Scientists from China and the United States have mapped a key genetic code for bread wheat, a discovery that will help improve the crop's productivity and ability to withstand extreme conditions.

The sequencing and drafting of the A genome, one of the three basic genomes of wheat, was published by journal Nature online on March 24. Researchers present the generation, assembly and analysis of a whole-genome shotgun draft sequence of the genome of wild wheat T. urartu, the source of the A genome.

The identification of around 38,000 wheat genes is expected to help provide a valuable resource for accelerating deeper genomic breeding studies and offer a new foundation for the study of wheat evolution, domestication and genetic improvement.

The research, launched by a team from the Institute of Genetics and Development Biology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was conducted by Shenzhen-based BGI, a leading genomics organization, and the University of California, Davis.

Bread wheat, T. aestivum, is one of the most widely cultivated and consumed food crops in the world. It feeds about 40 percent of the world's population and provides 20 percent of a human's daily recommended amounts of calories and protein. Major efforts are underway around the world to increase the crop's yield and quality by boosting genetic diversity and resistance to cold, drought and disease.

However, the extremely large size and polyploid complexity of the wheat genome have so far posed substantial barriers for researchers to gain insight into its biology and evolution.

Weather Monitoring

China has built an integrated weather monitoring system that provides better information about potential weather disasters, the country's meteorological authority said on March 23.

A total 419 ground observation stations, 87 aerological stations and seven Fengyun weather satellites will provide weather information for nearly 100 countries and regions to help cut down damage caused by adverse weather, said Zheng Guoguang, Director of the National Meteorological Center.

In the past five years, economic losses caused by weather disasters dropped from 1.22 percent to 0.6 percent of the country's gross domestic product, with the overall death toll decreasing by 2,000 from the previous five-year period, according to official figures.

Safety Sweep

The Ministry of Public Security launched a six-month safety sweep of vehicles used to transport freight on March 26.

With the campaign to begin on April 1, the ministry urged police departments to crack down on speeding, overloading, refitted vehicles, driving while fatigued, running red lights and other driving misconduct.

According to figures released by the ministry's Traffic Management Bureau, there are 19 million freight vehicles on China's roads, accounting for 7.8 percent of the country's total motor vehicles.

Disproportionately, 28 percent of road fatalities in 2012 were caused by freight vehicles. The accident rate per 10,000 freight vehicles in 2012 was more than twice that of other motor vehicles.

China's freight market lacks effective regulation, with many of its vehicles facing potential safety risks, said the Traffic Management Bureau, adding it will work with other supervision departments to better regulate freight companies as well as the vehicle maintenance industry.