Creating partnerships in agricultural biotechnology through stronger STEM education, project-based training, and research capacity training-a model toward programmatic opportunities for food security in Ghana
Clockwise from Left : Albert Kausch, Antonia Tetteh and Ryan Donnelly
This concept paper presents a comprehensive model for building advanced crop breeding capacity in Ghana through an integrated education, research, and commercialization framework. Recognizing the critical role of complete seed systems and control over germplasm in achieving food security and agricultural independence, the authors propose a biotechnology-driven platform centered on plant transformation and genome editing. The model was developed from a collaborative NSF-sponsored initiative between the University of Rhode Island (URI) and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana. The program emphasizes curriculum development, project-based training, and real-world applications to strengthen Ghana’s agricultural biotechnology capabilities. It includes a suite of courses designed to complement classical plant breeding programs and accelerate varietal development of Ghanaian crops, reducing reliance on foreign seed companies. The initiative seeks to expand STEM education with a unique asynchronous online General Education course, called Issues in Biotechnology, for all backgrounds, majors, and academic years.
Antonia Y. Tetteh, Ryan Donnelly, Albert P. Kausch. Creating partnerships in agricultural biotechnology through stronger STEM education, project-based training, and research capacity training-a model toward programmatic opportunities for food security in Ghana. In Vitro Cellular & Developmental Biology – Plant, 61:504-516, 2025.
PlantGENE report on panel discussion: advancing plant biotechnology in Africa
The report “Successes, Challenges, and Opportunities: Plant Transformation Research in Africa” by PlantGENE (Malzahn et al., 2025; https://doi.org/10.1007/s11627-025-10514-8) highlights critical challenges such as regulatory constraints, limited resources, and brain drain, while spotlighting the rising research capacity within African institutions. The report includes calls by African scientists for increased investment, stronger collaborative networks, and science-based policies to drive sustainable agricultural innovation across the continent.
Aimee A. Malzahn, Nicole Songstad, Leena Tripathi, Ihuoma Okwuonu, Idah Sithole-Niang, Steven Runo, Henry Wagaba, Modeste Kouassi, Heidi Kaeppler, William Gordon-Kamm, Keunsub Lee, Wayne Parrott, Nigel Taylor, Christian Rogers, Jim Gaffney, Joyce Van Eck, Veena Veena. PlantGENE report on panel discussion: advancing plant biotechnology in Africa. In Vitro Cellular & Developmental Biology – Plant, 61:483-492, 2025.
Floral and apical meristems as a target for Agrobacterium‑mediated
transformation of Arabidopsis thaliana
Left: Vladimir Sidorov, Cquesta, Inc; Right: Peizhen Yang, Bayer Crop Science AG
The majority of transformation protocols for Arabidopsis thaliana, which remains the most important model species, are based on Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of female reproductive cells in vivo, or somatic cells of leaf, stem, hypocotyl, or root explants in vitro. This paper describes Agrobacterium-mediated transformation systems using in vitro meristematic floral buds or shoot apical meristems of seedlings. Arabidopsis floral cultures were established on cytokinin-containing medium from inflorescences of plants grown in vitro. Seedlings were obtained from seeds, germinated for one week in liquid medium. NPTII and GUS were used as selectable and visual markers for transformation of in vitro floral cultures. Seedlings were transformed with aadA and RUBY construct. Transformation frequency for floral culture was about 15% (calculated as the number of independent transformants per initial number of explants). Transformation frequency for seedlings was roughly 12% (calculated as the number of RUBY positive plants per number of seedlings inoculated). Described methods can be used as alternative to the widely used floral dip transformation. Time frame for production of transgenics with these methods is shorter than with floral dip method and provides possibility to produce homozygous progeny in T1 generation. In the paper we also outlined the conditions for self-pollination and production of seeds in vitro. So, the developed transformation methods are efficient and can be considered eco-friendly (no contamination of the environment with Agrobacterium), and greenhouse independent.
Vladimir Sidorov and Peizhen Yang. Floral and apical meristems as a target for Agrobacterium‑mediated transformation of Arabidopsis thaliana. In Vitro Cellular & Developmental Biology – Plant, 61:672-679, 2025.
