Genetic control of starch structure and composition in wheat and implications for improving human health
Lead Research Organisation:
University of East Anglia
Department Name: Graduate Office
Abstract
Wheat provides approximately one fifth of the calories consumed by humans worldwide, thus improving the nutritional value of wheat grains has potential to make a large impact on human health. Starch composition and structure play a major role in digestibility by humans. However, there is little natural variation in the starch composition of common bread wheat.
In an effort to improve the nutritional quality of foods for human health, this project will focus on understanding the genetic components underlying starch composition and structure in the grain and what consequences this may have for human digestibility. The applied nature of this project will aid in the development of wheat plants with enhanced nutritional value that can be used in food and health studies in Norwich. It will also provide further insight and understanding of starch biosynthesis in wheat and how it may affect plant fitness and potential agronomic quality.
This project will be based upon previous research that has generated valuable genetic and genomic resources in wheat including over 1,500 sequenced TILLING mutants. The student will build a solid skill set in modern plant breeding and trait development. He/she will utilize cutting-edge molecular techniques and bioinformatics approaches to identify and characterize novel alleles regulating starch composition and structure in the grain. The project will also provide applied opportunities for the student to develop and use plant materials in human health related studies. The student will be supervised by a multidisciplinary team across the Norwich Research Park at both the Institute of Food Research and the John Innes Centre.
In an effort to improve the nutritional quality of foods for human health, this project will focus on understanding the genetic components underlying starch composition and structure in the grain and what consequences this may have for human digestibility. The applied nature of this project will aid in the development of wheat plants with enhanced nutritional value that can be used in food and health studies in Norwich. It will also provide further insight and understanding of starch biosynthesis in wheat and how it may affect plant fitness and potential agronomic quality.
This project will be based upon previous research that has generated valuable genetic and genomic resources in wheat including over 1,500 sequenced TILLING mutants. The student will build a solid skill set in modern plant breeding and trait development. He/she will utilize cutting-edge molecular techniques and bioinformatics approaches to identify and characterize novel alleles regulating starch composition and structure in the grain. The project will also provide applied opportunities for the student to develop and use plant materials in human health related studies. The student will be supervised by a multidisciplinary team across the Norwich Research Park at both the Institute of Food Research and the John Innes Centre.
People |
ORCID iD |
| Brittany Hazard (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Marina Corrado (Student) |
Publications
Odjo S
(2022)
Hermetic storage technologies preserve maize seed quality and minimize grain quality loss in smallholder farming systems in Mexico
in Journal of Stored Products Research
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BB/M011216/1 | 30/09/2015 | 29/09/2023 | |||
| 1772164 | Studentship | BB/M011216/1 | 30/09/2016 | 30/03/2021 | Marina Corrado |
| Title | Hungry Bob and the digestion of foods |
| Description | Hands-on activity on the physiology of the digestive system and the digestion of foods that can impact health |
| Type Of Art | Artwork |
| Year Produced | 2019 |
| Impact | Attractive and engaging tool to explain metabolic responses to foods and the effect physiological response to macronutrients. Children were captivated by the game while adults saw it as a useful tool for biology classes in schools. |
| URL | https://twitter.com/MarinaCorrad/status/1186195053519261696 |
| Description | The sbeII wheat previously generated by TILLING was used to develop a range of food products with low digestibility. The foods developed were used to measure digestibility in vitro and glycaemic response (blood sugar level after a meal) in vivo. The carbohydrate component of the products developed for the in vivo studies was extensively characterised to identify subtle changes in glycaemic response due to changes in the starch components of the foods, the main nutrient in wheat-based foods. Overall, some evidence was found of a lower glycaemic response after consumption of sbeII semolina pudding and sbeII white bread compared to the semolina pudding and white bread made from conventional wheat. Both starch characteristics and food processing were found to have major effects on the degree of digestibility of wheat-based foods. |
| Exploitation Route | This project has shown that the processing applied to crops like wheat to produce foods has a great impact on starch characteristics, end-use quality and digestibility. The sbeII wheat-based foods have shown potential to elicit a lower glycaemic response in healthy individuals, particularly if used to produce foods that are consumed after one cycle of cooking and cooling, such as deli sandwich bread. While some evidence of lower glycaemic response after consumption of sbeII bread was found, further studies should investigate the rate and extent of the response, compared to conventional white bread. The use of sbeII wheat in other baked and cooled food products should also be investigated. |
| Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Education,Healthcare |
