Award details

UK-China Translational Biology Research and Knowledge Exchange Centre

Reference	BBS/OS/NW/000005
Principal Investigator / Supervisor	Professor Zoe Wilson
Co-Investigators / Co-Supervisors
Institution	University of Nottingham
Department	University of Nottingham Department
Funding type	Research
Value (£)	250,000
Status	Completed
Type	Research Grant
Start date	01/01/2015
End date	30/12/2018
Duration	47 months

Abstract

To conduct collaborative high-quality research that addresses the issues of increasing crop yield in a sustainable manner with low environmental impact to help achieve Global Food Security. The specific objectives are:- 1. To conduct joint research in plant reproduction to understand the impact of temperature stress on pollen development and to develop tools and resources for breeding, hybrid development and increased crop productivity, and thus increase food security. 2. To facilitate the transfer of understanding of genetic traits and molecular mechanisms from model systems to crops of economic importance. 3. To develop and apply new approaches to key areas of plant and crop research, by using different skill sets from the partnering Institutions. 4. To train young/new researchers with the skills to enable them to address these questions 5. To Increase industry engagement in both China and the UK.

Summary

Viable pollen is critical for fertilisation and seed set, and therefore crop yield and food production. Control of pollen viability and release is also essential for plant breeding and hybrid production. Hybrid crops tend to have “hybrid vigour”, enabling them to out-yield equivalent selfed lines by up to 30%. However, a difficulty with hybrid production is that self-fertilisation must be prevented. Providing a greater understanding of pollen development will provide opportunities to regulate pollen fertility and therefore aid hybrid development and selective breeding. Pollen formation is also highly sensitive to environmental stress. This sensitivity has major implications for agriculture, with temperature stress posing a serious threat to crop yields, with the potential for devastating future crop losses if tolerance to pollen temperature stress is not developed. This programme will extend the collaboration between University of Nottingham and Shanghai Jiao Tong University to conduct collaborative high-quality research, to develop and apply new tools and resources to understand pollen development. By capitalising upon the different skill sets from the partnering Institutions, knowledge and resources will be transferred and applied to aid breeding and hybrid production. The specific aims are i) to understand the impact of temperature stress on pollen development, ii) to develop tools and resources for plant breeding and hybrid production, and iii) to facilitate the transfer of understanding of genetic traits and molecular mechanisms from model systems to crops of economic importance. The project will involve close collaboration, exchange of germplasm, techniques and ideas, facilitated by exchange visits and video conferencing meetings.

Committee	Not funded via Committee
Research Topics	Crop Science, Plant Science
Research Priority	X – Research Priority information not available
Research Initiative	Newton Fund - Initial Awards (NFIA) [2017]
Funding Scheme	X – not Funded via a specific Funding Scheme

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