MEETING OF THE COORDINATION AND METHODOLOGICAL COUNCIL ON SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM 17 "FORMATION AND USE OF PLANT GENETIC RESOURCE BANK" (PLANT GENETIC RESOURCES)

On April 3, 2023, a meeting of the Coordination and Methodical Council of Scientific Program (SP) 17 "Formation and Use of Plant Genetic Resource Bank" (Plant Genetic Resources) was held.

The issues of development and implementation of working programs for fundamental and applied projects in 2023 were discussed. SP 17 Head V.K. Riabchun analyzed the performance of 31 fundamental and 12 applied projects within two subprograms, “Genetic Resources of Agricultural Crops” and “Pomology.” Twenty-eight institutions of the Plant Genetic Resources Network formed one of the ten largest national plant gene banks in the world, which contains 154,300 accessions of 544 agricultural crops, and maintained it in a functional state in wartime. Ukrainian accessions account for 36.9% (56,900 accessions).

After the Crimea annexation (2014) and the temporary occupation of the some eastern and southern regions, access to more than 16,000 accessions is limited. These are mostly perennial crops. A significant number of specimens of seed-propagated crops from institutions in the temporarily occupied territories are stored in the National Repository. Considerable preparation has been done to move them to safer locations in the central and western regions, to doublet storage facilities.

Employees of the Plant Production Institute named after V.Ya. Yuriev of NAAS, the Institute of Potato Growing of NAAS, and the Institute of Climate-Smart Agriculture of NAAS have moved their specimens to safer locations. Sometimes scientists worked under fire: at the Institute of Bast Crops of NAAS, the Institute of Vegetable and Melon Growing of NAAS, the Institute of Agricultural Microbiology and Agro-industrial Production of NAAS and others.

The heroic actions of the employees ensured the preservation and further implementation of the National Plant Gene Bank.

In 2023, the institutions of the PGRU System should pay considerable attention to the transfer of their own specimens and specimens from other research and breeding institutions and companies to the gene bank. Valuable local forms and wild specimens should be identified in the regions.

In 2023, it is necessary to complete passporting of available accessions, formation and registration of collections of the Plant Breeding and Genetic Institute - National Center of Seed and Cultivar Investigation, NSC “Institute of Agriculture”, the Institute of Agriculture of the Carpathian region of NAAS, the Institute of Forage and Agriculture of Podillia of NAAS, the Institute of Bioenergy Crops and Sugar Beet of NAAS, the Institute of Vegetable and Melon Growing (IVMG) of NAAS, Volyn Research Station, Transcarpathian State Agricultural Research Station and Dnipropetrovsk Research Station of Vegetable Growing of IVMG.

Head of subprogram 2 "Pomology" L.S. Yuryk emphasized the need for more active introduction of new accessions and identification of sources of valuable traits to create varieties for home farms and manufacturers of healthy products.

Leading Researcher O.A. Zadorozhna focused the project executors’ attention on registration of economically valuable accessions, summarization of scientific results and their publication.

The second issue on the meeting agenda concerned the rationales of new applied research projects. Under the difficult wartime conditions, it is necessary to make maximum efforts to preserve and enrich the National Plant Gene Bank of Ukraine. The storage of specimens in the National and doublet repositories requires the mobilization of employees’ efforts at all institutions dealing with evaluation and reproduction of accessions.

By April 15, 2023, 12 institutions must submit the titles of projects and their 2024 and 2025 stages.

Despite the wartime difficulties, we have to provide the Ukrainian science, education and breeding with required gene pool of plants.