KUALA LUMPUR, May 8 (Bernama) -- Kumpulan Guthrie Bhd is set to improvethe quality of oil palm plants by investing about RM3 million inbiotechnology research, locally and internationally.Through its wholly owned subsidiary Guthrie Biotech Laboratory Sdn Bhd(GBLSB), today Guthrie has entered into research collaboration agreementswith Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia(UKM).

In carrying out the research which is to overcome the problems of clonaloil palms, GBLSB would be buying SELDI Protein Chip Array System costingabout RM1 million for its molecular biology project.

"The total cost for the system and the research would be RM1.76 millionover a three-year period," its group chief executive, Tan Sri Abdul KhalidIbrahim said at the press conference here today.

"We have the confidence in the ability of universities to conduct researchand we are putting high hopes that they will successfully lay a strongfoundation for our biotechnology research," said Abdul Khalid.

Along with local universities, GBLSB is also collaborating with Universityof Queensland (UQ) on DNA diagnostics project. A contract was signed onDec 11, 2001.

GBLSB has been using clonal propagation schemes, using cell and tissueculture to produce reliable superior quality clonal palms to support thegroup's replanting programme.

Although commercial oil palm tissue culture is economically viable withmeasurable potential, it has a number of problems such as lowmultiplication rates and occurrence of abnormal flower characteristics.

This has led to reduced productivity as well as viability of itscommercial enterprise. -- BERNAMA

(The informations and opinions expressed in this article represent theviews of the author only. They should not be seen as necessarilyreflecting the views of Palm News)