Overcoming the "cancer" of cotton and moving cotton from "selection" to "customization"

Snow-white cotton is one of the sources of warmth for people in winter. It has the advantages of moisture absorption, breathability and comfort, making it an excellent choice for making textiles.

Conquering cotton "cancer"

Cotton is a strategic material related to the national economy and people's livelihood, and is also the second largest crop after grain. Therefore, ensuring cotton production is crucial. However, it is not easy to make cotton grow healthily. Large-scale cotton planting also provides a breeding ground for the spread of some diseases and pests.

In the 1990s, my country's major cotton-producing areas were attacked by cotton bollworm and Verticillium wilt, which seriously affected the yield and quality of cotton. The prevention and control of both diseases are global problems, especially Verticillium wilt, a soil-borne vascular disease that is almost impossible to control with traditional spraying methods. Therefore, cotton farmers jokingly call it the "cancer" of cotton.

At that time, my country's agricultural science and technology field had been lacking a systematic and effective solution to Verticillium wilt. Professor Ma Zhiying of Hebei Agricultural University led his team to conduct basic research on breeding for Verticillium wilt resistance and new variety selection, making continuous progress on the road of breeding disease-resistant cotton varieties.

After more than 20 years of hard work, Professor Ma Zhiying led the team to collect, screen and identify more than 2,200 basic cotton germplasms, and screened out 240 excellent germplasms through various methods. On this basis, they built a database of excellent cotton germplasms, created 47 breeding parents resistant to Verticillium wilt, and identified 7 new genes related to resistance to Verticillium wilt. In addition, they also improved the identification and selection technology of Verticillium wilt resistance and successfully cultivated 5 new cotton varieties. The scientific research project led by Professor Ma Zhiying, "Basic Research on Cotton Breeding for Verticillium Wilt Resistance and Breeding of New Varieties", also won the second prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award in 2009.

Make cotton an “all-round player”

With the adjustment of the layout of grain and cotton planting and the development of the textile industry, solving the growth problems of cotton under multiple adversities such as drought, thinness, salinity, pests and diseases, and meeting the demand for medium and high-end raw cotton have become urgent needs of the industry. Therefore, Professor Ma Zhiying continued to lead the team to go deep into the fields. In the past 10 years, they have carried out "precision breeding" for cotton, not only analyzing the molecular relationship between genetic germplasm, but also constructing a fingerprint map for identifying cotton traits.

In order to better understand the relationship between cotton trait changes and genetic variation, the team led by Professor Ma Zhiying carefully screened 419 core cotton germplasms, resequenced their genomes, and conducted in-depth analysis since 2012. In the process, they revealed the genetic mechanism of upland cotton fiber quality and yield, deciphered the genomic structural variation and genetic effects of cotton breeding improvement, and discovered important genetic loci and new genes that control different traits, providing new basis and resources for the coordinated improvement of multiple traits of crops, making it possible for cotton breeding to move from "wide selection" to "customization".

The "Nongda Cotton" series of cotton varieties bred by the team led by Professor Ma Zhiying are not only able to withstand a variety of adversities, but also have significantly increased yields. In the 11 years from 2007 to 2018, these new varieties have been planted on more than 30 million mu of land nationwide, contributing huge value to my country's agricultural economy. The breeding of these new varieties not only increases farmers' economic income, but also brings more warmth to our winter. It is worth mentioning that the scientific research project led by Ma Zhiying, "Selection and Application of Multi-Resistant, High-Quality and High-Yield "Nongda Cotton" New Varieties", also won the second prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award in 2019.

The successful breeding and widespread planting of the "Nongda Cotton" series of cotton varieties have gradually reduced cotton's dependence on pesticides and protected the ecological environment.

Thanks to the unremitting efforts and scientific research innovation of cotton experts, China's cotton industry is moving towards new heights. Professor Ma Zhiying and his team showed us the power of science and technology, turning the concept of precision breeding into reality.

Author: Niu Mingze, PhD, Sichuan University

Reviewer: Zhu Yehua, Deputy Editor of Science and Technology Review

China Association for Science and Technology Department of Science Popularization

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