Plant breeding has played a significant role over the last 150 years in increasing food production to meet the needs of the growing global population.
The process involves crossing parental varieties and identifying superior offspring that combine the best gene variants (alleles).
Mechanism of Breeding
Meiosis and Recombination:
Special cell division process called meiosis allows for the combination of alleles from different genes.
Recombination shuffles genetic variation present in the parents through controlled breaking and rejoining of chromosomes.
Challenges in Cereal Crop Breeding
Major cereal crops (e.g., wheat, barley) often have large genomes.
Recombination mainly occurs at the ends of chromosomes, leading to:
20-30% of alleles being trapped in regions of chromosomes that rarely recombine.
Inaccessible genetic variation that hinders breeding progress.
The Shuffle Project
A team of eight researchers is working on the ERC-funded project "Shuffle" to develop breakthrough technologies to improve recombination distribution along chromosomes.
Goal: Access currently inaccessible genetic variation to create new plant varieties with desirable alleles.
Research Approach
Understanding Recombination Proteins:
Shuffle utilizes naturally or newly created disruptive gene variants to study the functions of various proteins involved in recombination.
Assessing the impact of these variants on recombination frequency and patterns.
Potential Outcomes
Success in the Shuffle project could:
Allow breeders to reach inaccessible genetic variation.
Accelerate plant breeding progress and develop improved, resilient crops.
Transfer knowledge to other crops, contributing to sustainable increases in global food production.