| URL | https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2020/fo/c9fo02460c#!divAbstract |
| Title | REST study |
| Description | REST is about white wheat bread with high Resistant Starch, a type of fibre. Wheat bread made from white flour is one of the UK's favourite foods but normally, it has very low levels of fibre. Fibre exerts a protective role in reducing the risk of many common diseases that are diet related. However, in the UK, 91% of the adult population does not meet the recommended fibre intake of 30g per day. A correct fibre intake helps to control blood sugar levels and body weight, reducing the risk of developing type II diabetes and obesity. We have developed a type of wheat white flour that appears similar to conventional white bread flour but has higher resistant starch content (which is a type of fibre). In this study, we want to measure blood sugar after eating a high resistant starch bread and a conventional white bread, low in resistant starch. This will help us understand if high resistant starch bread can help to boost fibre intake of healthy people. In the long term, we might be able to determine if high resistant starch bread can help reduce the risk of common chronic diseases. We are currently recruiting Healthy volunteers, between 18 and 65 years of age, living within 40 miles from the Norwich Research Park |
| Type | Preventative Intervention - Nutrition and Chemoprevention |
| Current Stage Of Development | Early clinical assessment |
| Year Development Stage Completed | 2020 |
| Development Status | Under active development/distribution |
| Impact | n/a |
| URL | https://quadram.ac.uk/reststudy/ |
| Description | Norwich Science Festival |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Norwich Science Festival took place 18-26 October 2019,with nine days of inspirational exhibitions, sensational shows and an abundance of hands-on science activities for all ages and all levels of knowledge; plus a dedicated learning programme for schools, youth groups and home-educated learners. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://norwichsciencefestival.co.uk/ |
| Description | STEM for Britain 2020, Westminster, London |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | STEM for BRITAIN is a scientific poster competition and exhibition which has been held in Parliament since 1997, and is organised by the Parliamentary & Scientific Committee. The aim is to give members of both Houses of Parliament an insight into the research work being undertaken in UK universities by early-career researchers. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| URL | https://stemforbritain.org.uk/ |
| Description | Association of Clinical Research Professionals International Clinical Trials Day |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | This day of celebration also provides the people who conduct clinical trials with a unique opportunity to raise awareness of clinical trials - and of clinical research as a career option - among the greater public. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | http://www.clinicaltrialsday.org |
| Description | 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 | Breeders Day is an event organised by the John Innes Centre for to hear first-hand from JIC scientists about the science carried out on site and how it impacts crop breeding and farming. Breeders day takes place at JIC conference centre and at JIC Field Station with talks both indoors and outdoor while walking between plots. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017,2018 |
| URL | https://twitter.com/MarinaCorrad/status/1004666473904734208 |
| Description | CCG representatives visit to discuss collaborative opportunities for food and health research |
| 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 | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | CCG representatives visited the Quadram Institute to get to know the clinical trials and research related to cereals and glycaemic response. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Cereal and Grains Annual meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | The Cereals & Grains meeting brings together a broad audience to discuss advancement in cereals and grains science. We presented a oral presentation during the Starch Technical Session and a poster presentation during the Health Benefits of grain-based macro-and micronutrients. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | From Seed to Pasta III |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | From Seed to Pasta" is a multidiscplinary conference focused on the remarkable progress in durum wheat science and the increasing concern on the future availability of durum grain due to climate change, a matter with fundamental socio-economic implications in the Mediterranean countries where durum-derived products are a staple. Oral presentation on "digestibility of processed durum wheat with increased resistant starch" |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Improving Staple Crops and Foods to Tackle Global Nutrition and Health Challenge Workshop |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | QIB representatives attended a 3-days workshop at CIMMYT and CIAD, Mexico, to discuss collaboration projects on crops and staple foods improvement within the Global Challenges Research Fund framework to tackle global nutrition and health challenges. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | Knowledge Exchange Programme |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | PhD students from the Quadram Institute visited and engaged with the ZIEL Institute for Food and Health (TUM) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Food Process, Engineering and Packaging in 2019 and with a group of students from the University of Parma in 2018 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018,2019 |
