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Journal of Biological Sciences

Year: 2001 | Volume: 1 | Issue: 3 | Page No.: 82-86
Research Article

Application of Radioisotopes and Radiation in the Field of Agriculture: Review

Syed Manzoor Alam
Nuclear Institute of Agriculture, Tando Jam, Pakistan
Raziuddin Ansari
Nuclear Institute of Agriculture, Tando Jam, Pakistan
Mohammod Athar Khan
Nuclear Institute of Agriculture, Tando Jam, Pakistan
Nuclear radiation and radioisotopes are proving very helpful in several fields including agriculture. To the world today , these tools are unlocking the secrets of many agricultural problems, which could never have been possible by conventional means. Till now radioisotope and radiation are being more widely used in the field of agriculture than any other field of science and their application is leading us to the solution of agricultural problems in a shorter time and more precisely. Radioisotope and radiation give us the opportunity to clear the events that once were mysterious in the growth and nutrition of plants and evolution of new varieties by creating genetic variability. In addition to this, radioactive tracers and radiation sources have become indispensable to all the agricultural research problems. In agriculture, radiation and radioisotopes are also used in the nutritional studies of trace elements, mechanism of photosynthesis, plant protection including action of insecticides, metabolisms in plant, uptake of fertilizers, ions mobility in soils and plants and food preservation. Thus, radioisotopes and radiation have contributed tremendously to fulfil the need of mankind such as food and agriculture, health and medicine, energy production, environmental protection etc. The role of radioisotopes and radiation in the cause of human being has been well -established. However, their application in some other fields have not been fully realized. This article briefly describes the role of radioisotopes and radiation in the field of agriculture.
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