Fructan biology in cereal grains and its impact on grain morphology, yield, composition, and plant performance

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Fructans represent one of the most important groups of water–soluble polysaccharides in the plant kingdom. Despite the general relation of fructan content to carbohydrate partitioning and storage as well as to the protection against various abiotic stresses, the genetic and molecular context of fructan biology in cereal grains has been investigated sparsely. The project MA 4814/3-1 aims at resolving fructan biology in cereal grains and its impact on grain morphology, yield, composition, and plant performance. The work is performed at the ARC Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Plant Energy Biology, Adelaide (host) and with the help of associated partners.A panel of genetically profiled two row Spring barley lines has been investigated for perturbations in fructan patterns. Genome wide association analysis enabled to dissect new genes related to the observed variability (Task 1). To improve future screening of relevant lines and breeding processes spectral data from mature grain of aforementioned lines were acquired. Spectral signatures indicative for particular fructan patterns are currently evaluated and used for the development of a fructan sensor (Task 2). Detected perturbations in fructan patterns of the barley lines are also correlated with information on grain morphology, yield and composition as well as with plant stress tolerance values. A comprehensive drought stress experiment has been performed under controlled conditions with a selected subset of lines. Correlation analysis will allow detecting significant associations shortly (Task 3). Subcellular localization studies build on previous work to prove fructan integration into membranes, which is possibly related to membrane stabilization and detoxification of reactive oxygen species. Two antibodies with particular specificity were identified and are currently tested for their applicability in immunohistological experiments. Also, barley starch and beta-glucan mutants with altered fructan patterns and grain morphology were identified, representing valuable material to gain additional information about the regulation of carbon partitioning in cereals (Task 4). The applied grant prolongation for one year will enable to: a) validate the detected new genetic-molecular relations by expression data, b) to finalise the fructan sensor development, c) to complete the stress experiments supported by an Australian grant, and d) to perform the immunohistological analysis of selected barley lines. Together, the work planned in this additional year will allow for the high quality publication of the valuable results and thus supporting the carrier development chances of the applicant.The gained knowledge and technologies will be transferred to a panel of frost tolerant wheat lines at the Julius Kühn-Institut (JKI) Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants, Institute for Resistance Research and Stress Tolerance, Quedlinburg, in the returning phase (Task 5).