On April 30, with the successful return of the Shenzhou-17 spacecraft, a special batch of "space specialties" arrived, including five types of forage seeds such as alfalfa and oats from the Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. These seeds were carried by the China Academy of Sciences Space Application Engineering and Technology Center and underwent 11 months of extravehicular radiation exposure on the space radiation biology exposure facility of the Chinese space station.
Researcher Yang Hongshan, deputy researcher at Lanzhou Livestock Pharmaceutical Institute, participated in the handover ceremony of the sixth batch of space science experiment samples at the space station. The seed materials from Lanzhou Livestock Pharmaceutical Institute were supported by the "Space Radiation Damage Assessment Science and Application Key Technology Research" project led by Dalian Maritime University. In the early hours of May 1st, these life science experiment samples were swiftly transported to the China Academy of Space Technology and Application Engineering in Beijing. Here, a professional research team conducted basic status checks on the returned life experiment samples and delivered them on-site to the project's responsible unit.
The innovative team of researchers from Lanzhou Livestock Pharmaceutical Institute focusing on "Breeding and Utilization of Stress-Resistant Forage" will conduct ground breeding experiments using this batch of seeds to obtain excellent mutants. The research will concentrate on increasing yield, improving quality, and enhancing resistance to cultivate superior new forage varieties. The cultivation of these new varieties will significantly enhance China's competitiveness in the field of agricultural science and provide strong support for the sustainable development of Chinese agriculture.
Seeds exposed to space radiation on the biological exposure device. Supplied by Lanzhou Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine.
Space breeding is an advanced scientific method that can provide original, safe, and independently intellectual property-protected breeding materials and germplasm resources. All of this originates from the unique environment in space - high vacuum, microgravity, and space radiation. The combined effects of these "three treasures" cause genetic mutations in seeds, bringing new hope and opportunities to breeding work on Earth. Through space mutagenesis, there is a chance to obtain rare and groundbreaking excellent new germplasm.
The innovative team of "Breeding and Utilization of Stress-resistant Forage" has long-term experience and years of work foundation in the field of space-induced mutagenesis breeding. They have successfully cultivated three national alfalfa varieties, "Zhongtian 1, 2, 3," and a provincial oat variety, "Zhongtian 4." These varieties have been widely promoted and applied in production.
