New technologies in sugar cane research: present and future applications
| MSI09P4444 | |
| Dookun-Saumtally, A. Seeruttun, S. Bholah, A. Ng Cheong, R. | |
| New technologies in sugar cane research: present and future applications | |
| Mauritius-USA Workshop "Biomaterials: Perspectives and Possibilities", University of Mauritius, 30 November-4 December 2009, [Programme & Abstracts] | |
| Conference paper | |
| 2009 | |
| p. 24 | |
| Réduit, National Science Foundation, University of Mauritius, Tufts University | |
| En | |
| EN | |
| The Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute (MSIRI) was established in 1953 with the objectives 'to promote by means of research and investigation the technical progress and efficiency of the sugar industry'. Since its creation, the Institute has adopted new technologies in its R and D to improve productivity, profitability and sustainability. In the late 1990s precision farming, making use of IT tools namely, global positioning system (GPS), soil sensors and remote sensing were introduced to assess yield variability within sugarcane fields. In irrigation, the Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR) system is currently used to measure soil moisture content in situ with the objective of comparing irrigation methods, defining irrigation requirements and for optimizing the timing of water delivery to the plant. A multi-spectral radiometer (MSR) with seven pairs of sensors calibrated to measure spectral reflectance in narrow wavebands centered at 485, 560, 600, 660, 800, 830, and 1650 nm, is being tested to provide a practical cost-effective monitoring system for determining the distribution and abundance of weeds in sugarcane fields as well as for the estimation of sugarcane growth parameters including biomass and leaf area. In biotechnology, sugarcane transformation has been possible using the gene gun and micro gold or tungsten particles coated with the DNA of interest. However, we are not yet able to predict and control the outcome of the genes in the plant. In the coming years with genomic information and nanotechnology, gene transfer would become more precise. In addition nanotechnology could be exploited for detecting sugarcane diseases at an early stage as well as for biofuel production. | |
| global positioning system GPS soil sensors remote sensing Time Domain Reflectometry multi-spectral radiometer sugarcane transformation gene gun micro gold particles tungsten particles sugarcane technology biotechnology | |
| Agricultural research | |
| Sugarcane | |
| 2009-12-10 | |
| EN | |
| BIOTECH | |
| Biotech COWA Irrig Chem |