ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan-China space and agricultural cooperation hit a new milestone last year, officials and scientists said on Friday, after the Chinese authorities sent seven varieties of Pakistani seeds to a space station for six months before returning them to the South Asian country to facilitate a major food security experiment.
The seeds were dispatched to outer space on Shenzhou-14 spaceship on June 5 and brought back by Chinese astronauts on December 4. During the course of six months, they were exposed to conditions that might have impacted their genetic composition.
The seeds were returned to Pakistani officials earlier this month for further research.
According to Professor Dr. Mohammed Iqbal Chaudhary, who supervised the project at the International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS) at the Karachi University, the seven seed verities were divided in two portions.
“One remained on the earth and the other was sent into space for six months where they were exposed to space radiations at microgravity, zero pressure, vacuum, and other space conditions,” he told Arab News over the phone from Karachi.
Chaudhary said his team was now prepared to study the impact of the space voyage on the germination, vitality, genetics and other properties of the seeds in the coming days.
“These experiments will provide important insights into the effects of cosmic radiation and microgravity on them, and contribute to ongoing efforts to advance space breeding research,” he continued.
Pakistani scientists now plan to grow both types of seeds in controlled and identical conditions to observe the difference in their yield.
“If the space-exposed seeds have a positive impact on yield then they can address many agricultural issues like food security,” he explained.
Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch also said during her weekly news briefing in Islamabad on Thursday the experiment would help scientists develop new seed varieties that “will thrive amidst changing climatic and environmental conditions and develop high yield.”
She hoped the joint Pakistan-China effort would help strengthen food security in the country.
Speaking about the experiment, Dr. Farzana Shaheen, another ICCBS expert, said the whole exercise could help develop mutant varieties of seeds that would be able to thrive in harsh conditions.
“When seeds and such things are exposed in space, it changes their genetic composition and through this, we can develop many more varieties of these seeds that are resistant and can be used in tough conditions,” she told Arab News. “China which is already doing this.”
“It can help us improve crop yields and herbal products for medicines,” Shaheen added.
