Pulse Crop Genetic Improvement Network’s cover photo
Pulse Crop Genetic Improvement Network

Pulse Crop Genetic Improvement Network

Biotechnology Research

PCGIN for the improvement of the legume crop in the UK

About us

The Pulse Crop Genetic Improvement Network (PCGIN) is one of 5 GINs funded by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra). The networks facilitate knowledge exchange between research organisations and industry stakeholders in the UK. The research is informed by problems ‘in the field’ and in return the participating research organisations provide genetics expertise and resources to breeders, growers and end-users for future commercialization. The Pulse Crop GIN focuses predominantly on faba bean and pea, to improve pest and disease resistance as well as nutritional traits such as protein, starch and minerals. See www.pcgin.org for more information.

Website
https://www.jic.ac.uk/research-impact/pulse-crop-genetic-improvement-network-pcgin/
Industry
Biotechnology Research
Company size
51-200 employees
Type
Public Company

Updates

  • Another 5 years of PCGIN funding! This summer, the new research programme of the Pulse Crop Genetic Improvement Network (PCGIN) started, with £3M funding from Defra. The programme will be led by the John Innes Centre, in collaboration with the University of Reading (UoR), NIAB in Cambridge, the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS) at Aberystwyth University, and PGRO, the Processors and Growers Research Organisation, in Peterborough. In addition to continuing research on disease resistance and quality traits of faba bean and pea, we will in invest in new threats and opportunities for UK pulse crops. For example, researchers at UoR and IBERS will try to identify genes and seed pod features that deter bruchid beetle in faba bean, whereas JIC researchers will investigate virus threats in pea and possible resistance genes. We will also work with the Met Office to explore how climate exchange may affect pulse crops and perhaps enable the growth of lentils, common bean and chickpeas. In terms of genetic resources, we will further develop mutant populations of faba bean and pea to find genes for traits of interest and set up pipelines for gene editing.

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