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Cover image of Dangerous Liaisons?
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Dangerous Liaisons?

When Cultivated Plants Mate with Their Wild Relatives

Norman C. Ellstrand

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With the advent of genetic engineering, "designer" crops might interbreed with natural populations. Could such romances lead to the evolution of "superweeds", as some have suggested? But haven't crops had sex with wild plants in the past? Has such gene swapping occurred without consequences? And if consequences have indeed occurred, what lessons can be gleaned for engineered crops?

In Dangerous Liaisons? Norman Ellstrand examines these and other questions. He begins with basic information about the natural hybridization process. He then describes what we now know about hybridization between the...

With the advent of genetic engineering, "designer" crops might interbreed with natural populations. Could such romances lead to the evolution of "superweeds", as some have suggested? But haven't crops had sex with wild plants in the past? Has such gene swapping occurred without consequences? And if consequences have indeed occurred, what lessons can be gleaned for engineered crops?

In Dangerous Liaisons? Norman Ellstrand examines these and other questions. He begins with basic information about the natural hybridization process. He then describes what we now know about hybridization between the world's most important crops—such as wheat, rice, maize, and soybeans—and their wild relatives. Such hybridization, Ellstrand explains, is not rare, and has occasionally had a substantial impact. In some cases, the result was problematic weeds. In others, crop genes have diluted natural diversity to the point that wild populations of certain rare species were absorbed into the gene pool of the more common crop, essentially bringing the wild species to the brink of extinction.

Ellstrand concludes with a look to the future. Will engineered crops pose a greater threat than traditional crops? If so, can gene flow and hybridization be managed to control the escape of engineered genes? This book will appeal to academics, policy makers, students, and all with an interest in environmental issues.

Reviews

Reviews

An objective, balanced account of the impact of crop x native species hybridization... Though this book is written in a clear, nontechnical style, it covers the scientific literature well. It is unique in bringing together current knowledge on crop breeding and evolutionary biology.

With insight, originality, and scholarship, Ellstrand brings together classical and current knowledge about crop genetics, hybridization, and evolutionary ecology in a single, comprehensive treatment... This engaging and user-friendly book is a wonderful resource for ongoing biosafety discussions worldwide.

Everyone interested in the effects of cropping on plant biodiversity, the evolution of weeds, and the risks of GM crops should read this book.

Dangerous Liaisons? presents a rigorous and even-handed look at the science and technology surrounding crop gene flow. Denial worked fine for 10,000 years, but will not cut it in the era of GM, globalization and rapidly expanding human populations. Much as Rachel Carson did for pesticides four decades earlier, Ellstrand's book serves notice that society will need to come to terms with the genetic promiscuity of agriculture.

This book will appeal to academics, policymakers, students, and all with an interest in environmental issues.

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About

Book Details

Publication Date
Status
Available
Trim Size
6
x
9
Pages
264
ISBN
9780801881909
Illustration Description
6 b&w illus.
Table of Contents

Part I: Foreplay
Chapter 1. The Case of the Bolting Beets, Part I. Long-Distance Romance
Chapter 2. Hybridization and Gene Flow, an Introduction
Chapter 3. Natural Hybridization between Plant Species
Chap

Part I: Foreplay
Chapter 1. The Case of the Bolting Beets, Part I. Long-Distance Romance
Chapter 2. Hybridization and Gene Flow, an Introduction
Chapter 3. Natural Hybridization between Plant Species
Chapter 4. Evolutionary Consequences of Gene Flow—and Applied Implications
Part II: Caught in the Act
Chapter 5. Evidence for Recognizing Natural Hybrids
Chapter 6. The Case of the Bolting Beets, Part II. Detectives Arrive
Chapter 7. Do Important Crops Mate with Wild Reletives?
Chapter 8. Is Natural Hybridization with Wild Relatives the Rule for Domesticated Plants?
Part III: Dangerous Liasons?
Chapter 9. Some Impacts of Gene Flow of Domesticated Alleles into Wild Populations
Chapter 10. The Case of the Bolting Beets, Part III. The Cloudy Crystal Ball
Chapter 11. The "Special" Case of Genetically Engineered Plants?
Chapter 12. Whether and How to Manage Domesticated Gene Flow in to Wild Population

Author Bio
Featured Contributor

Norman C. Ellstrand

Norman C. Ellstrand is a professor of genetics and director of the Biotechnology Impacts Center at the University of California, Riverside.