Wheat defends itself against disease by producing chemicals, new research has led to the discovery of the several sets of genes that are switched on in response to an attack and a new molecule named ellarinacin.
The research by the Osbourn and Uauy groups of the John Innes Centre leveraged recent advances in mapping of bread wheat’s complex genome to make the discovery.
A new species of bacteria with naturally acquired antibiotic resistance has been discovered by researchers at the John Innes Centre in the gut of the Greater Wax Moth. The moth has a similar immune system to mammals and the new Enterococcus bacteria is closely related to strains responsible for hospital-acquired infections, so the discovery provides useful insights into how resistance is acquired.
The John Innes Centre has been developing plant-based solutions to chronic health conditions. Conditions such as Type 2 diabetes, anaemia and Parkinson’s Disease can be mitigated with wrinkled peas, fortified floor and genetically modified tomatoes respectively, recent work has shown.
Major breakthroughs in our understanding of pest predators and plant immune responses are offering the potential for non-chemical pest control
Can we really feed 40,000 people with a ‘SkyFarm’? Or will everyone in London have a ‘Personal Food Computer’ by 2040? Provocative questions…
This Agri-Tech Week event showcases agri-tech innovation from across the Norwich Research Park (NRP) around the theme of climate resilience in agriculture.
The NRP’s six science partners form an international centre of excellence in life and environmental sciences research, with particular strengths in plant and microbial sciences, genetics and genomics, climate and geo-sciences and food, health and human nutrition.
The event includes contributions from the John Innes Centre, UEA, Earlham Institute, and NRP tenants.
The best defence against wheat rust fungi is to grow varieties resistant to infection and now scientists have developed MARPLE, a hand-held DNA sequencing device, that can define the precise strain of the wheat rust fungus in a farmer’s field within just 48 hours of collecting samples.
Researchers from the John Innes Centre with colleagues in Japan have found that unusual protein activity in rice could be explored to give the crops an edge over devastating rice blast disease.
The delicately patterned Barberry Carpet moth is one of England’s species most at threat of extinction, but its conservation could risk helping a devastating wheat disease to re-establish.
John Innes scientist achieves international recognition for cutting-edge research helping to make modern wheat more resistant to pathogens.
A major hurdle to the uptake of research into new wheat varieties is that breeders do not have the specialist bioinformatics training required to utilise the latest
A new line of fast-growing sprouting broccoli that removes reliance on seasonality and could double crop production will be discussed at an Agri-Tech East event at