The combination of heat and drought changes biochemical reactions, resulting in the production of chemicals known as free radicals that reduce yield. Wheat can limit the damage to yields by detoxifying these chemicals using a variety of enzymes and antioxidants. Although this trait can reduce yield losses in harsh environments, it is not promoted in breeding programs because in the past there has been no method for determining the genes that control the process.
WSU researchers, led by Dr. Andrei Smertenko, developed a method to measure the amount of certain cell components in wheat that detoxify the free radicals. Measuring the levels of these components in response to harsh climate conditions will provide clues to which genetic markers in wheat correlate with increased detoxification of free radicals. This knowledge will allow breeders to target and promote those genes to enhance the detoxification process.
“There’s no simple way to find out how plants cope with increased heat and drought conditions at the genetic level,” said Dr. Smertenko. “Discovery of the resiliency genes is difficult because chemical reactions inside plants are hard to observe. But we will be looking at how the plants react to stress and we predict measuring wheat varieties adapted to different geographical locations will reveal genetic markers of lower oxidative damage.”
The research team is composed of an international collaboration of partners, including CIMMYT (International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center), Flinders University and WSU and four associates, the Institute of Plant Breeding and Genetics and the Institute of Biology and Medicine of Taras Shevchenko National University, both in Ukraine, the Institute of Plant Biology and Biotechnology in Kazakhstan, and LongReach Plant Breeders.
The researchers will test hundreds of varieties of wheat to find less than a dozen that are the most promising for promoting this trait. Those varieties will then be tested in different environments to ensure the detoxification remains efficient in different geographic locations and growing conditions. CIMMYT will help share these genetic lines with breeders around the world.
Image: Sampling spring wheat population for analysis of drought response (Lind, WA). Courtesy of Dr. Andrei Smertenko, Washington State University.
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