The long road to engineering durable disease resistance in wheat.

A rich past of generating and configuring genetic structures in wheat (Triticum aestivum) combined with advances in DNA sequencing, bioinformatics and genome engineering has transformed the field of wheat functional genomics. Cloning a gene from the large and complex wheat genome is no longer unattainable; in the past 5 years alone, the molecular identity of 33 wheat disease resistance genes has been elucidated. The next 15 years will see the cloning of most of the ∼460 known wheat resistance genes and their corresponding effectors. Coupled with mechanistic insights into how resistance genes, effectors and pathogenicity targets interact and are affected by different genetic backgrounds, this will drive systems biology and synthetic engineering studies towards the alluring goal of generating durable disease resistance in wheat.

A roadmap for gene functional characterisation in crops with large genomes: Lessons from polyploid wheat.

Understanding the function of genes within staple crops will accelerate crop improvement by allowing targeted breeding approaches. Despite their importance, a lack of genomic information and resources has hindered the functional characterisation of genes in major crops. The recent release of high-quality reference sequences for these crops underpins a suite of genetic and genomic resources that support basic research and breeding. For wheat, these include gene model annotations, expression atlases and gene networks that provide information about putative function. Sequenced mutant populations, improved transformation protocols and structured natural populations provide rapid methods to study gene function directly. We highlight a case study exemplifying how to integrate these resources. This review provides a helpful guide for plant scientists, especially those expanding into crop research, to capitalise on the discoveries made in Arabidopsis and other plants. This will accelerate the improvement of crops of vital importance for food and nutrition security.