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** AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** HIDDEN HUNGER, A CONDITION THAT OCCURS WHEN INTAKE AND ABSORPTION OF ESSENTIAL MICRONUTRIENTS ARE TOO LOW TO MAINTAIN GOOD HEALTH, IS ONE OF THE MOST SERIOUS PROBLEMS WORLDWIDE. VITAMIN A IS AN ESSENTIAL MICRONUTRIENT THAT PLAYS CRUCIAL ROLES IN HUMAN HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT. ITS DEFICIENCY IS ONE OF THE PREVAILING CAUSES OF BLINDNESS AND CHILD MORTALITY IN LOW-INCOME COUNTRIES WHERE MOST OF THE POPULATION MAINLY DEPENDS ON ONE TYPE OF STAPLES AS THE MAIN CALORIC SOURCE THAT IS NOT NECESSARILY RICH IN MICRONUTRIENTS. BIOFORTIFICATION OF CROPS PRESENTS A CHEAP, SUSTAINABLE, AND EASY-TO-ACCESS ALTERNATIVE TO COMBAT MICRONUTRIENT DEFICIENCIES. OVER THE LAST TWO DECADES EXTENSIVE EFFORTS HAVE BEEN TAKEN TO DEVELOP RICE VARIETIES ENRICHED WITH PROVITAMIN A. THESE EFFORTS HEAVILY RELIED ON GENETIC ENGINEERING TECHNIQUES SINCE CONVENTIONAL BREEDING IS NOT POSSIBLE AS PROVITAMIN A-RICH VARIANTS OF RICE DO NOT EXIST IN NATURE. TO DATE, TWO WELL-KNOWN GOLDEN RICE (GR) VARIETIES, NAMELY GR1 AND GR2, HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED. GR2 ACCUMULATES A HIGH LEVEL OF Β-CAROTENE, WHICH IS PROVITAMIN A. GR 2 HAS ALREADY RECEIVED FOOD SAFETY APPROVALS BY THE UNITED STATES, CANADA, AUSTRALIA, AND PHILIPPINES FOR COMMERCIAL FARMING TO MITIGATE VITAMIN A DEFICIENCY. ALTHOUGH GR2 CAN PROVIDE SIGNIFICANT PART OF THE DAILY REQUIRED AMOUNT OF VITAMIN A, IT SUFFERS FROM ISSUES THAT ADVERSELY AFFECT ITS NUTRITIONAL IMPACTS. THESE ISSUES INCLUDE STABLE ACCUMULATION AND STORAGE OF Β-CAROTENE, THE MAIN PROVITAMIN. THEREFORE, THE PURPOSE OF THIS WORK IS TO TACKLE THE SHORTCOMINGS OF EARLIER GENERATIONS OF GOLDEN RICE. THIS RESEARCH PROJECT IS TO ADDRESS THE USDA-NIFA-AFRI PROGRAM AREA 1B. FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE OF PLANT PRODUCTS (A1103), WHERE IT CALLS FOR STUDYING BIOSYNTHESIS OF PLANT-DERIVED, HIGH VALUE BIOMOLECULES FOR USE IN FOODS, PHARMACEUTICALS, AND OTHER PRODUCTS. THIS PROJECT AIMS TO MAINLY USE CRISPR GENOME ENGINEERING TOOLS TO ADDRESS THE SHORTCOMINGS OF GR2 BY EMPLOYING THREE DIFFERENT, YET PARALLEL, OBJECTIVES TO IMPROVE STORAGE, STABILITY, AND METABOLIC CONVERSION OF Β-CAROTENE IN THE RICE ENDOSPERM. FIRST, WE WILL IMPROVE Β-CAROTENE ACCUMULATION CAPACITY IN GR2 ENDOSPERM BY REGULATING CHROMOPLAST BIOGENESIS AND NUMBER. SECOND, WE WILL INCREASE Β-CAROTENE AVAILABILITY IN GR2 ENDOSPERM BY LIMITING ITS METABOLIC CONVERSION. THIRD, WE WILL ENHANCE POST-HARVEST STABILITY OF Β-CAROTENE IN GR2 SEEDS BY ALLEVIATING ITS DEGRADATION. THE PROPOSED RESEARCH WILL PROVIDE FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE CAROTENOID METABOLISM IN RICE ENDOSPERM. FURTHERMORE, IT WILL AID THE ENGINEERING OF NEXT-GENERATION GOLDEN RICE 3 TO COMBAT GLOBAL VITAMIN A DEFICIENCY.

