Sweet Potatoes That Could Save Lives
救人无数的橙色土豆
In sub-Saharan Africa, vitamin A deficiency afflicts more than 43 million children under age 6, leaving them vulnerable to blindness, malaria and more. Plant scientists from HarvestPlus and the CIP are helping countries grow their own solutions—in the form of sweet potatoes. The key is biofortification, or cross-breeding locally grown sweet potatoes with versions rich in vitamin A, so that over time the crops naturally get better at addressing the deficiency. Plant scientists have also bred them to be more resistant to droughts and viruses. This year, the orange-fleshed sweet potatoes won the World Food Prize and have been seen as “a healthy crop for all.”
在撒哈拉沙漠以南的非洲,有四千三百万名六岁以下的儿童由于维生素 A 缺乏,容易患上失明、疟疾等疾病。国际马铃薯中心和 Harvestplus 通过生物强化技术(将具有特定功能的微生物引入传统生物处理系统)和杂交技术培育出富含维生素A的甜土豆,同时针对不同地区需要对其进行了抗干旱和抗病毒等优化。这种橙色甜土豆今年获得了世界粮食奖,被誉为“全人类的健康作物”。
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