MSc. Alice BrunazziSupervisor: Prof. Mario Enrico PèPhD Programme Agrobiosciences – Genomics and Crop Sciencealice.brunazzi@sssup.it

Exploiting Wild Wheat Relatives for food security through the identification of genes involved in adaptation to climate change

Scientific context and state of the art

Objectives and scientific hypotheses

Methods and roadmap

Results

Outline

Scientific context and state of the art

1. Climate change is one of the most urgent and important challenges of our time

2. We must produce plants able to thrive in new climates, with changing biotic and abiotic pressures

Diversity

Natural Populations

Cultivated Species

EliteCultivars

Scientific context and state of the art

3.92 Gb

Objectives and scientific hypotheses

Evaluate the genetic variability present in a large collection of T. urartu populations sampled from different regions throughout the Fertile Crescent.

• using genotyping-by- sequencing technology for the purposes of discovering and

genotyping SNPs

molecular

• relating environmental data to genetic diversity

data through

landscape genomics

for the discovery of adaptive alleles

geographical • in situ and ex situ for the evaluation of T. urartu fitness

variation and identifying QTL for

favorable characters

phenotypical

Methods and roadmap

Plant materialPlant materials consist of different populations of Triticum urartu L. representing the whole set of collected T. urartu accessions available

GIS analysis• DIVA- GIS 7.5 • QGIS 2.4.0 coupled with BioClim Data

Field experiment• The first year field experiment is mostly dedicated to seeds multiplication for each

accession• Sowed December 2014 at CRIBE

Genotyping-by-Sequencing approachGenotyping by sequencing is based on high-throughput next-generation sequencing of genomic subsets targeted by restriction enzymes

Results

Collection assembly and field set up

CountryNumber of accessions

Armenia 20

Iran 18

Iraq 73

Jordan 6

Lebanon 110

Syria 45

Turkey 136

Unknown 20

428 accessions

68109251

Results

Temperature

PluviometryAltitude

Results

EcoCrop modelling in DIVA-GIS + BioClim dataWorldclim 2.5 minutes data (years ~1950-2000, ~5 Km)

Temperature

Precipitations

Results

Genotyping – by – sequencing assess 24 accessions12h 24°C light / 12h 22°C dark10 days

Plans for 2015

dic-14 gen-15 feb-15 mar-15 apr-15 mag-15 giu-15 lug-15 ago-15 set-15 ott-15 nov-15 dic-15Sowing

Harvest

Landscape genomics analysis

1° Semester 2° SemesterA.Y. 2014/2015

Phenotypic characterization

Seed characterization

GBS Protocol testing

Molecular characterization (GBS)

• Experimental Methodology in Agrobiosciences (3 CFU) • Principles of Agrobiodiversity* (4 CFU) • Agronomy*(3 CFU) • Introduction to Bioinformatics* (2 CFU)• German Language (Basic level)* (2 CFU)• Complements of Genetic* (2 CFU)

17/02/2014 Seminar - Proteomic Analysis with SELDI-TOFCIPHERGEN/BIORAD Platform: Current Prospects. (4h)

27/02/2014 Seminar - Exploring the molecular mechanism of flooding survival strategy. (1h) 05/03/2014 Workshop - Next Generation Biology: approaches for genome-wide analysis. (8h) 18/04/2014 Seminar – Poplar and willow: from stress physiology to phytoremediation

applications. (2h) 08/05/2014 Seminar- Cereal production: a new direction? (2h) 16/05/2014 Workshop – OGM, dalla realtà del laboratorio all’immaginario collettivo. (4h) 29/05/2014 Seminars – Past and present of Einkorn wheat (Triticum monococcum) -

Geographic distribution and domestication of wild Emmer wheat (Triticum dicoccoides). (2h) 18/06/2014 Workshop - Nutraceuticals in plants and functional foods. (4h) 24 to 19/09/2014 Congress - FISV Congress (24h) 20/10/2014 Workshop - Bioinformaticha 3 (8h) 07/11/2014 Workshop - Biology in Space: challenges and opportunities. (8h) 13/11/2014 Seminar - Which seed systems can support adaptation to climate change? (1h)

Expo-School: Agricoltura e Alimentazione (40h)7 April – 11 April, 2014 at Laboratorio EXPO 2015

Fondazione Giangiacomo Feltrinelli – Via Romagnosi 3, Milan (I)

http://www.fondazionefeltrinelli.it/project/expo-school-agricoltura-e-alimentazione

Final Grade of examination: Idoneo Summer-School: Plant Molecular Breeding to Meet

the Challenges of Climate Change (80h)7 July - 18 July, 2014 at BOKU

University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna, Campus Tulln (A)

http://www.euroleague-study.org/95909Final Grade of examination: A (Excellent)