Low viscosity wheat for improved properties for fermentation and animal feed

在BBSRC项目BB/F014295/1中，我们鉴定了决定小麦籽粒可溶性非淀粉多糖（NSP）含量和浸出物粘度的基因。使用GM方法来抑制这些基因的作用，我们生产了NSP含量和提取物粘度降低70- 80%的小麦植物。这种低粘度特性在威士忌和动物饲料用途的小麦品种中是非常理想的，但由于监管成本和消费者的抵制，转基因方法是不可能的。在这里，我们打算使用TILLING的非转基因方法开始开发低粘度小麦，以找到这些基因（等位基因）的非活性版本。到项目结束时，我们将为所有靶基因鉴定出这样的等位基因，并确定它们是否赋予低粘度特性，并检查是否没有不利影响。然后我们的育种伙伴将开始将这些等位基因引入商业小麦品种的过程。

Iin BBSRC Project BB/F014295/1 we identified genes whcih are responsible for determing the soluble non-starch polysaccharide (NSP) content and extract viscosity of wheat grain. Using a GM approach to suppress the action of these genes, we produced wheat plants where NSP content and extract viscosity was lowered by 70-80%. This low-viscosity property would be highly desirable in wheat varieties for whisky and animal feed uses, however a GM approach is not possible due to regulatory costs and consummer resistance. Here we intend to start developing a low-viscosity wheat using the non-GM approach of TILLING to find versions of these genes (alleles) which are inactive. By the project end, we will have identified such alleles for all the target genes and established whether they confer the low-viscosity property and check that there are no adverse effects. Our breeding partner will then begin the process of inroducing these alleles into commercial wheat varieties.