The Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) and Orion Genomics announced that they have sequenced three oil palm genomes from two oil palm species. This achievement could lead to higher yielding species being created for palm oil farmers while reducing pressure on the land it is produced from. E. guineensis is the commercial variety most commonly planted in Malaysia.
But by incorporating traits of another species, E. oleifera, such as as low height increment and increased resistance to disease, the consortium hopes to create a type of oil palm that will be a far more viable product for cosmetics, feed and fuel. “Knowledge of the genomic sequence of these oil palm varieties enables researchers to understand genetic differences between trees that are, for example, higher yielding or more resistant to disease than usual,” said Dr Mohd Basri Wahid, director general of MPOB. “Our goal in completing the oil palm genome sequence is to dramatically improve oil yields.”
