- Plants projects in FP7-

NOVELTREE project

 

 

1. Theme - Acronym - Start & end date - Budget

 

FP7 theme: Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, Biotechnology

Projects acronym: NovelTree
Start and ending date: 05/2008 - 04/2012

EU contribution: 4.15 M€

 

2. Coordinator & address

 

Name coordinator: Dr. Catherine Bastien

Full address: INRA-UAGPF
Unité d'Amélioration, Génétique et Physiologie des Arbres Forestiers
2163 Avenue de la pomme de pin
BP 20619 Ardon
F-45166 Olivet Cedex (France)
Tel: +33-2-38417829
Fax: +33-2-38417879
e-mail: Catherine.Bastien[at]orleans.inra.fr

 

3. Full title & contract number

 

Full title: Novel Tree Breeding Strategies

Contract number: FP7-211868

 

4. Type of project (large CP, small CP, NoE, SCA, SICA, etc) 

 

Large-Scale Integrating Project

 

5. Summary / objectives

 

The challenges facing forest geneticists and tree breeders include recognition of changing demands on forests for a wider range of high value forest products and increasing interest on tolerance to pest and diseases and sustainability of forest ecosystems under climate change.

NOVELTREE is designed to enable significant genetic improvement of the composition and characteristics of forest products to satisfy the needs (quality, quantity, sustainability, vulnerability) of consumers and the forest-based sector.

NOVELTREE will:
(1) Provide a list of morphological and physiological traits (tolerance to pest and diseases, components of sustainable biomass production, wood properties for present and future use and plastic response to climate change) relevant as selection criteria
(2) Identify functional allelic polymorphisms for a suite of traits of interest in an association genetics approach to improve selection efficiency and monitor genetic variation along the selection process
(3) Develop high throughput phenotyping and genotyping tools to implement in forest tree breeding programmes. These new tools will allow earlier genetic evaluation, higher selection intensity, increased accuracy in genetic prediction and better monitoring of genetic diversity along generations
(4) Develop novel/improved breeding strategies and demonstrate their efficiency in different case studies. Demonstration will focus on model tree species of high economic importance, representative of the four European regions: Maritime Pine (Mediterranean), Scots Pine (Central Europe), Spruce (Scandinavian), and Poplar (Atlantic Europe)
(5) Provide tree breeders, forest owners and land managers with support decision tools for optimal spatial deployment of improved genetic stocks in both prevailing and future climate, and under risk of pest and disease attacks
(6) Provide training in emerging technological approaches in connection with on-going European projects, disseminate the results to different publics and transfer technology to the forest-based sector

 

6. Participants & addresses

 

1. Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), FR
2. Stiftelsen Skogsbrukets Forskningsinstitut-Skogforsk (Skogforsk), SE
3.Finnish Forest Research Institute (METLA), FI
4.University of Uppsala (UU), SE
5.Forest Research (FR), UK
6.University of Oulu (UOULU), FI
7.Università di Udine (UNIUD), IT
8.CIFOR-INIA (INIA), ES
9.University of Edinburgh (UEDIN), UK
10.Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR), IT
11.Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), BE
12.University of Tuscia (UNITUS), IT
13.INRA Transfert (IT), FR
14.Universiteit Gent (UGent), BE
15.Vlaams Gewest (VLAGEW) BE

 

7. Project website

 

Project weblink: www.noveltree.eu

 

Form completed by: Dr. Enric Belles-Boix
Affiliation to the project: Project Manager - INRA Transfert
Submission date: 10/12/2008