, and sustainability, and their impact on policy decisions.

Devise and sustain arguments around the ecological, sociological and political contexts and trade-offs involved in agricultural development and food production in the 21^st century.

Critically discuss and comment upon how climate and other environmental changes are shaping current and food production and discuss the management strategies to mitigating these impacts.

Develop advanced competency in: developing a research project proposal, critically evaluating project proposals, and providing peer-reviewed feedback to others.

Relate real world examples of biotechnology advances to gaps in sustainable global agricultural development.

Module information

The module is based around students undertaking group research projects (to be written up and evaluated independently), chosen from a series of options (focusing on either physiological processes, development of transgenic plants, GWAS identification of genes, phenotyping, grafting, photosynthesis, water use efficiency, and stomatal kinetics). Each project focuses on a different question. Lectures feed into each site visit and provide formative feedback on the previous session.

Plants and plant processes are at the centre of several current global challenges which have major impacts on humanity and society.To meet the anticipated agricultural demands of a population of 10 billion people by 2050, crop productivity must increase by around 70%. In context, this means within the next 35 years, we will need to produce more food than has ever been produced in human history. This must be achieved with less land and reduced resource input (e.g. water) while at the same time, agricultural production is facing unparalleled abiotic challenges from global climate change.

Food security and climate change are currently top of the scientific, political and societal agendas worldwide. With the impact of climate change on agriculture already being realised, immediate changes are needed to mitigate crop losses, reduce waste, and support increased production, which is unlikely to be achieved with a single solution or by research conducted in isolation. Instead, it will require multiple strategies across the entire food sector, considering different cropping systems, growth environments and resource inputs to meet this considerable challenge. Fundamental research on crop growth and productivity in a changing climate remains pivotal to agricultural adaptation.

The module will be delivered via a series of lectures and site visits, with a balanced emphasis on both applying knowledge and understanding theory, as well as providing the skills for future employment wihin this area.

Learning and teaching methods

This module will be delivered via:

Twenty 1-hour lectures.
One 2-hour seminar (compulsory).
Three 6-hour practicals.
One 3-hour workshop.

Learning and teaching methods will include lectures, site visits to agritech centers, and practical group work.

The coursework relies on several formats to ensure that all learning styles are accommodated.

Each student group will pick from a set of five research topics (focusing on either genetics, physiology, photosynthesis, climate resilience, technology, vertical farming, sensor design, and plant feedback loops), develop research questions around these topics, and write a project proposal for submission.

Students will be assessed both on their written proposal and their peer-review abilities of other’s (anonymised) proposals.

Bibliography

Slater, A., Scott, N.W. and Fowler, M.R. (2008f) Plant biotechnology: the genetic manipulation of plants. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Available at: https://app.kortext.com/Shibboleth.sso/Login?entityID=https://idp0.essex.ac.uk/shibboleth&target=https://app.kortext.com/borrow/578297.
Agnès Ricroch, Surinder Chopra and Marcel Kuntz (2021) Plant Biotechnology. Second. Springer International Publishing AG. Available at: https://link-springer-com.uniessexlib.idm.oclc.org/book/10.1007/978-3-030-68345-0.
Ray, D.K. et al. (2019) ‘Climate change has likely already affected global food production’, PLOS ONE, 14(5). Available at: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0217148.
Ray, D.K. et al. (2013) ‘Yield Trends Are Insufficient to Double Global Crop Production by 2050’, PLoS ONE, 8(6). Available at: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0066428.
Ricroch, A. (2021) ‘The Evolution of Agriculture and Tools for Plant Innovation’, in A. Ricroch, S. Chopra, and M. Kuntz (eds) Plant Biotechnology. Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 3–15. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-68345-0_1.
Moseley, W.G. (2015) ‘Food Security and “Green Revolution”’, in International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences. Elsevier, pp. 307–310. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-097086-8.91019-5.
Patel, J. and Mishra, A. (2019) ‘Genome Editing: Advances and Prospects’, in S.M.P. Khurana and R.K. Gaur (eds) Plant Biotechnology: Progress in Genomic Era. Singapore: Springer Singapore, pp. 147–174. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-8499-8_7.
Zhu, H., Li, C. and Gao, C. (2020) ‘Applications of CRISPR–Cas in agriculture and plant biotechnology’, Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology, 21(11), pp. 661–677. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41580-020-00288-9.
Yang, L. et al. (2023) ‘Heritable transgene-free genome editing in plants by grafting of wild-type shoots to transgenic donor rootstocks’, Nature Biotechnology, 41(7), pp. 958–967. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41587-022-01585-8.
Reeves, G. et al. (2022) ‘Monocotyledonous plants graft at the embryonic root–shoot interface’, Nature, 602(7896), pp. 280–286. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-04247-y.
Elango, D., Sandoya, G. and Chopra, S. (2021) ‘Techniques and Tools of Modern Plant Breeding’, in A. Ricroch, S. Chopra, and M. Kuntz (eds) Plant Biotechnology. Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 17–26. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-68345-0_2.
Lawson, T. et al. (2022) ‘Carbon fixation’, in Photosynthesis in Action. Elsevier, pp. 31–58. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-823781-6.00008-3.
Raines, C.A., Cavanagh, A.P. and Simkin, A.J. (2022) ‘Improving carbon fixation’, in Photosynthesis in Action. Elsevier, pp. 175–192. Available at: https://app.kortext.com/Shibboleth.sso/Login?entityID=https://idp0.essex.ac.uk/shibboleth&target=https://app.kortext.com/borrow/1769091.
Bailey-Serres, J. et al. (2019b) ‘Genetic strategies for improving crop yields’, Nature, 575(7781), pp. 109–118. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1679-0.
Wang, F., Yoshida, H. and Matsuoka, M. (2021) ‘Making the “Green Revolution” Truly Green: Improving Crop Nitrogen Use Efficiency’, Plant and Cell Physiology, 62(6), pp. 942–947. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/pcp/pcab051.
Jhu, M.-Y. and Oldroyd, G.E.D. (2023) ‘Dancing to a different tune, can we switch from chemical to biological nitrogen fixation for sustainable food security?’, PLOS Biology, 21(3). Available at: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001982.

The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course.
The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students.
Further reading can be obtained from this module's reading list.

Assessment items, weightings and deadlines

Coursework / exam	Description	Coursework weighting
Coursework	Research Proposal	33%
Coursework	Peer Review Exercise	14%
Practical	Informational Poster focussing on a technique for genetic improvement (group work)	13%
Practical	Debate on Agricultural Innovations and sustainability	20%
Practical	Science and Society Presentation	20%

Exam format definitions

Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary, for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.

Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.

Overall assessment

Coursework	Exam
100%	0%

Reassessment

Coursework	Exam
100%	0%

Module supervisor and teaching staff

Supervisor: Dr Amanda Cavanagh, email: a.cavanagh@essex.ac.uk.

Teaching staff: Dr John Stamford, Dr John Ferguson, Dr Pallavi Singh, Prof Tracy Lawson

Contact details:

Availability

Available to incoming Essex Abroad / Exchange students: Yes

Available to Outside Option: No

Available to Audit: No

External examiner

No external examiner information available for this module.

Resources

Teaching materials: Available via Moodle

Lecture recording: Of 43 hours, 25 (58.1%) hours available to students:
18 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
0 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s), module, or event type.

Further information

Department website: Life Sciences (School of)

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Module Directory

BS323-7-PS-CO:Plant Biotechnology