- Visitors & Friends - About the University Maize gene could
lead to bumper harvest 13 Jan 12 The discovery of a new
‘provisioning’ gene in maize plants that regulates the transfer
of nutrients from the plant to the seed could lead to increased
crop yields and improve food security. Scientists from Oxford
University and the University of Warwick, in collaboration with
agricultural biotech research company Biogemma-Limagrain, have
identified the gene, called Meg 1. They report their find, which
they believe could help to increase global food production, in
this week’s Current Biology. Unlike the majority of genes, which
are expressed from both maternal and paternal chromosomes, Meg1
is expressed only from the maternal chromosomes. This unusual
form of uniparental gene expression, termed ‘imprinting’, also
occurs with some genes in humans, which regulate the development
of the placenta to control the supply of maternal nutrients
during foetal growth. The team, led by Dr Jose Gutierrez-Marcos
of the University o