A "Mother Wheat" garden will help improve nutrition in the world

 A joint study by researchers at the universities of Haifa and California and which was published in Nature proved that a wheat mother gene inserted into cultivated wheat can increase its nutritional value

A global discovery by the researchers Prof. Zion Fahima from the University of Haifa and Prof. George Dobkowski from the University of California will help to improve the nutritional quality of bread wheat in the world. The researchers succeeded in cloning a wild wheat gene that shortens the ripening time of the wheat grains and enriches them with proteins, zinc and iron. "Using the gene we found can significantly increase the protein and mineral content of bread wheat in the world. In this way, they will help improve the nutrition of many poor populations in the world whose diet is low in proteins and minerals as a result of increased consumption of food products derived from wheat flour", says Prof. Fahima. The article summarizing the research results was published in the prestigious scientific magazine SCIENCE.

Wild wheat, which is the "mother of modern wheat", was discovered a hundred years ago by Aharon Aharonson in Rosh Pina. At the time, Aaronson believed that one day his discovery could be used to improve cultivated wheat. Prof. Fahima and Prof. Dovkovski's research, in which the research student Assaf Distelfeld from the University of Haifa, the research student Cristobal Huey from the University of California, and Dr. Anne Blatschel from the US Department of Agriculture were also partners, is undoubtedly a significant step towards the realization of the 100-year vision.
Based on archaeological findings, wild wheat was cultivated about 10,000 to 12,000 years ago, and since then it has gradually lost some of its positive properties. As early as 1978, Prof. Moshe Feldman and Prof. Lydia Avivi from the Weizmann Institute discovered that wild wheat grains are rich in proteins. While cultured wheat contains between 110 and 170 grams of protein per kg of grain, in wild wheat you can find between 150 and 270 grams of protein per kg. According to Prof. Fahima, wild wheat has a huge potential for improving cultivated wheat, but this potential has not been utilized until today.
In their research, which was funded by the Israel-USA Binational Foundation for Agricultural Research (BARD Foundation), which operates in cooperation between the ministries of agriculture of Israel and the USA, Prof. Fahima and Prof. Dovkovski managed to discover and clone a gene originating from wild wheat that affects the acceleration of the ripening of The grains are also in cultivated wheat. "While working, we discovered that the new gene is involved in the process that is responsible for controlling the ripening of the wheat grains. This process is accompanied by a programmed death of the leaves, breaking down the nutrients they contain and transferring them to the grains in order to ensure the existence of the next generation. The new gene helps in a faster and more efficient transfer of the proteins and minerals to the grain and at the end of the process we produce wheat flour richer in proteins, zinc and iron", explained Prof. Fahima.
The researchers even found that the specific gene they discovered is absent from all cultivated wheat varieties in the world that are used for the commercial production of all types of pasta, bread and pastries. According to Prof. Fahima, the gene was probably lost in the domestication process of wheat and therefore products based on improved wheat varieties will be more nutritious. Until this discovery, the wheat improvement process could have taken many years. However, deciphering the sequence of the gene and its function will allow it to be quickly and efficiently transferred to cultivated varieties through methods of genetic engineering. In addition to this, it will be possible to engineer new genetic forms of the gene that will allow further improvement of the wheat through genetic engineering and its adaptation to different growing areas.
"Beyond the scientific importance of discovering a gene that controls the ripening and aging process of the wheat plant, the practical importance of the gene is in improving the nutritional quality of bread and its products in the world. Billions of people in the world today suffer from zinc and iron deficiency, so increasing the content of these minerals in food is of great importance." Prof. Fahima explains. "In addition to this, increasing the protein content in wheat flour will improve the baking quality of bread as a result of improving the swelling ability of the dough, as well as the quality of pasta by reducing the loss of solid materials during cooking. In conclusion, the food will be more nutritious, healthier and maybe even tastier," noted Prof. Fahima.
In 1910 Aaronson wrote: "The ultimate goal of using wild wheat to improve cultivated wheat is to produce a little more bread for a little less money and to expand wheat production to places where it is expensive or impossible today." In Prof. Fahima's laboratory at the University of Haifa, branch research is being conducted with the aim of utilizing the gene pools of wild wheat, including disease resistance and drought resistance. In the research conducted in collaboration with Dr. Yehoshua Saranga from the Hebrew University, wild varieties of the "mother of wheat" were discovered that are more resistant to drought than the cultivated varieties. The joint research deals with the discovery of genes that originate from wild wheat and whose transfer to cultivated wheat will allow wheat to be grown in dry areas where it is not currently grown. "The advanced genomic technology and genetic knowledge that we have at our disposal today allow us to begin and realize Aaronson's vision" says Prof. Fahima. 
The discovery of the new gene that improves the nutritional quality of wheat is a first step towards realizing the century-old vision of Israeli agriculture.