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Parthenium argentatum

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Parthenium argentatum,commonly known as theguayule(/ɡwaɪˈuːliː/or/waɪˈuːleɪ/,[1]as inSpanish), is a perennial woodyshrubin the familyAsteraceaethat is native to the rangeland area of theChihuahuan Desert;including thesouthwestern United Statesand northernMexico.It was first documented byJ.M. Bigelowin 1852 through the Mexican Boundary Survey and was first described byAsa Gray.[2]Natural rubber,ethanol,non-toxicadhesives,and other specialty chemicals can be extracted from guayule.[3]An alternative source oflatexthat ishypoallergenic,unlike the normalHevearubber, can also be extracted.[4]WhileCastilla elasticawas the most widely used rubber source ofMesoamericansinpre-Columbiantimes, guayule was also used, though less frequently.[5][6]The name "guayule" derives from theNahuatlwordulli/olli,"rubber".[7]

Parthenium argentatum
Scientific classificationEdit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Parthenium
Species:
P. argentatum
Binomial name
Parthenium argentatum

Description and range

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Guayule grows in rocky, limestone desert areas in full sun. The plant's outer branches and leaves are covered in fine silvery hairs called trichomes, and yellow-white flowers grow from stems at the top of the plant.[8][9]The densely haired leaves are covered with white wax to help prevent drying. The plant has an extensive root system, which lends to its drought resistance.[9]One taproot extends down, while lateral roots extend from the taproot to the side. In some plants, lateral roots are longer than the taproot while in other plants, the opposite is true.[9][10]U.S. indigenous populations of guayule occur in theTrans Pecosregion of southwestern Texas.[11][10]It can also be found in the low desert regions of Arizona, New Mexico, and some parts of Southern California and the Mexican states ofZacatecas,Coahuila,Chihuahua,San Luis Potosí,Nuevo León,andTamaulipasand is able to be cultivated in similar climates around the world.[12][13]

Breeding and production

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Guayule breeding programs have been facilitated in order to domesticate, commercialize, and develop higher yielding cultivars.[14]Selection of high-yielding guayule is complicated by its breeding system, which is primarilyapomixis(asexual cloning via gametes).[15]This breeding system is somewhat variable and considerable genetic variation exists within wild populations. Selection of high-yielding lines has been successful.[16]

Parthenium argentatumis adapted for hot desert environments and grows well in well-drained, desert like soil.[17]It has been cultivated under both dryland and irrigated conditions. It can be grown in areas where annual rainfall ranges between 380 and 635mm and with temperatures rarely falling below -9 Celsius.[17]Due to the guayule plant's production ofterpeneresins, which are natural pesticides, it is resistant to many pests and diseases.[7]Nonetheless, its slow growth from seed means herbicides are needed for stand establishment.[18]

History

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Dr.Robert Emerson(third from right), biochemist and botanist from the California Institute of Technology and director of the quayule rubber experiment, inspects young plants atManzanarwith his staff of internee scientists (June 29, 1942).

In the 1920s, the plant saw a brief and intense amount of agricultural research when the Intercontinental Rubber Company inCaliforniaproduced 1400 tons of rubber after South American Leaf Blight decimated the Brazilian rubber industry. Guayule would again become a replacement forHeveatree-produced latex duringWorld War IIwhenJapancut off America'sMalaysianlatexresources.[19]The war ended before large-scale farming of the guayule plant began, and the project was scrapped, as it was cheaper to import tree-derived latex than to crush the shrubs for a smaller amount of latex.[citation needed]

Currently, PanAridus and Yulex are the only commercial producers of guayule natural rubber in the world. Yulex have partnered with Patagonia who are now making its Yulex wetsuit from Guayule derived plant stems in a 60/40 blend (60% guayule, 40%neoprene), reducing dependence on conventional neoprene.[citation needed]

In 2011,Howard Colvinled a successful $6.9 million DOE-funded Biomass R&D Initiative to produce and test an all-guayule tire.[20]

In October 2015, theBridgestone Corporationannounced the creation of the first tires made entirely of guayule rubber, having built an experimental farm and biorubber research center inMesa, Arizonathe previous year. The guayule is grown in Mesa andEloy, Arizona.[21][22][23]

Experimental products made from guayule.

Hypoallergenic properties

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In the 1980s, a surge of Type 1latex allergycoincided with a world-wide increase in demand for latex gloves in response to heightened precautions to prevent the spread of diseases, such as AIDS and Hepatitis B.[24]WhileHevea-derived rubber contains proteins that can cause severe allergic reactions in some people, guayule does not.[25]Although there aresynthetic alternativesfor medical device products, they are not as elastic as natural rubber. Guayule performs likeHeveabut contains none of the proteins related to latex allergies.[24]In 1997, a process to makehypoallergenicguayule latex was licensed by theU.S. Department of Agricultureto theYulex Corporation.[25]

Biofuel

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Guayule's viability as a potentialbiofuelhas been enhanced recently in light of commentary from a variety of experts, includingLester R. Brownof theEarth Policy Institute,stating that "[food based] biofuels pit the 800 million people with cars against the 800 million people with hunger problems,"[26]meaning that biofuels derived from food crops (likemaize) raise worldfood prices.Guayule can be an economically viable biofuel crop that does not increase the world's hunger problem.[27][better source needed]Guayule has another benefit over food crops as biofuel - it can be grown in areas where food crops struggle.[citation needed]

