USDA Researchers Develop Naturally Fire-Resistant Cotton Lines

By Jessica Ryan, Public Affairs Specialist, United States Department of Agriculture

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) bred four cotton lines that can be used to make self-extinguishing textiles when exposed to fire and will reduce the need for flame-retardant chemicals to be embedded in consumer products, according to a recent study published in PLOS ONE.

The cotton lines were developed from cultivated cotton varieties and possessed a novel flame-retardant trait. When exposed to an open flame, the fabric from the new cotton lines self-extinguished whereas regular cotton fabric burned entirely in seconds.

“Use of these lines to develop commercial cultivars creates an opportunity to improve the safety of cotton products while reducing the economic and environmental impacts of chemical flame retardants,” said Brian Condon, senior author of the study and retired research leader at the ARS Cotton Chemistry and Utilization Research Unit in New Orleans. “These lines will significantly benefit growers, producers, and consumers.”  

During a standard 45° incline flammability test, regular cotton (seen on the top row) burned instantly when exposed to an open flame. In the same test, the fire-resistant cotton (seen on the bottom row) self-extinguished when exposed to an open flame.

 

Cotton typically produces flammable fibers and is treated with chemicals to be flame retardant when used for consumer products like clothing, mattresses, upholstery, and carpet. The new cotton lines were created by a multi-parent breeding approach that resulted in new opportunities for natural genes to interact and develop the unexpected trait of flame retardancy.

ARS researchers Johnie Jenkins and Jack C. McCarty, supervisory research geneticists at the ARS Genetics and Sustainable Agriculture Research Unit in Mississippi, bred cotton lines to identify genes that affect agronomic traits such as yield and pest resistance and fiber quality traits such as length, strength, and fineness.

“ARS scientists study every step of cotton production from ‘Dirt to Shirt’ including genetic diversity, field management practices, fiber quality attributes, and end-use textile characteristics,” said Jenkins.  

Although all of the parental cotton lines produced flammable fabric, researchers found that flame retardance did not come from a single gene. Instead, they found that multiple genes created a phenotype for fibers with significantly lower heat release capacities. The new cotton lines also possessed the desired agronomic and fiber quality traits, making the lines sought after for breeding and consumer usage.

“We look at fabric quality and chemical finishes that create permanent press, wrinkle-free, and flame-retardant fabrics. Now we have found lines with a novel and natural genetic mechanism for flame retardance,” said Condon.

According to Gregory Thyssen, Computational Biologist at the ARS Southern Regional Research Center in New Orleans:

Further research about the durability of the flame-resistant property in different types of fabrics, yarn, textiles and after multiple washings, is still ongoing.  This will help us determine what uses of cotton will benefit the most from this novel property.  Further study to identify the metabolite that produces the natural flame retardance is also ongoing, and will help us further clarify the genes involved in its biosynthetic pathway, and therefore the key genes for breeders to incorporate into their new cultivars.  The current paper found that an unexpected combination of genes is likely the cause of the novel [fire resistant] property, but for breeding to be efficient, we will work to narrow the list to the most important ones.

The flame-resistant lines will be released to cotton breeders by Johnie Jenkins and Jack McCarty who developed the MAGIC (multi-parent advanced generation intercross) population. Cotton breeders will be able to use these lines in their breeding programs to combine this new flame-resistant trait with other traits on which they have already been focused, including pest and stress tolerance, fiber quality and geographic optimization.  However, since these lines were derived from already cultivated lines, they already possess many of these other desirable traits.  So, once sufficient seed is available, these lines could be grown for cotton production.  So, likely, two years until growers could grow these lines and [approximately] five years until breeders have incorporated the trait into commercial lines.

Go here to watch a video of fire-resistant cotton versus regular cotton in flammability testing.

Photo Credits: 1) A field of cotton bolls (Kimberly Vardeman via Wikimedia); 2) Cotton flammability testing (Doug Hinchliffe); 3) A roll of cotton cloth (PickPik); 4) Cotton in flower (Christine Moore)

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Jessica Ryan is a public affairs specialist with the Agricultural Research Service, Office of Communications, Media Relations ranch of the USDA.

Consortium Creating U.S. Source of Chinese Medicinal Herbs

By Paris Wolfe, Blogmaster, The Herb Society of America

As Americans look to alternative medicine to ease their pain – both physical and financial – demand is increasing for Chinese medicinal herbs.  The Appalachian Herb Growers Consortium is working to develop an American supply for more than 30,000 licensed U.S. practitioners. Among their partners are tobacco farmers who are looking for new crops.

“Our mission is to increase farmer income while providing the acupuncture and oriental medicine community with quality, effective herbs that are grown and processed with respect for the nature and the tradition of Chinese medicine,” says David Grimsley, director of consortium, which is housed at the Blue Ridge Center for Chinese Medicine in Floyd County, Va., (pop. 15, 500) The center sits up a hill,  at the end of a gravel road in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains.

Compare imported with freshly grown herb on right.

Grimsley and team are working to prove that ecologically grown, sustainable medicinal herbs can be grown profitably in central Appalachia. While the climate and geology promise a fresh, high-quality product, profit may be a challenge. Medicinal herbs from China — though they face unknown quality control in agricultural practices and processing AND may face lengthy times in storage and transit — are low-cost in the marketplace.

“We can grow and we can process, but will we be able to sell them? Will people pay for them? Is there a market for American, ecologically grown medicinal herbs,” asks Naomi Crews, herb production coordinator. “We’re learning where the price points are and whether they’re profitable for farmers.”

International politics could answer some of those questions. For example, says Grimsley, “It would not take much for there to be a domino-effect of trade embargoes, bringing Chinese herbalism to a screeching halt. By responsibly introducing these Chinese herbs to Appalachia, we are creating a medicine chest for our country that might prove someday to be what we have to rely upon if faced with international sanctions or antibacterial resistance, or an epidemic.”

Creating a potential medicine chest means being ready to launch quality production.  “As medicinal herb growers, we are working to produce the best quality herb, which is not necessarily the same as aiming for the highest output,” says Crews.

Currently, the Center has 50 farmers with trial gardens. They receive appropriate seeds or seedlings and guidance for cultivation. Some plants, like Mentha haplocalyx, a Chinese field mint are prolific and ready almost immediately for harvest. Others, like Anemarrhena asphodeloides and Scutellaria baicalensis, take up to three years to develop. And then, their roots are the valuable component. These require new plantings each year to sustain the production.

For now, Crews cares for roughly five acres of hillside test gardens that grow 35 different herbs. Among them are Platycodon grandiflorus. This isn’t just any balloon flower but, the one valued by practitioners of Chinese herbal medicine.

Nearby, Chrysanthemum morifolium is grown for its delicate flowers that bloom in late fall.

Dedication to ecologically grown crops goes beyond unadulterated soil and chemical avoidance. The center gathers rainwater for irrigation, offers houses for pest-eaters like wrens and bluebirds, and keeps flowerbeds blooming for pollinators. Black snakes prevent a seed-thieving mouse explosion in the barn.

“We recognize that we exist in an ecological landscape,” says Crews.

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It is the policy of The Herb Society of America not to advise or recommend herbs for medicinal or health use. This information is intended for educational purposes only and should not be considered as a recommendation or an endorsement of any particular medical or health treatment.