| Description | Meet the Molecules Blog article |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Meet the Molecules blog article on Resistant Starch |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://www.jic.ac.uk/blog/meet-the-molecules-resistant-starch/ |
| Description | Monogram 2018 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The Monogram Network meeting is the annual get together for the small-grain cereal and grass research community. Academics, commercial scientists and plant breeders meet to hear about the latest advances, exchange ideas and discuss collaboration. We presented a poster on" Digestibility of processed durum wheat with increased resistant starch" |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | NHS sector teacher & adviser CPD |
| 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 | Undergraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Career path overview presentation to showcase opportunities at the Quadram Institute |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Reepham Food Festival - Fun Food Science Activity |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The food festival was made of a range of events, with chef demonstrations, market stalls, schools displays and activities. The Hazard group organised a stand about cereal research and health with hands-on activity. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | https://twitter.com/MarinaCorrad/status/1000743709397438465 |
| Description | Royal Norfolk Show |
| 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 | Royal Norfolk Show. The Royal Norfolk Show is the largest two-day agricultural show in the country. Hosted by the Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association to promote the image, understanding and prosperity of agriculture and the countryside, the show has been part of the fabric of Norfolk since 1847. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://royalnorfolkshow.rnaa.org.uk/ |
| Description | School visit (Lowstoft) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Cool Food Facts is a hands-on session designed to show what are foods made of and how food components can contribute to taste and human health. The session was designed for Yr2 to Yr6 students focusing on bread and citrus fruits, with a 15 minutes introduction and a 30 minutes session with simple hands-on group activities. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Soapbox 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 | Soapbox Science is a science outreach organisation that brings cutting edge research onto urban streets whilst also promoting the visibility of women in science. Speakers stand on soapboxes and engage with the public about their work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | http://soapboxscience.org/soapbox-science-2018-norwich/ |
| Description | Visit from Applied Nutritional Science BSc students from Anglia Ruskin University |
| 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 | Undergraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Showcase of the research facility resources available and the functionality of the building to provide high standards research facilities. Students were also presented with an overview of the research programmes. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | WUR students visit |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | 30 students from Wageningen University visited the Quadram Institute. This is part of an European excursion organised by Wageningen Univeristy, in The Netherlands. At the end of the third and final year of the bachelor's or in the first year of the master's the students may choose for participating in the yearly organized European Excursion, a 7-10 days excursion through 1-4 European countries, during which visits are scheduled to universities, nutrition and health institutes, food and nutrition industries, non-governmental health. The excursion aims to cover all different specializations within the field of nutrition and health. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Westminster Health Forum Keynote Seminar: Improving diabetes outcomes in England - prevention, access and digital technology |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | This seminar focused on next steps for improving diabetes outcomes in England. Delegates discussed priorities for moving forward with the NHS Long Term Plan for diabetes - including workforce training and funding challenges associated with the Plan's goals to improve access to diabetes professionals, such as multidisciplinary footcare teams and diabetes inpatient specialist nursing teams. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://www.westminsterforumprojects.co.uk/publication/improving-diabetes-outcomes-19 |
| Description | Women for the future conference |
| 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 | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Women of the Future is a one day conference for Year 10 girls hosted by the John Innes Centre, designed to educate, advise and inspire. I was involved as a STEMM professionals and as a woman to tell my story, my research experience and what lead me to chose this career path. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018,2019 |
| URL | https://www.jic.ac.uk/training-careers/work-experience/women-of-the-future/ |
| Description | Youth STEMM Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Youth STEMM Conference is a one day conference for young people ranging from 13 to 18 years old and coming from schools across Norfolk and Suffolk. I was involved as a STEMM professionals to share my research experience and what lead me to chose this career path. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | https://www.jic.ac.uk/blog/youth-stemm-award-mid-term-conference/ |