In a new study, scientists from the Kurchatov Genome Center of the Institute of Cytology and Genetics SB RAS studied which genes influence the concentration of seven different chemical elements in the grain of Russian wheat varieties: calcium, potassium, manganese, magnesium, zinc, iron and copper. As a result of the study, it was possible to identify four genes that are associated with an increase or decrease in their concentration. This knowledge allows for more accurate selection of Russian wheat varieties.
The results were published in the journal Plants. Wheat plays an important role in food security around the world. Wheat grain contains various substances, including those that help avoid the so-called “hidden hunger,” that is, a deficiency of micro- and macroelements and vitamins in people. Therefore, the issue of selection, taking into account increasing the concentration of chemical compounds important for health, plays a paramount role. “In this work, using the method of genome-wide association studies, we studied which DNA regions affect the concentration of seven chemical elements in the grain of Russian wheat varieties, and discovered four new genes. In the course of further work, we were able to fairly well analyze their functional role and what processes the proteins they encode are involved in,” said Nadezhda Potapova, a junior researcher at the Kurchatov Genome Center at the Institute of Cytology and Genetics SB RAS. “The work we have done is interesting from a ...
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