Scientists Examine Wheat Genes to Boost the Crop’s Disease Resistance
New research that could increase the natural resistance of wheat to a devastating fungal disease has begun at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh.
The research will examine why some wheat varieties are more resistant than others to this disease, according to a press release.
Dr Angela Feechan, a plant pathologist – an expert in plant diseases at Heriot-Watt’s Institute for Life and Earth Sciences and her team will investigate specific genes in various wheat varieties and how their products interact with the fungus responsible for septoria, known as Zymoseptoria tritici (Z. tritici). This fungus infiltrates wheat plants through spores, impairing the plants’ ability to photosynthesize by turning their leaves yellow and speckled and causing dead patches to form.
“We think there are very small differences in the genes of different wheat varieties that determine whether or not they are resistant to this disease,” Dr Feechan said. “If we can find the difference in these genes that give us resistance, they could be used to breed resistant wheat varieties in the field.”
The release notes that the UK produced 14 million tonnes of wheat in 2023. Wheat accounts for about a third of total cereal production in Scotland, which produced more than 980 thousand tonnes of wheat in 2023.
The Heriot-Watt researchers will be working with a collection of 300 wheat varieties at INRAE, France’s National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment, as part of a collaboration.
The research is supported by a postdoctoral fellowship from UK Research and Innovation, the UK’s national funding agency for science and research. Dr. Debabrata Dutta, a specialist in plant biology, will join Heriot-Watt University to contribute to this study. Dr. Feechan emphasized that enhancing wheat’s natural resistance through its existing genetic diversity is different from genetic modification, which changes a plant’s genetic structure.
Increasing crop yields—the total amount of crops produced—is a key focus in global efforts to combat food insecurity, which refers to the lack of access to sufficient, affordable, and nutritious food. According to the United Nations World Food Programme, over 300 million people in 71 countries are facing hunger this year due to food insecurity.
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