First doubled haploid tomato plants delivered to customers

First doubled haploid tomato plants delivered to customers

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Last year Fytagoras started her service to produce doubled haploid tomato plants for breeding companies. Many seed companies approached Fytagoras, and  several projects were initiated to produce doubled haploid plants, i.e. homozygous plants which by nature show a pure genetic background.

Production often started with a limited number of lines to evaluate the responsiveness of the desired genotypes towards Fytagoras’ doubled haploid production protocol. For most of the delivered lines, doubled haploid plants could be produced. Recently, first doubled haploid plants were delivered, both as tissue culture plants and young plants on substrates, to customers.

Fytagoras expects to intensify the production capacity in the near future, to be able to help out more tomato breeders with benefits of doubled haploid technology.

Promising results in application of Pulsed Radio Frequency on seed quality improvement

Promising results in application of Pulsed Radio Frequency on seed quality improvement

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A scientific paper was published recently, describing the effects of pulsed radio frequency on seed quality.

The download of this paper is available in the following link

The main conclusions of the researchers were:

  1. Presowing treatments with pulsed radio frequency is a promising, non-invasive, non-chemical and environmentally  friendly method that may be used to improve the health status and vigour of vegetable species seeds, produced in ecological and integrated systems.
  2. The elaborated parameters of pulsed radio frequency favourably affected the health, dynamics and the number of germinated seeds produced, as well as the emergence and growth of beetroot, garden dill and lettuce plants. For this reason, they may be recommended in the organic production of the plant species studied.
  3. The evaluated parameters and methods of the presowing seed treatments of selected vegetable species with pulsed radio frequency, allow organic crops to achieve the high standards of seed quality, which are required in EU countries (Council Directive 202/55 / EC of 13 June 2002 on the marketing of material for sowing vegetables).
Tomato doubled haploid plant production

Tomato doubled haploid plant production

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In plant breeding, the addition of desired properties to stable varieties is very labor-intensive and time-consuming, especially with slow growing species. Therefore techniques that speed up the breeding process are highly valued. As the gametes, the reproductive cells, only contain half of the genetic material (chromosomes) of the parent plant, they are excellent for the production of new plants with a pure genetic background (homozygotes). The doubled haploid technique is a method of varietal selection that consists in collecting haploid cells from these gametes in order to provoke a doubling of their chromosome store and obtain a stable line within only two generations. With traditional methods, it takes 6 to 8 generations of self-fertilization and more than 10 years to obtain a variety that has fixed major characteristics (which can nonetheless be unstable). Read more on Tomato News

Chinese delegation visited Fytagoras

Chinese delegation visited Fytagoras

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On February, 21-th a Chinese delegation visited Fytagoras.

The delegates were ; Mr. Bing Yuan (director) Center for International Cooperation of China National Development and Reform Commission; Mr. Hanxiang Zhang (director) China population and development research Centre and National Health Commission; Ms. Zixuan Liu, Guohe silk road industrial cooperation promotion office, International Exchange Centre ; Mr. X. Y. Zhang (director) Beijing 1+X institute;  Mr. Hao Dong (international cooperation manager ) Beijing 1+X institute; Ms. Wen Hui  Fan  (project cooperation manager ) Beijing 1+X institute ; representatives from WHO.

The delegation was interested in the following topics : Academic exchange and cooperation; Scientific research topics; Applied scientific research.

Fytagoras held two presentations in which the topics were addressed. After a detailed discussion the delegation visited the laboratories of Fytagoras. The delegation was very pleased with the information and experiences of Fytagoras and continued their trip in the Netherlands.

Fytagoras starts coorporation with Chinese Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences

Fytagoras starts coorporation with Chinese Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences

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Fytagoras is proud to  have entered into a partnership with the Jilin Academy for Agricultural Sciences (JAAS) in the field of industrial cannabis. A Fytagoras delegation consisting of Prof. Dr. B. van Duijn, Dr. H. Korthout, Dr. Y. Zhou and Drs. F. van Horssen, was present at the signing of the formal cooperation agreement and the press conference in Jilin province in China at which the research plans were presented to the national press.

Fytagoras has thus gained better access to the Chinese market because a long-term research agreement has been signed in the field of the development of industrial Cannabis. This research will take several years with the aim of further developing, expanding and optimizing the controlled  production and processing of industrial cannabis and to optimize the economic benefits of the derived products for Jilin  province.

Photo on top: Industrial Cannabis Cooperative Research Press Conference in Jilin Province. Photo middle left: Speaker Prof. Dr. Bert . van Duijn, Chief Scientific Officer Fytagoras and Dr. Yingjie Zhou. Photo’s on the right: Speaker Mr. Xinghong Wu, President of academy of agricultural sciences and speaker Ms. Wenqian Shao, Chief Executive Officer of Fytagoras. Photo bottom left: Speaker Mr Guo, Chaiman of the board of Jilin Zixin Pharmaceutial. Photo bottom right : In the context of the cooperation in the field of industrial Cannabis research, there was also a meeting with the Vice Governor Ms. Li Yue.

Green = not just beautiful

Green = not just beautiful

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Lecture by Bert van Duijn from Fytagoras at the trade fair Aalsmeer:

The indoor air quality highly affects the wellbeing of human beings. In the living, working and teaching environment the indoor air quality in general is poor. Plants could offer relatively cheap and easy applicable solutions for these problems. In the lecture, remarkable results from different research projects of Fytagoras on the effects of plants in the indoor environment and on human beings are summarized.

Fytagoras on Seed Meets Technology

Fytagoras on Seed Meets Technology

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Fytagoras attended the Seeds meets Technology trade fair in Zwaagdijk from 25-27 September. A prototype of the Seed Respiration Analyzer (SRA) was presented.

The SRA is a measuring instrument with which respiration of seeds can be measured in order to subsequently relate these data to seed quality. A prototype of the SRA is at Fytagoras in its laboratories in Leiden. It is now available for testing and evaluation for interested parties. The SRA has now been taken into production, and feedback from users will be used for further development of the SRA.

Trade Mission from China visits Fytagoras

Trade Mission from China visits Fytagoras

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Under the guidance of the local Chinese government of the province of Jilin, a trade mission visited Fytagoras.
The delegation visited Fytagoras on Sunday 2 September with the aim to gain more insight into the level of the
Dutch Horticulture and the possibilities to collaborate more with the Netherlands.

Participants of the trade mission led by the Vice Governor were; Director of the agriculture committee,
Director Office of Animal Husbandry, vice president of association for friendship with foreign countries,
President of academy of agricultural sciences and companies active in the agricultural sector.