Better Crops Faster

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Better Crops - Faster
CONASTA 2005Michael McLeanMolecular Plant
Breeding CRC
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SCU
GRDC
DA/MLA/GGDF
BREEDING Wheat Barley Pastures
COMMERCIAL ABB Grain BASF Plant Science
(BPS) Wrightson Ltd
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MPBCRC objectives
ENSURE THE COMPETITIVENESS OF THE CROP AND
PASTURE INDUSTRIES THROUGH
Excellence in research application of molecular
plant breeding
Educating a new generation of researchers
breeders
Commercialising technology leading to robust
varieties
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Molecular technologies
Genetic engineering Transformation Gene isolation
cloning
Molecular markers
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Molecular breeding which crops?
gt CEREALS wheat barley
gt PASTURES grasses, clovers


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MPB research

• Understanding the genetic basis of traits
• Understanding the physical relationships between
  genes and molecular markers
• Getting new genes into new plant varieties

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Outcomes for pastures

• Enhanced herbage quality
• Reduced loss to insect attack
• Improved animal health welfare
• Improved human health

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Outcomes for cereals

• Excellent quality beyond current achievable
  levels
• New disease resistances - novel combinations
  new genes for generalised resistance
• Resistance to abiotic stress

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Plant breeding
Where its been and where its going
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Why breed new varieties?

• Just about every kind of food has been
  selectively bred
• Aim to improve yield, quality, tolerance to
  stresses, time to maturity, colour etc
• Pests constantly changing
• Varieties have limited life spans
• Increase productivity without increasing area

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Traditional breeding

x
NEW VARIETIES Which one is drought tolerant?
Low yield Drought tolerant
High yield Drought susceptible
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Traditional breeding
Approx. 14 years
TIME CONSUMING!
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Traditional plant breeding Limitations

• Introducing just one trait takes a long time
• Multiple traits impossible!
• Limited to phenotypic evaluation (eg performance
  of adult plants in the field)

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Phenotypic vs Genotypic breeding
?? A tale of two princes
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Phenotypic vs Genotypic breeding
?? Prince William
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Phenotypic vs Genotypic breeding
?? Prince Harry
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Phenotypic vs Genotypic breeding
?? A tale of two princes

• Both a product of an elite cross
• Very different performance in the field
• Cant (probably shouldnt) predict behaviour of
  people using gene technology
• In plants we can

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Molecular markers
?? What they do

• Allow us to screen for genotypic variations
• Reduce the need for field screening

?? What they are

• Flags that indicate the presence of certain
  genes
• Small sequences of DNA, closely associated with
  gene of interest
• Easy to find

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Restriction enzymes
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Gel electrophoresis
1. Cut DNA
2. Add dye
5. DNA stained, pieces identified
Big
3. Load gel
4. Electric current makes DNA move. Sorts
according to size
Current
Small
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Marker-assisted selection

Gel with multiple DNA samples
Parents
Selection of 5 offspring
1 2 3 4 5
SUS. RES.
Gene
Marker
7 plants show resistance markers
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Molecular plant breeding
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Molecular plant breeding
Approx. 7 years
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Genetic modification
High yield Drought susceptible
Low yield Drought tolerant
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Genetic modification

• Two main techniques
• Agrobacterium-mediated transformation
• Biolistic transformation

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Agrobacterium-mediated transformation
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Biolistic transformation
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Biolistic transformation
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Benefits of GM

• Test function of genes
• Fast, efficient and controlled
• By modifying genes, we can
• up- or down-regulate production of proteins
• switch production off
• introduce new traits

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Pastures

• Pastures Australias most valuable crop
• Directly contribute 12b to Aust economy
• Most cost-effective livestock feed

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The Holy Grail of pasture research

• Prior to the CRC, DPI Vic considered
• areas essential to Victorian agriculture
• directions in biotechnology
• More digestible, more nutritious, more productive
• Dairy Australia support

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Basic research

• Looked at chemical pathways
• Key processes involved in energy storage
• Found candidate genes
• Knocked out genes and looked at resulting
  physiology
• antisense technology
• Macro and molecular work

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Transgenic pastures
?? Lignin
?? Lignin

