Optimising wheat grain shape and size for improved processing quality

Abstracts are not currently available in GtR for all funded research. This is normally because the abstract was not required at the time of proposal submission, but may be because it included sensitive information such as personal details.

The cereal endosperm is a major source of calories and protein for the world's population and livestock. The vast majority of the wheat crop, however, is milled prior to being used in baking. The overall aim of the project is to improve the processing quality of British wheat by optimising grain shape and size and will involve the work of six UK research groups. Our main objectives are to study the cellular regulation of grain endosperm development; identify and map sources for natural variation in grain shape and size in wheat and barley; manipulate genes with proven roles in endosperm development from the model species Arabidopsis and maize; and determine the effects of different grain shapes on debranning and flour yield. The particular role of Rothamsted Research is to establish a 3D model of cell division and differentiation in the endosperm to determine the steps leading to grain shape and, in particular, crease morphology. This knowledge will subsequently be used to survey existing elite UK wheat lines, other material present in germplasm collections, and mapping populations generated within the project, to determine the range of available phenotypes and their stability under different environmental conditions. Rothamsted Research will also be involved in the functional analysis of candidate genes involved in endosperm development.

unavailable