The long-term goal of the Biological Nitrogen Fixation project (NFIX) is to engineer varieties of cereals that require little or no nitrogen input and deliver higher and more resilient yields. The technology will help small farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa and South East Asia to increase crop profits and overcome poverty. It seeks a durable solution to poverty that is environmental and economically sustainable. The goal will be achieved by making the plants acquire nitrogen from the atmosphere rather than from synthetic nitrogen fertilizers. The strategy is to transfer to the plant the bacterial genes needed for the biogenesis of nitrogenase, the protein complex that performs biological nitrogen fixation (BNF). This approach has the advantage of developing a technology that is transmissible through the seeds and is generic for cereals. The Figure depicts the genetic modules to engineer BNF in plants. 1, Structural nitrogenase proteins module; 2, Simple-cofactors module; 3, Complexcofactors module; 4, Cellular integration module. The action of these modules sequentially transforms the structural proteins into catalytically active nitrogenase.
Lengo la muda mrefu la mradi wa Biological Nitrogen Fixation (NFIX) ni kubuni aina za nafaka ambazo zinahitaji kidogo au hakuna nitrojeni na kutoa mavuno ya juu na ya nguvu zaidi. Teknolojia hiyo itasaidia wakulima wadogo katika Afrika Kusini mwa Jangwa la Sahara na Asia ya Kusini Mashariki kuongeza faida ya mazao na kushinda umaskini. Inatafuta suluhisho la kudumu la umaskini ambalo ni la mazingira na la kiuchumi. Lengo hilo litatimizwa kwa kufanya mimea ipate nitrojeni kutoka angahewa badala ya kutoka kwa mbolea za nitrojeni za synthetic. Kwa mfano, kuna mbinu ya kuhamisha chembe za urithi za bakteria zinazohitajika kwa biogenesis ya nitrogenase, ambayo ni nyenzo ya protini inayofanya uthibitisho wa kibiolojia wa nitrojeni (BNF). Njia hii ina faida ya kuendeleza teknolojia ambayo ni transmissible kupitia mbegu na ni generic kwa nafaka. Mchoro unaonyesha modules za maumbile kwa uhandisi BNF katika mimea. 1. nitrojeni ya muundo; 2. moduli ya cofactors rahisi; 3. moduli ya complexcofactors; 4. moduli ya ushirikiano wa seli. Kitendo cha modules hizi mfululizo hubadilisha protini za muundo katika nitrogenase catalytically hai.