Biotech Updates

Starch Synthesis Genes in Thai Rice Starch

August 7, 2009

Composition and cooking quality are important rice-grain characteristics of interest to breeders. The eating and cooking qualities of rice are determined by three characteristics specifying the physical and chemical properties of the starch in the endosperm: apparent amylase content, gel consistency and gelatinization temperature.

One hundred and ninety-two accessions of Oryza, mostly from Thailand, were assayed using PCR-SSCP by researchers from Kasetsart University, Thailand. Alleles were identified at seven starch-synthesis gene loci (GBSSI, SSSlIIa, SSSIIIb, SSSIVa, SSSIVb, RBEl and RBE3). The nucleotide sequences were obtained corresponding to each of the SSCP patterns observed and the sequences were submitted to GenBank. The Oryza accessions from Thailand displayed a high nucleotide diversity compared with previous estimates of Oryza species based on estimates of multiple loci.

More information available from BBIC-Thailand at http://www.safetybio.agri.kps.ku.ac.th/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6064&Itemid=47 or http://safetybio.agri.kps.ku.ac.th/images/stories/pdf/SNP%20rice.pdf