• Structural component of plant cell wall
• High lignin less easily digestible
• Genes responsible can be turned down
• Also up-regulation for turf

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Transgenic pastures
?? Fructan

• Main energy storage carbohydrate in grasses
• High fructan more easily digestible
• Enhanced performance under drought/cold stress
• Increased productivity
• Genes responsible can be turned up

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Transgenic pastures
?? Pollen allergens

• Hayfever affects up to 25 of population
• Ryegrass pollen is one of the most abundant
  pollens
• Genes responsible can be turned down

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Transgenic pastures
Lignin biosynthesis
Development commercialisation
Fructan metabolism
Reduced pollen allergens

• Enhanced herbage quality / animal productivity
• Improved human and environmental health
• Perennial ryegrass, hybrid ryegrass, tall fescue

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Transgenic pastures

• Next step
• Introduce genes into commercial varieties
• Test, test, test
• Regulatory framework
• Time consuming
• Thorough
• Necessary
• Marketable product approx 10 years

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Regulatory framework - GMOs
Inter-Governmental Agreement and Gene Technology
Acts
Gene Technology Ministerial Council
Gene Technology Standing Committee
Commonwealth IDC on Gene Technology
Provide advice at the request of the Ministerial
Council or GT Regulator
GENE TECHNOLOGY REGULATOR
State and Territory Technical Regulatory
Consultation
Office of the Gene Technology Regulator
ENVIRONMENT MINISTER
LOCAL COUNCILS
FSANZ
AQIS
APVMA
NHMRC
NICNAS
TGA
Technical Regulatory Consultation
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AQIS - Imports - pest/disease risk
APVMA Ag. chemicals vet. medicines
TGA Human therapeutics
OGTR live and viable GMOs
NICNAS Industrial chemicals
FSANZ Food Standards
NHMRC gene therapy embryo research
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GM in Australia

• Limited controlled release licences
• 15 cotton (insect resistance, oil content)
• 3 canola (herbicide tolerance)
• 2 pineapple (flowering, rot resistance)
• 2 oilseed poppy (alkaloid production)
• 1 clover (virus resistance)
• 1 grapevine (flower, fruit, colour, sugar)
• 1 papaya (ripening)
• 1 sugarcane (agronomic performance)
• 7 carnations (colour, longer shelf life)

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Education

• MPBCRC has an education program
• PhD, Honours, High school
• Get into Genes workshop

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Workshop Get into Genes
Providing context for biotech education
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Workshop Get into Genes

• Plant biotech workshop
• Years 9/10
• Covers
• conventional breeding
• gel electrophoresis
• molecular markers
• transformation
• Linked with curriculum
• Teacher resources and follow up notes provided
• FREE!

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Conclusion

• Plant breeding is ongoing
• Gene technology can speed this process
• Australia is among the world leaders in pasture
  improvement
• Regulation is thorough and necessary

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Relevance of MPBCRC
INDUSTRY
MPBCRC role is DELIVERY
BreedingPrograms Seed Distributors Farmers Bulk
Handlers Distributors Marketers End Users
DISCOVERY
CONVERSION
DELIVERY
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MPBCRC products

• Grasses and Clovers with
• improved herbage quality
• improved health aspects

• Wheats and barleys with
• enhanced, premium quality
• tolerances to drought, frost, salinity etc
• tolerances to disease resistance

Technologies, tools, breeding strategies
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Markers for wheats
Premium quality - Novel glutenin alleles

• Tolerances to
• ? drought
• ? waterlogging
• ? salinity
• ? frost
• diseases
• preharvest sprouting

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Markers for barleys
Enhanced malting quality

• Tolerances to
• drought
• salinity
• diseases
• ? preharvest sprouting

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Impact on breeding programs
?? CCN-resistant barley

• Sloop SA - New malting barley variety with CCN
  resistance
• Created in half the time of traditional breeding

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Wheats with drought tolerance
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Wheats with disease resistance
Particularly important where there is no current
resistance
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Breeders software
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Bioinformatics

• Managing and analysing biological data using
  computers
• Large amounts of complex data
• Databases of genomic information

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Education
Trained researchers plant breeders
Education and training
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Mapping