See also

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  • Taraxacum kok-saghyz;the rubber dandelion, produces similar hypoallergenic rubber, even in cold climates

References

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  1. ^"guayule".Oxford English Dictionary(Online ed.).Oxford University Press.(Subscription orparticipating institution membershiprequired.)
  2. ^Lloyd, F. E. (1911).Guayule (parthenium argentatum gray), a rubber-plant of the chihuahuan desert. Washington, D.C.: Carnegie Institution of Washington.
  3. ^"Guayule"(PDF).The University of Arizona College of Agriculture & Life Sciences.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2019-06-08.Retrieved29 April2020.
  4. ^DuHamel, Jonathan (2018-06-30)."Guayule, A Desert Rubber Plant".Arizona Daily Independent.Retrieved2019-06-08.
  5. ^Tarkanian, Michael J.; Hosler, Dorothy (2011). "America's First Polymer Scientists: Rubber Processing, Use and Transport in Mesoamerica".Latin American Antiquity.22(4): 469–486.doi:10.7183/1045-6635.22.4.469.ISSN1045-6635.JSTOR23072570.S2CID137958707.
  6. ^Evans, Susan Toby; Webster, David L. (2001).Archaeology of Ancient Mexico and Central America: An Encyclopedia.Taylor & Francis. p. 69.ISBN978-0-8153-0887-4.
  7. ^ab"Sources of Natural Rubber | Cornish Lab".cornishlab.cfaes.ohio-state.edu.Retrieved2020-04-30.
  8. ^"Texas Native Plants Database".aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu.Retrieved2020-04-30.
  9. ^abcRollins, Reed C. (1950)."The Guayule Rubber Plant and ITS Relatives".Contributions from the Gray Herbarium of Harvard University(172): 1–72.doi:10.5962/p.336365.ISSN0195-6094.JSTOR41764789.S2CID249082691.
  10. ^abHammond, B.L.; Polhamus, L.G. (1965). "Research on Guayule (Parthenium argentatum): 1942-1959".USDA Technical Bulletin(1327): 157.
  11. ^McGinnies, W.G.; Mills, J.L. (1980).Guayule Rubber Production: The World War II Emergency Rubber Project.Tucson, AZ: Office of Arid Lands Studies, University of Arizona.
  12. ^"Identification of Guayule Regions in Northern Mexico, Based on Rubber Yield and Coproducts Quality".hort.purdue.edu.
  13. ^"Guayule Production: Rubber and Biomass Response to Irrigation".www.hort.purdue.edu.Retrieved2020-04-30.
  14. ^Ray, Dennis T.; Coffelt, Terry A.; Dierig, David A. (July 2005). "Breeding guayule for commercial production".Industrial Crops and Products.22(1): 15–25.doi:10.1016/j.indcrop.2004.06.005.
  15. ^Gerstel, D. U.; Mishanec, Wm. (1950). "On the Inheritance of Apomixis in Parthenium argentatum".Botanical Gazette.112(1): 96–106.doi:10.1086/335630.ISSN0006-8071.JSTOR2472768.S2CID84374921.
  16. ^Ray, Dennis T.; Terry A. Coffelt; David A. Dierig (2004)."Breeding Guayule for commercial production".Industrial Crops and Products.22(1): 15–25.doi:10.1016/j.indcrop.2004.06.005.
  17. ^abBowers, Janice Emily (1990).Natural rubber-producing plants for the United States.U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, National Agricultural Library. p. 20.hdl:2027/uiug.30112020072465.
  18. ^Abdel-Haleem, Hussein; Waltz, Quinn; Leake, Greg (19 September 2018)."Tolerance of transplanted guayule seedlings to post-emergence herbicides"(PDF).Industrial Crops & Products.113:292–294 – via Elsevier.
  19. ^"Guayule cultivation. United States--California--Monterey County--Salinas Valley".Prints & Photographs Online Catalog (Library of Congress).1942.Retrieved2019-06-08.
  20. ^"Cooper scientist will talk about guayule".Modern Tire Dealer.Endeavor Business Media LLC. 14 November 2012.Retrieved22 April2023.
  21. ^Bridgestone.From Seed to Tread: Bridgestone Reveals First Tires Made Entirely of Natural Rubber Components from Company’s Guayule Research Operations.October 1, 2015.
  22. ^Godfrey, Trevor.Bridgestone opens research center in Mesa.East Valley Tribune. September 21, 2014.
  23. ^Durham, Sharon (March 30, 2017)."Improved variety of guayule plant as a natural source of tire rubber".phys.org.Retrieved2019-06-08.
  24. ^ab"Purification of Hypoallergenic Latex from Guayule".www.hort.purdue.edu.Retrieved2020-04-30.
  25. ^ab"Guayule Latex Process Is Licensed: USDA ARS".www.ars.usda.gov.Retrieved2020-04-30.
  26. ^Grunwald, Michael (2008-03-27)."The Clean Energy Scam".TIME.Archived fromthe originalon March 31, 2008.
  27. ^Wright, Julie (2008-04-03)."World needs alternatives to biofuels from food crops".Guayule Blog. Archived fromthe originalon 2009-09-14.Retrieved2009-09-03.
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