Delivering Sustainable Wheat: Nutritional Traits (John Innes Centre)
Lead Research Organisation:
JOHN INNES CENTRE
Abstract
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.
Technical Summary
The targets selected in this WP are based on their importance for health and the importance of wheat as a dietary source. Deficiencies of iron and zinc affect about 2 billion people globally37. Iron deficiency also occurs in the UK, with intakes significantly below the lower reference levels for girls aged 11-14 and women aged 19-49. Calcium deficiency is also increasing with decreased consumption of dairy products. Wheat is an important source of minerals in the UK, contributing 15-19% of calcium, 15-17% of iron and 11-13% of zinc. Although all refined flours and breads produced in the UK are fortified with iron and calcium to restore levels to wholemeal, the levels of deficiencies indicate that this is not effective. This is due, at least in part, to the low bioavailability of the mineral forms that are used for fortification. The programme (1) will combine QTL mapping of landrace populations with GE and TILLING approaches to deliver high levels of bioavailable minerals in white flour (3.1).
The developed world is experiencing an “epidemic” of chronic diseases which is largely attributable to changes in lifestyle and diet, including the consumption of highly refined foods which are rapidly digested. Disease risks can be reduced by changes in diet with long term cohort studies showing that increased intake of dietary fibre is associated with reduced risk of a range of diseases, including cardio-vascular disease, type 2 diabetes and several types of cancer (notably colorectal cancer)38. However, UK adults only consume about 18g of fibre a day compared with a recommendation of 30g. Cereals contribute about 40% of the total fibre in the UK diet, with bread alone contributing about 20%39. Although the consumption of fibre-rich wholegrain bread has been widely promoted, this has failed to have a significant impact and white bread remains the staple food40. In this programme (2) we will use a combination of GE and TILLING approaches to manipulate the molecular and granular structure of starch in bread wheat to reduce starch digestibility with concurrent increases in dietary fibre (3.2). We will (3) further enhance the fibre content of white bread through targeting gene pathways involved in arabinoxylan (AX) biosynthesis and we will demonstrate the health relevance of these high AX lines in a clinical
intervention study (3.3).
The developed world is experiencing an “epidemic” of chronic diseases which is largely attributable to changes in lifestyle and diet, including the consumption of highly refined foods which are rapidly digested. Disease risks can be reduced by changes in diet with long term cohort studies showing that increased intake of dietary fibre is associated with reduced risk of a range of diseases, including cardio-vascular disease, type 2 diabetes and several types of cancer (notably colorectal cancer)38. However, UK adults only consume about 18g of fibre a day compared with a recommendation of 30g. Cereals contribute about 40% of the total fibre in the UK diet, with bread alone contributing about 20%39. Although the consumption of fibre-rich wholegrain bread has been widely promoted, this has failed to have a significant impact and white bread remains the staple food40. In this programme (2) we will use a combination of GE and TILLING approaches to manipulate the molecular and granular structure of starch in bread wheat to reduce starch digestibility with concurrent increases in dietary fibre (3.2). We will (3) further enhance the fibre content of white bread through targeting gene pathways involved in arabinoxylan (AX) biosynthesis and we will demonstrate the health relevance of these high AX lines in a clinical
intervention study (3.3).
Planned Impact
unavailable
Publications
Amalova A
(2023)
Population Structure of Modern Winter Wheat Accessions from Central Asia.
in Plants (Basel, Switzerland)
Amalova A
(2023)
Association Mapping of Quantitative Trait Loci for Agronomic Traits in a Winter Wheat Collection Grown in Kazakhstan
in Agronomy
Chen J
(2024)
Nuclear factor-Y-polycomb repressive complex2 dynamically orchestrates starch and seed storage protein biosynthesis in wheat.
in The Plant cell
Chen J
(2024)
Wheat MYOSIN-RESEMBLING CHLOROPLAST PROTEIN controls B-type starch granule initiation timing during endosperm development.
in Plant physiology
Chen X
(2025)
Reducing amylose content in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) using a novel Wx-D1 null allele generated by chemical mutagenesis.
in Journal of the science of food and agriculture
Dagbasi A
(2024)
Diet shapes the metabolite profile in the intact human ileum, which affects PYY release.
in Science translational medicine
Ding J
(2026)
Starch Synthase 3 isoforms are essential for normal starch granule initiation in wheat endosperm.
