A Community Resource for Wheat and Rice Transformation

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Rice and wheat are two of the world's most important crops. In 2017, global wheat and rice production is forecast to reach 749 and 503 million tonnes respectively. Despite this, global food security analysts estimate that food production needs to double to feed 9.5 billion people by 2050. As our climate changes in the future we will need wheat and rice varieties which are better adapted to drought and reduced fertilizer inputs, and are resistant to new pests and diseases to maintain a sustainable supply of affordable, nutritious and safe food. Breeding these new climate-adapted varieties has to start now, based on genetic research which uses all the available tools to study gene function and regulation. Many technologies will contribute to tackling these targets and it is inevitable that genetic modification (GM) will make a contribution. This will either be directly, with the development and introduction of GM wheat varieties with new traits, or indirectly, as a research tool to better understand how trait genes function.GM crops have to date have largely been confined to traits giving resistance to herbicides or insects, but a new generation of traits which confer drought tolerance, disease resistance, yield improvements or health benefits are now being examined which will have an important role to play in achieving food security and future increases in production. Some of these genes come from other crop species and would be impossible to study in cereals without GM.The Community Resource in Wheat and Rice Transformation will make it easier and more cost effective for UK academic researchers to access our high throughput wheat and rice transformation systems. It will encourage plant scientists working in other species to evaluate their genes in these important crops, and provide valuable materials for further research. In addition, the funding will also allow the technology to advance, increasing both the genetic tools available for gene expression and the opportunities to fine tune or abolish the expression of targeted genes in wheat.