By Andi Anderson
Scientists have traced the origins of modern cotton to the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. This discovery helps explain how cotton evolved and highlights the importance of preserving wild plant varieties for future farming needs.
Jonathan Wendel, distinguished professor of ecology, evolution and organismal biology at Iowa State University, has studied cotton for many years. While showing cotton fibers in his office, he said, “There’s nothing like this in nature,” referring to the large, soft white fibers produced by modern cotton plants. In contrast, wild cotton plants have much smaller bolls with darker, shorter, and rougher fibers.
Wendel has worked on this research for decades. He said, “This is my 40th year on faculty, and I came here with this project in mind. And it took 40 years to develop the resources, tools and technologies to solve the problem.” His long-term efforts, along with a team of researchers, led to a major scientific breakthrough.
In a recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, scientists analyzed newly collected wild cotton samples and used advanced genome sequencing.
Their findings showed that modern cotton was domesticated from a diverse group of wild plants native to the Yucatan region.
Understanding the history of cotton is important for both science and agriculture. As farmers selected plants with better qualities over many generations, much of the natural genetic diversity was lost. This means modern cotton plants may lack important traits found in wild plants.
Wendel explained, “When humans domesticate a plant, you pick from a big population and everything else is left behind. Do that for 1,000 generations, and you have a very narrow genetic base.” He added, “So we’re very interested in that wild genetic diversity. We want to know what’s still out there.”
Wild cotton plants may carry useful traits like disease resistance, tolerance to salt, or ability to adapt to changing climates. These traits can help scientists develop stronger and more sustainable crops in the future.
This research not only answers a long-standing scientific question but also provides valuable guidance for improving cotton farming worldwide.
Categories: Iowa, Crops