Sweetening the deal for narrow-leafed lupin (Lupinus angustifolius L.): genomic research to manage quinolizidine alkaloid accumulation in the grain

Date

Tuesday 12 September 2017

Time

12:30-13:30 (AEST – Canberra Brisbane Armidale Werribee); 12:00 (ACST – Adelaide); 10:30 (AWST – Perth)

Venues

CSIRO: Black Mountain – Discovery Theatre; Adelaide Waite – B101-FG-SmallWICWest; Brisbane QBP – Level 3 South telepresence room (3.323); Armidale – B55-FG-R00-Small; Perth Floreat – B1b Boardroom; Werribee (Melbourne) – Peacock Room

Speaker

Karen Frick (PhD Candidate) CSIRO Agriculture and Food, UWA School of Agriculture and Environment

Synopsis

Narrow-leafed lupin is a major grain legume crop that has gained attention as a human health food, however one factor complicating its acceptibilty into the health food market is the accumulation of quinolizidine alkaloids in the grain. Levels of these toxic and bitter secondary metabolites must remain below 200 mg/kg for food purposes, although levels can vary considerably, often exceeding this limit. Currently, mechanisms of both alkaloid production and environmental influence on this are poorly understood. This project makes use of available genomic and transcriptomic data for narrow-leafed lupin to further elucidate the alkaloid biosynthetic pathway, by identifying candidate genes associated with alkaloid biosynthesis, the regulation of the biosynthetic pathway, and the transport of alkaloids from vegetative tissue to the grain. We also investigate the expression patterns of the alkaloid biosynthetic genes, the changes in this expression in narrow-leafed lupin under abiotic and biotic stresses, and how alkaloid levels are affected by this. This research will assist lupin breeders and growers to produce high-value narrow-leafed lupin grain that is suitable for food purposes.

Biography

Karen is final year PhD student at UWA, carrying out her research project with CSIRO Agriculture and Food at Floreat. Previously she has completed her honour’s research at UWA and Kings Park Plant Science Laboratory and received her B.Sc. from Murdoch University. Her research areas include genetics and genomics, molecular biology and plant physiology.

This is a public seminar.

No visitor pass is required for non-CSIRO attendees attending via Discovery Lecture Theatre