News/Events

MULTIFOREVER is one of the 17 successful projects of the first call for proposals of the European ForestValue programme, "innovating forest-based bioeconomy". The 7 partners (including FCBA and INRAE) from 6 countries in Europe (France, Germany/HUB, Spain/NEIKER, Finland/LUKE, Sweden/UPSC-SLU) and Argentina (INTA) aim to develop multi-varietal forestry of conifers (pine, spruce, Douglas, larch) based on an innovative vegetative propagation technique, somatic embryogenesis. FCBA (BSA Department) and INRAE (UMR BioForA) have been developing this promising biotechnology in partnership since 2004 (maritime pine and Douglas in particular) and with the technical support of XYLOBIOTECH.

The project EMBRYONsoMATURE (2018-2020) entitled "Increasing the maturity of somatic embryos to the level of reference seedlings towards multiplication of elite varieties by artificial seeds in maritime pine" is carried out by FCBA in collaboration with INRAE (UMR BioForA). It benefits from the support of the Regional Council of New Aquitaine (CRNA) within the framework of its "Resourcing Programme" (Grant N°17006494-0741).

The project entitled “genetic resources and varietal innovation in maritime pine” coordinated by INRA Pierroton (L. Bouffier) is one of the 35 successful projects selected in the frame of the national 2017 MAA (French Ministry of Agriculture) call “Innovation and investment for the upstream forest segment” funded by the Strategic Fund for Forest and Wood.

Martaillac® nursery and Forelite contracted with FCBA a 3-year private RDI project for technological transfer of vegetative propagation techniques of frost-tolerant eucalyptus varieties developed by FCBA.

The SECUR-MFR project “Securing supplies in Forest Reproductive Material” leaded by INRA Orléans (L. Pâques) is one out of 35 projects granted in the frame of the national MAA call 2016-2017 “innovation and investment for the upstream forest sector” funded by the Strategic fund for forest and wood (FSFB).

Somatic embryogenesis is a promising vegetative propagation technology developed in France in the frame of a collaboration between FCBA and INRA of Orléans. A recent study (collaboration FCBA/University of Málaga, Spain) reported that arginine metabolism is dysregulated in maritime pine somatic embryos as compared with reference zygotic embryos from seeds. Arginine is an amino acid with high nitrogen content found in storage proteins. Dysfunction in both biosynthesis and metabolic utilization (catabolism) of arginine could explain the low initial vigor of somatic seedling in field tests established by FCBA since 1999. Such a knowledge will help to refine biotechnological procedures for clonal propagation of maritime pine via somatic embryogenesis, especially through the refinement of nitrogen nutrition during embryo development.

A XYLOBIOTECH sunspace has been rented to a forest nursery for acclimatization of in vitro plants from two Eucalyptus varieties (FCBA-208, FCBA-645) propagated by an SME from New Aquitania.

The IUFRO Unit 2.09.02 "somatic embryogenesis and other vegetative propgation technologies" was organizing its 4th international conference during Sept. 19-23, 2016 in La Plata, province of Buenos aires, Argentina. In addition to the presentation of 2 scientific contributions with XYLOBIOTECH support, the XYLOBIOTECH facility was presented to the 113 attendees (scientific experts and other actors of the forest-wood sector, especially forest biotechnologies).