Genetic transformation and RNAi has been used to develop varieties of durum and bread wheat with very low content of gliadins, major responsibles of triggering coeliac disease. Breads made using flours from these lines showed technological and organoleptic properties comparable to those of normal wheat. Therefore, they could be used in the elaboration of foods suitable for coeliac customers.

Genetic Transformation and Functional Genomics
Department of Plant Breeding
The research line is focused in the breeding of crops, mainly cereals, but also brassicas, legumes, and olive tree, for the development of new germplasm, better adapted, with higher added value, and/or new uses for traditional crops. The group uses classical breeding techniques and the state-of-the-art technologies: cytogenetics, molecular markers and mapping, transcriptomic, genetic transformation, and RNAi.Novel studies focus on cereal chromosomal manipulation and on the use of biotechnological tools to facilitate the introgression into crops (mainly wheat) of genes of agronomic interest and to promote interspecific recombination in cereals.
Among the characters under study include the genetic control of carotenoids content in wheat and tritordeum grain; agronomic traits in olive, including oil content and yield components; disease resistance in legumes; bioethanol production from lignocellulosic material; bread-baking quality and nutritional properties of wheat and tritordeum; the development of new varieties of cereals suitable for coeliacs.
COMPONENTES

María Dolores García Molina
Becaria predoctoral
Diego Dionisio González Espínola
Becario predoctoral
María Gabriela Mattera
Becaria predoctoral
Francisco José Ostos Garrido
Becario predoctoral
María Dolores Rey Santomé
Contratada predoctoral proyectoCristina Rodríguez‑Suárez · Elena Mellado‑Ortega · Dámaso Hornero‑Méndez · Sergio G. Atienza. Increase in transcript accumulation of Psy1 and e‑Lcy genes in grain development is associated with differences in seed carotenoid content between durum wheat and tritordeum. Plant Mol Biol (2014) 84:659–673 DOI 10.1007/s11103-013-0160-y
Javier Gil-Humanes, Fernando Pistón, Stig Tollefsen, Ludvig M. Sollid, and Francisco Barro. (2010). Effective shut down in the expression of celiac disease related wheat gliadin T-cell epitopes by RNA interference. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 107(39) 17023-17028. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1007773107.
Calderón, MC., Ramírez, MC., Martín, A., Prieto, P. (2012) Development of Hordeum chilense introgression lines in durum wheat: a tool for breeders and complex trait analysis. Plant breeding 131:733-738 .
Martín, A. and E. Sánchez-Monge Laguna (1982). Cytology and morphology of the amphiploid Hordeum chilense x Triticum turgidum conv. durum. Euphytica 31: 262-267.
Navas-Lopez, J. F.; Ostos-Garrido, F. J.; Castillo, A.; Martin, A.; Gimenez, M. J & Pistón, F.. Phenolic content variability and its chromosome location in tritordeum. Frontiers in Plant Science, 2014, 5
- Interspecific hybridization
- Haploid production
- Genetic transformation of cereals
- Molecular markers for agronomic characters
Antonio Pedro Martín Muñoz – Profesor de Investigación – Responsable del grupo
Francisco Barro Losada – Investigador Científico
Sergio Gustavo Atienza Peñas – Científico Titular
Pilar Prieto Aranda – Científica Titular
Fernando Pistón Pistón – Ramón y Cajal
Enriqueta Alós Ros – Contratada postdoctoral
María Dolores García Molina – Becaria predoctoral
Diego Dionisio González Espínola – Becario Predoctoral
María Gabriela Mattera – Becaria predoctoral
Francisco José Ostos Garrido – Becario predoctoral
Mª Dolores Rey Santomé – Contratada predoctoral proyecto
Mª del Carmen Calderón Pérez – Titulada superior
María José Giménez Alvear – Técnico de grado medio
Carmen Victoria Ozuna Serafini – Contratada proyecto
Tadeo Bellot Bernabé Técnico Superior de Actividades Técnicas y profesionales
Ana María Pozo Cruz – Técnico de Laboratorio
Ana Adela García Rul – Auxiliar de laboratorio
Carmen Ramírez Alcántara – Ayudante de Investigación
Encarnación Ramos Naz – Auxiliar de Investigación
Susana Sánchez León – Estudiante master
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