GAIN4CROPS

Enhancing carbon fixation will boost the production of organic molecules and crop yield

Enhancing crop productivity is a vital goal to meet the food and fuel needs of a growing global population facing climate uncertainty. Photosynthesis is a primary determinant of crop yield. During this process, plants incorporate (fix) atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) to produce organic compounds and grow. In higher plants, photorespiration fixes oxygen (O2) instead of CO2 when CO2 is low. They consume O2 and release CO2 without producing ATP or sugar, reducing CO2 fixation and biomass production. The EU-funded GAIN4CROPS project aims to boost crop productivity by minimizing the effects of photorespiration; engineering highly efficient synthetic metabolic pathways to increase carbon fixation significantly.