The origin of cultivated millet unveiled by genomics
LAPSE researchers have been able to identify the likely site of millet domestication in the present-day Sahara in central West Africa.
Comparison of the genome sequences of several genotypes of wild and cultivated millet also helped to date the domestication of millet grown around 4900 BC.
These analyzes also revealed gene flows between wild...
Improving the efficiency of the nitrogen-fixing symbiosis in cowpeas
Cowpea forms a symbiosis with soil bacteria of the genus Bradyrhizobium which leads to the fixation of atmospheric nitrogen. This nitrogen input primarily benefits the legume, but can also benefit associated crops in space (mixed farming) and over time (rotations).
These cropping systems associating cowpeas and dry cereals (millet, sorghum) allow productive and economical agriculture...