In Kaliningrad, at the Institute of Living Systems (IZHS) of the KFU named after I. Kant, a project is underway to create a biological product to protect seed and ware potatoes.
As the director of IZHS Olga Babich said, the basis of the developed biological product is extracts of medicinal plants of the Kaliningrad region, which have high antiviral and antifungal activity.
The resulting drug will be tested in the fields of a farm near Kaliningrad, commented in Kaliningrad today, February 12, 2019, to the correspondent of the network newspaper Amber Krai at the IKBFU.
“Our cooperation with the Institute of Living Systems lasts several years,” says Alexander Terskih, assistant farm manager. - IZHS specialists advised us on various issues, students studied the soil composition of our fields. And therefore, when deciding to participate in the subprogram of the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia "Development of selection and seed production of potatoes in the Russian Federation" of the Federal Scientific and Technical Program for the Development of Agriculture for 2017 - 2025 ", we decided to invite IZHS as partners.
According to Tersky, the farm has long been thinking about how to increase the yield and quality of potatoes. The biological product being developed by IZHS should contribute to this.
The direct executor of the project is the head of the laboratory of microbiology and biotechnology of IZHS, Ph.D. Stanislav Sukhikh says that work is in full swing.
According to him, the developed biological product is based on extracts of medicinal plants of the Kaliningrad region, which have high antiviral and antifungal activity against microscopic fungi that infect potatoes in the study area. The biological product will stimulate the formation of potatoes and the root system of the potato, and increase the resistance of the potato to stressful situations and adverse environmental conditions. The drug, which will turn out in the end, promises to be truly unique.
The production and sale of the biological product is planned to be established after field tests and its certification. It will take at least 3-4 years. From working in the laboratory to practical use - albeit not a short one. But there is no other option, explained Alexander Tersky.
Source: https://kaliningradfirst.ru