Characterisation of glutenin subunits in spelt wheat (Triticum aestivum ssp. spelta L)

Este estudo tem como objecto uma prática profissional de design gráfico, sistemática e continuada e, nesse sentido, a escolha e a reflexão teórica sobre as opções tomadas em cada um dos projectos apresentados servirão o objectivo de demonstrar que aliada a uma prática autoral, cada um destes trabalhos foi executado para servir os objectivos de uma encomenda, ponto de partida essencial em todos eles. São analisadas as diferentes estratégias de abordagem, quer do ponto de vista da formulação e da fundamentação teóricas, quer do ponto de vista da sua materialização. O estudo procura entender em que medida as diferentes abordagens conceptuais e metodológicas respondem aos programas dos diferentes projectos no sentido de tornar claras as mensagens que eles procuram veicular. A investigação divide-se em três partes e uma conclusão. A primeira parte caracteriza o momento da história do design gráfico que corresponde ao nascimento do estúdio. Trata das ideias e das personalidades, da herança e da novidade, da partilha de conhecimentos. Na segunda, são descritas as condições locais que levaram à constituição do estúdio e o seu percurso. Caracteriza-se o espaço físico, o volume de projectos e a sua distribuição por diferentes áreas de actuação e também, os mecanismos de criação de uma cultura do estúdio. Na terceira parte, é analisada uma selecção de projectos que se distinguem pela qualidade dos programas e das equipas e pelos resultados obtidos. O estudo realizado revela que a prática do estúdio fba. assenta no princípio de que o design é encarado como uma forma de clarificação e ilustra o modo como esta posição influencia o processo de design. Adicionalmente, a síntese dos resultados do trabalho, demonstra a utilidade desta tese para a compreensão da prática do estúdio e do seu futuro.Tese de doutoramento em Arte Contemporânea, no ramo de Linguística, apresentada ao Colégio das Artes da Universidade de Coimbr

Expressed Ay HMW glutenin subunit in Australian wheat cultivars indicates a positive effect on wheat quality

Out of the six HMW-GS genes, 1Ay is usually not expressed in bread wheat cultivars. In the current study, an active 1Ay gene has been integrated into two Australian wheat cultivars, Livingston and Bonnie Rock, through conventional backcross approach. Three sister lines at BC4F4 generation for each cross were obtained and underwent a series of quality testing. Results show that the active 1Ay subunit increased the amount total protein, Glutenin/Gliadin ratio and unextractable polymeric protein. The expressed 1Ay also resulted in up to 10% increase of gluten content, 5% increase of glutenin, and hence increased the HMW- to LMW-GS ratio without affecting the relative amount of other subunits. Milling yield and Flour swelling were decreased in the Livingston lines and remained mostly unchanged for Bonnie Rock. Alveograph result showed that Ay improved dough strength in Livingston and dough extensibility in Bonnie Rock. Zeleny sedimentation value was found to be higher in all three lines of Bonnie Rock but only in one of Livingston derivatives. The dough development time and peak resistance, determined on the micro Z-arm mixer were increased in most cases. Overall, the integration of Ay subunit showed significant positive effects in bread making quality

Towards breeding less allergenic spelt-wheat with low fodmap content — A review

Consumption of “gluten-containing” diet causes disease for a significant minority of people who consume foods derived from wheat, rye, barley, and possibly oat. The fact is, however, that in several types of diseases related to the consumption of “gluten-containing” cereals, the trigger compounds are not components of gluten. The current view of medical experts is that, excluding people suffering from celiac disease, the majority of individuals who are feeling better on the “wheat-free” or “gluten-free” diet could select a food containing much healthier, low level of fermentable oligosaccharides (often called as FODMAP). To satisfy the specific health related demands of certain consumer groups, the challenge is in front of cereal breeding to develop new, “healthier” germplasms, suitable to produce such products by the food industry. This report aims to give an overview of some aspects of recent developments in this booming area, (i) summarizing the up-to-date knowledge on cereals-related health disorders; (ii) reporting on the status of developing celiac-safe cereals, and finally (iii) highlighting the potential of developing “healthier” spelt-based cereal products through the progress in an ongoing spelt breeding program

Fructan Contents in Australian Wheat Varieties Released Over the Last 150 Years

Grain fructans play an important role in the physiology of wheat plants and also impact on the health of consumers of wheat-based products. Given the potential economic importance of fructan levels, if genetic variability could be identified for this trait, it may be a potentially useful breeding target for developing climate-resilient and nutritionally enhanced wheat varieties. The aim of the current study was to screen 78 genetically diverse Australian wheat varieties released between 1860 and 2015 to determine if historic breeding targets have resulted in changes in fructan levels and to identify potential breeding parents for the development of varieties with specific fructan levels. The impact of seasonal conditions on grain fructan levels were also investigated. Analysis of the varieties in this study indicated that historic breeding targets have not impacted on grain fructan levels. Fructan content in flours varied between 1.01 to 2.27%, showing some variation among the varieties. However, a significant variation in fructan levels was observed between different harvest years (mean values for 2015 and 2016 samples were 1.38 and 1.74%, respectively). While large variations in fructan contents of different varieties were not found, there were some varieties with consistently higher or lower fructan contents which could be used to breed varieties with specific fructan levels

