Graduate Research Course
Wheat Biophysics & Biochemistry
Triticum aestivum — from Fertile-Crescent domestication to the Borlaug Green Revolution, from gluten rheology to Ug99 stem rust. The crop that feeds 2.5 billion people.
About This Course
Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum) is an allohexaploid (AABBDD) that formed ~8 000 years ago by three rounds of interspecific hybridization. It is the world’s most widely cultivated crop (217 million hectares), provides 20% of human calories, and is the source of the viscoelastic gluten network that makes leavened bread possible. This course spans the genome (IWGSC 2018), photosynthesis, grain development, gluten rheology, rust resistance genetics, CRISPR-based breeding, and climate-yield projections.
Cross-links: Biochemistry,Tree Biophysics,Climate & Biodiversity,Flower Biology.
Nine Modules
M0
Triticum Evolution & Domestication
Einkorn → emmer → spelt → bread wheat polyploidization (AABB/AABBDD), Fertile Crescent origin 10k BP, IWGSC genome 2018, Doebley framework.
M1
Grain Anatomy & Biochemistry
Endosperm starch granules A/B, aleurone, bran, germ, scutellum, storage-protein bodies, nutritional composition, Evers 2002 anatomy.
M2
Gluten, Gliadin, Glutenin
Disulfide-crosslinked HMW-GS polymer, viscoelasticity, Shewry 2009 structure, rheology, celiac disease gliadin epitopes, alpha-gliadin 33-mer.
M3
Photosynthesis & C3 Physiology
Rubisco carboxylation vs. oxygenation, photorespiration cost 25%, canopy light interception, Farquhar model, stomatal conductance, leaf anatomy.
M4
Water Use & Drought Tolerance
Stomatal regulation, ABA signaling, osmotic adjustment proline/glycine betaine, root hydraulic conductance, Passioura transpiration-efficiency framework.
M5
Nitrogen & Fertilization
Haber-Bosch revolution, N-use efficiency, nitrate assimilation (NR, NiR, GS/GOGAT), amino-acid remobilization, urea management, environmental N loss.
M6
Pests & Stem Rust Ug99
Puccinia graminis stem rust Ug99 lineage, race-specific resistance (Sr genes), Fusarium head blight DON mycotoxin, aphid/BYDV, Borlaug's rust breakdowns.
M7
Breeding & CRISPR
Borlaug Green Revolution semi-dwarf Rht1/Rht2, GWAS for yield QTL, doubled haploids, speed breeding, CRISPR powdery-mildew MLO edits, synthetic hexaploids.
M8
Climate, Yield & Food Security
Asseng 2015 yield losses 6%/°C, heat-stress sterility at flowering, CO2 fertilization, Asseng & Zhao 2019 global projections, FAO food security.