Hi All,
I realize that GMO products are not generally popular with most of us, but you may be interested in the article at the link below.
Apparently, Dr. Diter von Wettstein, of the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, and the School of Molecular Biosciences at Washington State University, has received grants from the National Institutes of Health, and Washington's Life Sciences Discovery Fund, to be used to help develop varieties of wheat that would be safe for celiacs to eat.
http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2010/01/g ... ecoming-1/
Tex
Celiac-Safe Wheat May Be In Our Future
Moderators: Rosie, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
Celiac-Safe Wheat May Be In Our Future
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Ah, there's the rub. Trying to find an alternative product with wheat's baking qualities. Most of us have found suitable alternatives for pasta, thickeners, etc. But creating a bread dough with the same elasticity as wheat is trickier and requires a blend of several alternative flours, xantham gum, and gelatin. I have yet to find a suitable alternative for wraps, for example. Corn and brown rice tortillas just don't bend as easily.Dr. von Wettstein and his team have identified a fully viable, lysine-rich barley mutant that lacks the gliadin-type and low-molecular-weight glutenins that are currently shown to be exclusively responsible for dough elasticity and exceptional baking quality. Using genetic methods to remove the celiac-causing gliadins and low-molecular glutenins, Dr. von Wettstein's task is to produce a similar wheat grain while preserving wheat's baking qualities.
I hope he can do it - it would be a great addition to our food choices.
Gloria
You never know what you can do until you have to do it.
Gloria,
I'm afraid you've hit the nail right square on the head, with your assessment. It sounds like a good plan, at face value, but unfortunately, there is no existing gene source in nature, (nor anywhere else, for that matter). GMO technology cannot create new features, it can only transfer selected characteristics from an existing source, to a target species. The only existing source of the baking qualities desired, are species of wheat that contain the gliadins, (and glutenins), to which we react. If there were any other sources, we would already be using them. The species that are free of those harmful gliadins and glutenins, (regardless of their origins), are poor choices for baking bread. It's a catch-22 situation.
The reason why the other successful GMO projects were possible, is because in each case, another species exists, which possesses the desirable characteristics needed by the target species. With this particular project, there is no other species in existence, from which the necessary DNA material can be extracted.
Surely, Dr. Wettstein is aware of that, (if he wasn't at the outset, he should be by now, since he's been working on this project for over a year). It appears that he's just taking the money, (since it was offered), and hoping that he can keep the sponsors convinced that he's making a serious effort to find a solution. I'm guessing that he will propose a combination, (since it's expected of him), but it's not likely to have any market appeal, (since it's bread-making qualities will probably be in line with other members of the grass family, such as rice or corn).
Tex
I'm afraid you've hit the nail right square on the head, with your assessment. It sounds like a good plan, at face value, but unfortunately, there is no existing gene source in nature, (nor anywhere else, for that matter). GMO technology cannot create new features, it can only transfer selected characteristics from an existing source, to a target species. The only existing source of the baking qualities desired, are species of wheat that contain the gliadins, (and glutenins), to which we react. If there were any other sources, we would already be using them. The species that are free of those harmful gliadins and glutenins, (regardless of their origins), are poor choices for baking bread. It's a catch-22 situation.
The reason why the other successful GMO projects were possible, is because in each case, another species exists, which possesses the desirable characteristics needed by the target species. With this particular project, there is no other species in existence, from which the necessary DNA material can be extracted.
Surely, Dr. Wettstein is aware of that, (if he wasn't at the outset, he should be by now, since he's been working on this project for over a year). It appears that he's just taking the money, (since it was offered), and hoping that he can keep the sponsors convinced that he's making a serious effort to find a solution. I'm guessing that he will propose a combination, (since it's expected of him), but it's not likely to have any market appeal, (since it's bread-making qualities will probably be in line with other members of the grass family, such as rice or corn).
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.