Relationships between traditional and fundamental dough-testing methods

Two fundamental test systems were used to evaluate the visco-elastic properties of doughs from wheat samples of three varieties grown at four distinct sites. For comparison, tests were also performed with traditional equipment, namely the Mixograph, an extension tester and a Farinograph-type small-scale recording mixer. Uniaxial dough elongation (with an Instron) produced results similar to the conventional extension tester, except that results were provided in fundamental units (Pascals), the critical value recorded being the elongational stress at maximum strain. Stress relaxation measurements were performed following a small initial shear strain. With this method, it was possible to distinguish between the viscosity and the elastic components of dough visco-elasticity. In all the tests the extra dough-strength properties were evident for the variety (Guardian) that had the 5 + 10 glutenin subunits, in contrast to the other two with the 2 + 12 combination of subunits

Malten, a new synthetic molecule showing in vitro antiproliferative activity against tumour cells and induction of complex DNA structural alterations

Background: Hydroxypyrones represent several classes of molecules known for their high synthetic versatility. This family of molecules shows several interesting pharmaceutical activities and is considered as a promising source of new anti neoplastic compounds. Methods: In the quest to identify new potential anti cancer agents, a new maltol (3-hydroxy-2-methyl-4-pyrone)-derived molecule, named malten (N,N′-bis((3-hydroxy-4-pyron-2-yl)methyl)-N,N′-dimethylethylendiamine), has been synthesised and analysed at both biological and molecular levels for its antiproliferative activity in eight tumour cell lines. Results: Malten exposure led to a dose-dependent reduction in cell survival in all the neoplastic models studied. Sublethal concentrations of malten induce profound cell cycle changes, particularly affecting the S and/or G2-M phases, whereas exposure to lethal doses causes the induction of programmed cell death (apopotosis). The molecular response to malten was also investigated in two biological models: JURKAT and U937 cells. It showed the modulation of genes having key roles in cell cycle progression and apoptosis. Finally, as part of the effort to clarify the action mechanism, we showed that malten is able to impair DNA electrophoretic mobility and drastically reduce both PCR amplificability and fragmentation susceptibility of DNA. Conclusion: Taken together, these results show that malten may exert its antiproliferative activity through the induction of complex DNA structural modifications. This evidence, together with the high synthetic versatility of maltol-derived compounds, makes malten an interesting molecular scaffold for the future design of new potential anticancer agents

New Insights into the Organization, Recombination, Expression and Functional Mechanism of Low Molecular Weight Glutenin Subunit Genes in Bread Wheat

The bread-making quality of wheat is strongly influenced by multiple low molecular weight glutenin subunit (LMW-GS) proteins expressed in the seeds. However, the organization, recombination and expression of LMW-GS genes and their functional mechanism in bread-making are not well understood. Here we report a systematic molecular analysis of LMW-GS genes located at the orthologous Glu-3 loci (Glu-A3, B3 and D3) of bread wheat using complementary approaches (genome wide characterization of gene members, expression profiling, proteomic analysis). Fourteen unique LMW-GS genes were identified for Xiaoyan 54 (with superior bread-making quality). Molecular mapping and recombination analyses revealed that the three Glu-3 loci of Xiaoyan 54 harbored dissimilar numbers of LMW-GS genes and covered different genetic distances. The number of expressed LMW-GS in the seeds was higher in Xiaoyan 54 than in Jing 411 (with relatively poor bread-making quality). This correlated with the finding of higher numbers of active LMW-GS genes at the A3 and D3 loci in Xiaoyan 54. Association analysis using recombinant inbred lines suggested that positive interactions, conferred by genetic combinations of the Glu-3 locus alleles with more numerous active LMW-GS genes, were generally important for the recombinant progenies to attain high Zeleny sedimentation value (ZSV), an important indicator of bread-making quality. A higher number of active LMW-GS genes tended to lead to a more elevated ZSV, although this tendency was influenced by genetic background. This work provides substantial new insights into the genomic organization and expression of LMW-GS genes, and molecular genetic evidence suggesting that these genes contribute quantitatively to bread-making quality in hexaploid wheat. Our analysis also indicates that selection for high numbers of active LMW-GS genes can be used for improvement of bread-making quality in wheat breeding