You are what you eat…but what is it you’re eating again?

We eat starch every day – in bread, pasta, potatoes, rice... We eat it without thinking about it. But how do plants make starch? They must starch somewhere! In this talk, I will be covering what I do as a plant scientist on a daily basis, and how studying proteins and genes in plants helps us explain how they make starch granules. And be ready, because even something as familiar as starch still holds mysteries!

Every summer, wheat fields across the UK senesce from a healthy green to a mature yellow, ready for harvest. This final stage in the wheat lifecycle is key because it is when grains are formed and filled with nutrients, including carbohydrates and protein. But how is senescence controlled? This talk will explore current research into the genes regulating senescence in wheat, to understand how wheat plants control their aging and also grain nutrition. We hope to use this knowledge to breed for more nutritious wheat and ultimately increase the strength of our Weetabix!