Award details

15-IWYP: Molecular Dissection of Spike Yield Components in Wheat

Reference	BBS/E/J/000CA636
Principal Investigator / Supervisor	Professor Cristobal Uauy
Co-Investigators / Co-Supervisors
Institution	John Innes Centre
Department	John Innes Centre Department
Funding type	Research
Value (£)	22,899
Status	Completed
Type	Institute Project
Start date	01/01/2016
End date	31/03/2017
Duration	14 months

Abstract

Urgent action is needed to sustainably increase global wheat production. However, limited knowledge of the genes controlling wheat yield is hampering efforts to advance towards this goal using science-based solutions. The aim of this proposal is to define, characterize, and manipulate genes that regulate the early stages of spike and carpel/grain development and that govern spike yield components (grains per spike and grain weight). We will apply innovative sequencing-based approaches to exploit novel sources of induced genetic variation in these two traits to increase the genetic yield potential of wheat. We will test if this potential is realized in elite wheat varieties. Understanding the genes controlling different yield components will allow us to combine and exploit variation across all three homoeologous genomes, and to overcome the perennial problem of functional redundancy observed in polyploid wheat. The combination of novel allelic variants in genes affecting grain number and weight represents an opportunity to generate significant increases in wheat yield potential not previously exploited in wheat improvement programmes. We propose an ambitious programme that will address the following specific objectives to increase wheat grain yield potential: 1. Define the changes in the wheat transcriptome associated with early spike and grain development 2. Identify key genes determining spike yield components through forward genetics 3. Implement reverse genetic tools to discover and characterise genes improving spike yield components 4. Engineer and deploy allelic combinations for increased wheat yield potential and characterise their pleiotropic effects and epistatic interactions Upon completion, this project will deliver IP-free pre-breeding germplasm with novel allelic combinations in genes affecting spike yield components.

Summary

unavailable

Committee	Not funded via Committee
Research Topics	Crop Science, Plant Science
Research Priority	X – Research Priority information not available
Research Initiative	X - not in an Initiative
Funding Scheme	X – not Funded via a specific Funding Scheme

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