in The New phytologist
Ding J
(2025)
Dual-Layer Transcriptional-Protein Regulation by HvAP2 -12 Represses HvAP2 -18 Activity to Fine-Tune Barley Starch Synthesis
in Plant Biotechnology Journal
Esch L
(2025)
Starch synthesis in Brachypodium distachyon endosperm occurs in dynamic, connected amyloplast compartments
in New Phytologist
| Description | Key findings 3.1. Enhancing content and bioavailability of minerals in the wheat grain 3.2. Manipulating starch structure in wheat to impact digestibility 3.3. Enhancing the fibre content of wheat- impact on the gut microbiome and gut physiology In the UK, adults only consume about 18g of fibre a day compared with a recommendation of 30g. Deficiencies in iron and zinc affect about 2 billion people globally, and calcium deficiencies are increasing. Our research focuses on delivering high levels of bioavailable minerals and dietary fibre in white flour and on altering the molecular and granular structure of starch in bread wheat to reduce starch digestibility, making healthier wheat products. We have created a comprehensive QTL atlas for essential mineral micronutrients in wheat grain by analysing six mineral contents (e.g., Ca, Fe, Zn) across multiple biparental mapping populations derived from crosses between traditional A.E. Watkins landraces and the modern cultivar Paragon. 23 reproducible QTLs were detected, and 16 of these had increasing alleles derived from landrace germplasm and 7 from Paragon, suggesting valuable variation resides in both genetic sources (https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-024-06692-7). We have also mapped multiple QTL for grain protein content, yield, and grain protein deviation, identifying regions on chromosomes 3A and 5B that influence nitrogen use efficiency and thus opportunities to breed wheat with higher protein without compromising yield (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcs.2024.104099). In a separate study we identified specific genotypes that maintain good breadmaking performance under reduced nitrogen fertilizer, suggesting management and genetic selection strategies can lower input costs while preserving end-use quality (https://doi.org/10.1002/jsfa.12848). Complementary to protein quality, our research has confirmed that arabinoxylan (soluble dietary fibre) content in flour is under genetic control, with breeding potential to enhance fibre content without strong effects from crop husbandry practices and weather (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eja.2025.127704). We have also identified a natural allele of a cell-wall peroxidase gene that increases water-extractable arabinoxylan in wheat endosperm, offering a marker for breeding higher-fibre varieties (https://doi.org/10.1111/pbi.70527). Working with the HBio ISP, we have identified a MYOSIN RESEMBLING CHLOROPLAST PROTEIN in wheat that regulates the timing of B-type starch granule initiation during endosperm development (https://doi.org/10.1093/plphys/kiae429). We demonstrate that in durum wheat, wide variation in starch granule size distributions can be induced through missense mutations at a single genetic locus encoding the MYOSIN RESEMBLING CHLOROPLAST PROTEIN on chromosome 6A (TtMRC-A1) creating useful alterations in starch properties (https://doi.org/10.1007/s00122-025-05013-8). We also found that wheat starch with reduced branching (mutations in SBEII) leads to bread with lower starch digestibility and a firmer, more resilient crumb texture, compared to wild-type flour. The altered starch structure exhibited lower short-range molecular order, which appears to contribute to resistance to enzymatic digestion and changes in texture, suggesting potential for producing lower-glycaemic bread products (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodhyd.2023.109390). However the effect on postprandial glycaemic response of this same sbeII mutant was measured in a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled two-period crossover trial which found no affect on glycaemic response when measured remotely and outside of a clinical setting (https://doi.org/10.1039/D5FO03147H). Analysis of an epidemiological study across Great Britain (2004-2015, 53,114 participants) provided insight into the importance of wheat and bread for the UK population. Our key findings included that bread is a significant source of dietary fibre (21.8%), contributing 11.6% of total energy and 10.2% of protein intake. We found lower consumption of wheat-based products was associated with higher fat percentages and higher diastolic blood pressure. Our preliminary research has demonstrated that enhancing the fibre content of wheat leads to an increase in butyrate production during in vitro digestion assays, a crucial health-related product of gut microbiome activity. Twenty-two healthy participants have enrolled in our randomised, double-blind, controlled trial to assess glycaemic and insulinemic responses to 10 different white breads made from elite UK wheat genotypes with varying contents of arabinoxylan (AX) (the major type of fibre in white flour). Preliminary results show a negative correlation between AX content and glycaemic index, suggesting that breads with higher AX content tend to elicit a lower glycaemic response. This supports the idea that higher dietary fibre improves metabolic outcomes by reducing postprandial glucose levels. (not published) Collectively, these findings highlight progress in elucidating the genetic architecture of grain composition, dietary fibre content, and quality traits in wheat, outlining avenues for breeding crops with improved health-related traits and sustainable production. |
| Exploitation Route | Molecular markers and germplasm for breeding. Varietal choice for milling and baking. |
| Sectors | Agriculture Food and Drink Healthcare Retail |
| URL | https://wheatresearch.ac.uk/ |
