marker-assisted selection in wheat - ictsd

406Marker-assisted selection – Current status and future perspectives in crops, livestock, forestry and fishSummaryAlthough the impact of marker-assisted selection (MAS) in commercial and public sectorbreeding programmes in developing countries is to date limited to a few crops and traits,the potential benefits of using markers linked to genes of interest in breeding programmesfor improving the productivity of crops, livestock, forest trees and farmed fish issubstantial. While more recent methods associated with the use of MAS are technicallydemanding and often expensive, most applications of basic MAS were initially describedin the literature, and thus will likely have very few intellectual property (IP) restrictionsassociated with their use, irrespective of the agricultural sector involved. For example,isolating DNA, amplifying specific gene sequences from that DNA (with most availableprimers), separating fragments using gel/polyacrylamide electrophoresis and imagingof fragments with standard techniques are likely to be available without restriction toscientists and breeders in the developing world, even as part of a commercial service.Problems arise when there is a need to use or develop high-throughput modes, whichrequire more sophisticated technologies. For high-throughput use, a breeder will wantto use the most efficient techniques that are currently available. This means that the moreadvanced processes/methods, reagents, software applications/simulations and equipment,which provide the most effective means to exploit MAS fully, are most likely covered byintellectual property rights (IPRs) such as patent rights, confidential information (tradesecrets) and copyrights, both in industrialized countries and also in many developingcountries such as Brazil, China and India. In situations where breeders wish to use cuttingedge technologies and the most efficient markers, care must be taken to avoid activities thatmay infringe IPRs when using MAS methodologies.