Potential Problems with Blight-Resistant Chestnuts

For some background on the developing story of creating a blight-resistant American chestnut, please check out the podcast episode a few episodes back with Erik Carlson.Jared Westbrook is a geneticist with the American Chestnut Foundation. In this episode we talk about what went wrong with the initial round of trials for blight-resistant chestnuts, how to combine targeted genetic approaches to hybridizing American and Chinese Chestnut trees for blight resistance, thousands of years of human selection in the chinese chestnut genome as an agricultural species, problems with inheritance for the oXo gene that breaks down oxalic acid, why oxalic acid production might not be all that's involved with the virulence of Chestnut blight, and more. This is a good episode, even for laypeople who may not be familiar with basic genetic science. To learn more about the American Chestnut Federation and to join a local chapter, check out www.tacf.orgAd-Free versions of every podcast episode are available on the patreon at www.patreon.com/crimepaysbutbotanydoesnt

Om Podcasten

Why do some plants grow where they do? How can geology cause new plant species to evolve? Why are some plants pollinated by flies, some by bats, some by birds, and others by bees? How does a plant evolve to look like a rock? How can destroying lawns soothe the soul? This is a show about plants and plant habitat through the lens of natural selection and ecology, with a side of neurotic ranting, light humor, occasional profanity, & the perpetual search for the filthiest taqueria bathroom.