Wheat and barley starch with reduced B-granule content

Research from Dr David Seung’s group at the John Innes Centre has brought clarity to the longstanding question of how starch granules form in the seeds of Triticeae crops - wheat, barley, and rye - unlocking diverse potential benefits for numerous industries and for human health. At the same time the research provides strains of wheat and barley with starch dramatically reduced in B-granule content.

The team used genomic and experimental techniques to show that A- and B-type granules are formed by two distinct mechanisms.  By identifying an enzyme involved in B-type granule initiation and by then using conventional plant breeding techniques to remove this protein, they were able to produce wheat with low or no B-granules - with no penalties on plant development and without reducing the overall starch content

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Initiation of B-type starch granules in wheat endosperm requires the plastidial α-glucan phosphorylase PHS1 was published in Plant Cell.

The PHS1 technology (22.696) is available through PBL.