$647,000FY2023National Institute of Food and AgricultureUSDA

University Of Maryland, College Park, College Park MD

Investigators

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** AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** HIDDEN HUNGER, A CONDITION THAT OCCURS WHEN INTAKE AND ABSORPTION OF ESSENTIAL MICRONUTRIENTS ARE TOO LOW TO MAINTAIN GOOD HEALTH, IS ONE OF THE MOST SERIOUS PROBLEMS WORLDWIDE. VITAMIN A IS AN ESSENTIAL MICRONUTRIENT THAT PLAYS CRUCIAL ROLES IN HUMAN HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT. ITS DEFICIENCY IS ONE OF THE PREVAILING CAUSES OF BLINDNESS AND CHILD MORTALITY IN LOW-INCOME COUNTRIES WHERE MOST OF THE POPULATION MAINLY DEPENDS ON ONE TYPE OF STAPLES AS THE MAIN CALORIC SOURCE THAT IS NOT NECESSARILY RICH IN MICRONUTRIENTS. BIOFORTIFICATION OF CROPS PRESENTS A CHEAP, SUSTAINABLE, AND EASY-TO-ACCESS ALTERNATIVE TO COMBAT MICRONUTRIENT DEFICIENCIES. OVER THE LAST TWO DECADES EXTENSIVE EFFORTS HAVE BEEN TAKEN TO DEVELOP RICE VARIETIES ENRICHED WITH PROVITAMIN A. THESE EFFORTS HEAVILY RELIED ON GENETIC ENGINEERING TECHNIQUES SINCE CONVENTIONAL BREEDING IS NOT POSSIBLE AS PROVITAMIN A-RICH VARIANTS OF RICE DO NOT EXIST IN NATURE. TO DATE, TWO WELL-KNOWN GOLDEN RICE (GR) VARIETIES, NAMELY GR1 AND GR2, HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED. GR2 ACCUMULATES A HIGH LEVEL OF Β-CAROTENE, WHICH IS PROVITAMIN A. GR 2 HAS ALREADY RECEIVED FOOD SAFETY APPROVALS BY THE UNITED STATES, CANADA, AUSTRALIA, AND PHILIPPINES FOR COMMERCIAL FARMING TO MITIGATE VITAMIN A DEFICIENCY. ALTHOUGH GR2 CAN PROVIDE SIGNIFICANT PART OF THE DAILY REQUIRED AMOUNT OF VITAMIN A, IT SUFFERS FROM ISSUES THAT ADVERSELY AFFECT ITS NUTRITIONAL IMPACTS. THESE ISSUES INCLUDE STABLE ACCUMULATION AND STORAGE OF Β-CAROTENE, THE MAIN PROVITAMIN. THEREFORE, THE PURPOSE OF THIS WORK IS TO TACKLE THE SHORTCOMINGS OF EARLIER GENERATIONS OF GOLDEN RICE. THIS RESEARCH PROJECT IS TO ADDRESS THE USDA-NIFA-AFRI PROGRAM AREA 1B. FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE OF PLANT PRODUCTS (A1103), WHERE IT CALLS FOR STUDYING BIOSYNTHESIS OF PLANT-DERIVED, HIGH VALUE BIOMOLECULES FOR USE IN FOODS, PHARMACEUTICALS, AND OTHER PRODUCTS. THIS PROJECT AIMS TO MAINLY USE CRISPR GENOME ENGINEERING TOOLS TO ADDRESS THE SHORTCOMINGS OF GR2 BY EMPLOYING THREE DIFFERENT, YET PARALLEL, OBJECTIVES TO IMPROVE STORAGE, STABILITY, AND METABOLIC CONVERSION OF Β-CAROTENE IN THE RICE ENDOSPERM. FIRST, WE WILL IMPROVE Β-CAROTENE ACCUMULATION CAPACITY IN GR2 ENDOSPERM BY REGULATING CHROMOPLAST BIOGENESIS AND NUMBER. SECOND, WE WILL INCREASE Β-CAROTENE AVAILABILITY IN GR2 ENDOSPERM BY LIMITING ITS METABOLIC CONVERSION. THIRD, WE WILL ENHANCE POST-HARVEST STABILITY OF Β-CAROTENE IN GR2 SEEDS BY ALLEVIATING ITS DEGRADATION. THE PROPOSED RESEARCH WILL PROVIDE FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE CAROTENOID METABOLISM IN RICE ENDOSPERM. FURTHERMORE, IT WILL AID THE ENGINEERING OF NEXT-GENERATION GOLDEN RICE 3 TO COMBAT GLOBAL VITAMIN A DEFICIENCY. · GrantIndex