Genetic control of sulphur metabolism in Broccoli: How to make better broccoli

Broccoli uniquely makes a sulphur-containing compound called glucoraphanin which accumulates in the florets. When you eat broccoli, glucoraphanin is converted to another compound called sulforaphane which is thought to underlie the probable anticancer activity of broccoli. Glucoraphanin is made through a complex biochemical pathway involving many genes and enzymes. However, most of these are regulated by a single transcription factor called Myb28. This project is about understanding how different alleles of Myb28 can determine how much glucoraphanin is made, and what the consequences this may have for how broccoli can defend itself from pests and diseases. The project will also help us to understand how to manufacture broccoli plants that make either very large amounts of glucoraphanin or very small amounts which can be used in cancer studies underway in Norwich. It will also address long standing questions in plant biology about the metabolic costs of the manufacture of secondary metabolites and its consequences for plant fitness. The project provides many opportunities for developing skills in plant genomics and molecular genetics and analytical biochemistry. It will utilise the very latest genomic technologies and bioinformatics for selecting plants with specific naturally occurring and synthetic Myb28 alleles, and advanced mass spectrometry techniques for chemical analysis of tissues. The project is jointly supervised by Professor Richard Mithen, of the Institute of Food Research and Professor Lars Ostergaard of the John Innes Centre, and the student will spend about equal time in both institutes where he/she will be part of active and well-funded research teams.