- Scientists have genetically modified cotton to make its seeds - which are full of high-quality protein - fit for human consumption.
The research published this week in 'Proceedings of the National Academies of Science' has the potential to feed half a billion people worldwide each year.
For every kilogram of fibre produced by cotton, the plant releases 1.65 kilograms of seed. These contain a toxin called gossypol that protects the crops from insects and pathogens and can only be digested by ruminant animals such as cattle.
The genetically modified cotton plants produce seeds with 98 percent less gossypol, but have normal levels of the toxin in the rest of the plant, preserving its chemical defences, according to an article published in the science journal 'Nature'.
Deborah Delmer, associate director of the Rockefeller Foundation in New York, United States, and an expert in agricultural food safety, says that the method - which turns off a gene process rather than introducing a new protein - raises "less safety concerns" than other genetic modification technologies.
But she adds that extensive field trials were still needed to test the plant's stability over many generations.
afrol News - It is called "financial inclusion", and it is a key government policy in Rwanda. The goal is that, by 2020, 90 percent of the population is to have and actively use bank accounts. And in only four years, financial inclusion has doubled in Rwanda.
afrol News - The UN's humanitarian agencies now warn about a devastating famine in Sudan and especially in South Sudan, where the situation is said to be "imploding". Relief officials are appealing to donors to urgently fund life-saving activities in the two countries.
afrol News - Fear is spreading all over West Africa after the health ministry in Guinea confirmed the first Ebola outbreak in this part of Africa. According to official numbers, at least 86 are infected and 59 are dead as a result of this very contagious disease.
afrol News - It is already a crime being homosexual in Ethiopia, but parliament is now making sure the anti-gay laws will be applied in practical life. No pardoning of gays will be allowed in future, but activist fear this only is a signal of further repression being prepared.
afrol News / Africa Renewal - Ethiopia's ambitious plan to build a US$ 4.2 billion dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, 40 km from its border with Sudan, is expected to provide 6,000 megawatts of electricity, enough for its population plus some excess it can sell to neighbouring countries.
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