| Description | Our research combines QTL mapping of landrace populations with GE and TILLING approaches to deliver high levels of bioavailable nutrients in white flour. These DSW discoveries feed into the Breeder's Toolkit (BTK), providing a pathway to impact. QTL for baking quality and grain mineral content have been accepted into the BTK since the programme began. The results provide SNP markers and biological targets that could accelerate breeding of wheat with enhanced mineral nutrient profiles to help address human micronutrient deficiencies (https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-024-06692-7). Identification of a natural allele of a cell-wall peroxidase gene that increases water-extractable arabinoxylan in wheat endosperm, provides a marker for breeding higher-fibre varieties (https://doi.org/10.1111/pbi.70527). We continue to interact with the public, stakeholders and policymakers. These activities help to generate a more informed public, allow us to gauge public and stakeholder opinion and provide feedback on our future science. We have run joint workshops involving Demand Side Task Force members, the Centre for Competition and Policy at the Norwich Business School and Norwich Institute for Sustainable Development (NISD) to explore (i) policy, (ii) the role of wheat in improving diet and health outcomes- leading to two joint grant applications submitted. Stakeholder engagement activities have also included organisation of a processing workshop hosted by UK Flour Millers UK researchers (with an emphasis on ECRs) from DSW attended to hear talks from industry (millers and bakers). Further to this, we have been awarded a Rank Prize Forum grant to run a workshop entitled "Removing Barriers to Delivering Healthier Wheat Products to UK Consumers" bringing together up to 40 experts across the wheat-to-bread supply chain to identify bottlenecks preventing improved wheat (especially higher-fibre and healthier types) from reaching UK consumers. The Demand Side Task Force (DSTF) has continued its transdisciplinary activity, providing insight and foresight to inform the wheat research agenda. During the reporting period, DSTF has explored (i) the role of wheat in improving diet and health outcomes and (ii) how wheat can both mitigate and adapt to climate change in the UK. The former has led to stakeholder demand for an ongoing "wheat and nutrition" forum and to direct senior-level engagement between one of the UK's largest bakers and DSW to explore future demand for improved wheat. The latter has led to engagement with the Climate Change Committee who are keen to work with DSW to understand how wheat farming will need to change by the time of the seventh carbon budget period (2038-2042). DSTF is also working with the UK's Centre for Competition Policy to challenge some of the assumptions about wheat markets which might impact necessary innovation. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2026 |
| Sector | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Education,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology |
| Impact Types | Cultural Societal Economic Policy & public services |
| Description | Morphological Modifications: A new approach to improve starch for food and industrial applications using genetics |
| Amount | ÂŁ306,934 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | APP31131 |
| Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2025 |
| End | 12/2026 |
| Title | Gastrointestinal Intubation |
| Description | We have developed a method of intubating the gastrointestinal tract in the stomach, duodenum, ileum and colon in humans allowing time course data to be collected |
| Type Of Material | Physiological assessment or outcome measure |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Dagbasi A, Byrne C, Blunt D, Serrano-Contreras JI, Becker GF, Blanco JM, Camuzeaux S, Chambers E, Danckert N, Edwards C, Bernal A, Garcia MV, Hanyaloglu A, Holmes E, Ma Y, Marchesi J, Martinez-Gili L, Mendoza L, Tashkova M, Perez-Moral N, Garcia-Perez I, Robles AC, Sands C, Wist J, Murphy KG, Frost G. Diet shapes the metabolite profile in the intact human ileum, which affects PYY release. Sci Transl Med. 2024 Jun 19;16(752):eadm8132. doi: 10.1126/scitranslmed.adm8132. Epub 2024 Jun 19 |
| Title | NMR anaylsis of gastrointestinal luminal samples |
| Description | Development of a NMR metabolomic technique to understand the molecular enviroment of the gastrointestinal tract |
| Type Of Material | Physiological assessment or outcome measure |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | The tool is a reserch tool at the present time and is contrbuting to the understanding of the human gastrointesinal tract |
| Description | Breeders Observation Panel |
| Organisation | DSV |
| Department | DSV UK |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | DSW provide germplasm, as well as experimental design and data analysis to the Breeders Observation Panel. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Breeders Observation Panel screen germplasm including planned and opportunistic disease scoring in untreated nurseries provided by the plant breeding partners, as well as through other high throughput tests routine for breeding partners. |
| Impact | The data collected through the Breeders Observation Panel is analysed and disseminated within DSW. |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Breeders Observation Panel |
| Organisation | Elsoms Seeds |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | DSW provide germplasm, as well as experimental design and data analysis to the Breeders Observation Panel. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Breeders Observation Panel screen germplasm including planned and opportunistic disease scoring in untreated nurseries provided by the plant breeding partners, as well as through other high throughput tests routine for breeding partners. |
| Impact | The data collected through the Breeders Observation Panel is analysed and disseminated within DSW. |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Breeders Observation Panel |
| Organisation | KWS UK |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | DSW provide germplasm, as well as experimental design and data analysis to the Breeders Observation Panel. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Breeders Observation Panel screen germplasm including planned and opportunistic disease scoring in untreated nurseries provided by the plant breeding partners, as well as through other high throughput tests routine for breeding partners. |
| Impact | The data collected through the Breeders Observation Panel is analysed and disseminated within DSW. |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Breeders Observation Panel |
| Organisation | LS Plant Breeding |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | DSW provide germplasm, as well as experimental design and data analysis to the Breeders Observation Panel. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Breeders Observation Panel screen germplasm including planned and opportunistic disease scoring in untreated nurseries provided by the plant breeding partners, as well as through other high throughput tests routine for breeding partners. |
| Impact | The data collected through the Breeders Observation Panel is analysed and disseminated within DSW. |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Breeders Observation Panel |
| Organisation | Limagrain |
| Department | Limagrain UK |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | DSW provide germplasm, as well as experimental design and data analysis to the Breeders Observation Panel. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Breeders Observation Panel screen germplasm including planned and opportunistic disease scoring in untreated nurseries provided by the plant breeding partners, as well as through other high throughput tests routine for breeding partners. |
| Impact | The data collected through the Breeders Observation Panel is analysed and disseminated within DSW. |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Breeders Observation Panel |
| Organisation | RAGT Seeds |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | DSW provide germplasm, as well as experimental design and data analysis to the Breeders Observation Panel. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Breeders Observation Panel screen germplasm including planned and opportunistic disease scoring in untreated nurseries provided by the plant breeding partners, as well as through other high throughput tests routine for breeding partners. |
| Impact | The data collected through the Breeders Observation Panel is analysed and disseminated within DSW. |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Breeders Observation Panel |
| Organisation | Syngenta International AG |
| Department | Syngenta Ltd (Bracknell) |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | DSW provide germplasm, as well as experimental design and data analysis to the Breeders Observation Panel. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Breeders Observation Panel screen germplasm including planned and opportunistic disease scoring in untreated nurseries provided by the plant breeding partners, as well as through other high throughput tests routine for breeding partners. |
| Impact | The data collected through the Breeders Observation Panel is analysed and disseminated within DSW. |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | New Food Innovation |
| Organisation | New Food Innovation |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | We are leading the project that New Food Innovation Collaborate in. They lead the commercial network |
| Collaborator Contribution | They lead the commercial partnerships for the project |
| Impact | Too early |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | "Should we be recommending reducing UPF to everyone?" |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | 100 health professional gave their impressions of food processing |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2025 |
| URL | https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2025/aug/less-processed-diet-may-be-more-beneficial-weight-loss |
| Description | Defra visit with session on nutrition/biofortification |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Participated in a visit from DEFRA to the JIC field station, where we demonstrated our work on improving the nutritional quality of wheat and potato. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Developing Sustainable Wheat management meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Annual meeting and work shop |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Deveoplemnt of functional stable breads |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | 100 industrialist attended a workshop about developing functional bread |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2025 |
| Description | Digestive disease away day |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Over 100 health care professionals discussed the isssues around gut hormone research and food |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2025 |
| Description | Future Foods Imperial Lates |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Over 4000 people attended the event. We diseminated information about food digestions and new ways to monitor food intake |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.imperial.ac.uk/events/167015/imperial-lates-future-food/ |
| Description | Great Exhibition Road Festival |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | We developed a dissemination session with a chief |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.greatexhibitionroadfestival.co.uk/ |
| Description | Great Exibition Road Festival |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | We demonstrated how food is digested as the role of the microbiota. This sparked a lot of questions |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.imperial.ac.uk/events/160698/great-exhibition-road-festival-2023/ |
| Description | Participation in JIC Breeders Day |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | 60-70 representatives from breeding companies visited the institute's field station, where we demonstrated our work to improve wheat and potato starch quality. Several breeders expressed interest, and has led to continued engagement. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Pint of Science |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | ~60 people attending a talk I gave about "Live fast, die young to increase nutrient content in wheat". |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Royal Society Brian Cox School Experiments YouTube Videos |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | I participated in filming an educational video as part of the Royal Society School experiments videos. The film's topic was Gene Editing for Improved Crop Nutrition. The video was presented by Brian Cox. The video is aimed for educational purposes for school children aged 11-14 and can be used by teachers. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023,2024 |
| URL | https://youtu.be/wfghDz2jm9A?si=X9Z6qhQOaeTE8vHP |
| Description | Scientific meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Gave a talk entitled iPREVENT: Increase in colonic propionate to prevent weight gain in adults aged 20-40 years, a randomised controlled trial. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Uncovering the secrets of wheat: are three genes better than one? |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Presented to Gatsby undergraduate summer school about research in polyploid crops and its importance for sustainable agriculture. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZ65oUjRkwY |
| Description | • Dietary Manipulations for Health and in the Prevention and Management of Disease |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Dissemination of Iprevent results to a scientific audance |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |