(Press-News.org) University of Adelaide researchers have discovered that applying a beneficial fungus to soil leads to some varieties of wheat accumulating more bioavailable zinc and iron in the grain.
The researchers inoculated eight widely grown Australian bread wheat varieties with a commercially available arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus product and found the plants had more grain and accumulated greater amounts of nutrients – in particular, the essential human micronutrient zinc.
“Our research shows inoculating agricultural soils with mycorrhizal fungi could be a promising strategy for producing wheat grain with higher micronutrient bioavailability, without compromising agronomic practices, such as the use of phosphorus as a fertiliser, or yield targets,” says University of Adelaide PhD student and lead author, Thi Diem Nguyen.
Although the fungus helped the wheat plants take up more phosphorus from the soil, this did not lead to the grain accumulating additional phytic acid, an anti-nutritional compound which can impact the bioavailability of micronutrients in the human gut.
“We found that fungal inoculation did not affect grain phytate content under low soil phosphorus conditions, and even reduced phytate levels in some varieties under high soil phosphorus, leading to greater estimated bioavailability of zinc and iron in grains in the fungus-inoculated plants,” says Nguyen, whose study was published in Plants, People, Planet.
“Importantly, this suggests that for bread wheat, there is no trade-off between grain yield and nutritional quality of inoculated plants when phosphorus fertiliser is applied.”
Bioavailability is defined as the proportion of a nutrient that can be absorbed into the bloodstream after ingestion, for utilisation by the body. Enhancing zinc and iron bioavailability in wheat grains can help to combat human nutritional deficiencies experienced globally.
“Deficiencies in micronutrients, especially of zinc and iron, are widespread in the human populations of high and low-and middle-income countries,” says project leader Dr Stephanie Watts-Fawkes.
“Zinc deficiencies affect approximately 30 percent of the global population, and 60 per cent experience iron deficiencies, with sometimes dire health consequences.
“Human zinc deficiency affects normal development during pregnancy, childhood and adolescence, skin and hair, and leads to diarrhoea and diseases.
“The most common outcome of human iron deficiency is iron-deficiency anaemia, which is associated with impaired immune function and cognitive development, and causes higher mortality of mothers and children at birth.”
Bread wheat is the world’s second largest food crop, second only to rice. Wheat products, such as bread, contribute up to 17 per cent of the dietary intakes of zinc and iron.
The University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia are joining forces to become Australia’s new major university – Adelaide University. Building on the strengths, legacies and resources of two leading universities, Adelaide University will deliver globally relevant research at scale, innovative, industry-informed teaching and an outstanding student experience. Adelaide University will open its doors in January 2026. Find out more on the Adelaide University website.
END
Yolk proteins (vitellogenins, VITs) are crucial lipid-carrying molecules that supply nutrients from the mother to embryos in oviparous animals. In humans, their functional analog apolipoprotein B-100 (apoB-100) is a core component of low-density and very low-density lipoproteins (LDL and VLDL, respectively), playing a pivotal role in systemic lipid transport. Understanding how these lipoproteins are secreted may help unravel the mechanisms underlying conditions like atherosclerosis and fatty liver disease.
In a recent article published in Life Metabolism, researchers report that VIT secretion in Caenorhabditis elegans is ...
The endangered golden-shouldered parrot, a technicolour species native to Far North Queensland’s Cape York Peninsula, is abandoning areas of grassland it usually nests in because woody plants are encroaching upon its preferred vegetation.
Dr Gabriel Crowley, from the University of Adelaide, assessed the fate of 555 golden-shouldered parrot eggs from 108 nests monitored on Artemis Station by its owner, Susan Shephard, and Charles Darwin University researcher, Professor Stephen Garnett.
They discovered that the spread of woody plants increased the probability of predation, and reduced nest success and survival of nesting adults.
“The ...
A research team led by Dr. Xiaoqin Liu at the Peking University Institute of Advanced Agricultural Sciences has discovered and characterized a native peanut Ubiquitin4 promoter (AhUBQ4) with strong and consistent transcriptional activity. Recognizing the limitations of foreign promoters like CaMV 35S in peanut transformation—such as gene silencing and expression variability—the team sought a native solution to boost genetic engineering efficiency in this vital crop.
Using transcriptome data ...
In a key advance for regenerative medicine and gut health, scientists from Duke-NUS Medical School and Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have uncovered a precise and unexpected communication system in the gut. Support cells known as telocytes use fine extensions—like neurons in the brain—to deliver signals directly to intestinal stem cells. Their study, published in the journal Developmental Cell, challenges long-standing assumptions about how the gut maintains and repairs itself, possibly leading to better treatments for conditions like IBD ...
AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) plays a central role in maintaining energy balance in cells, especially under energy stress. While upstream activation by the kinase LKB1 is well recognized, the precise mechanism by which LKB1 is mobilized under energy-deficient conditions has remained elusive.
A recent study published in Life Metabolism reports that ROS, molecules often associated with oxidative stress, serve as critical signaling intermediates in this process. Under conditions such as glucose deprivation or metformin treatment, intracellular ROS levels rise, promoting the S-glutathionylation of PKCζ at cysteine 48. This post-translational modification facilitates the ...
Computer scientists at the University of Rochester have developed an AI-powered, speech-based screening tool that can help people assess whether they are showing signs of Parkinson’s disease, the fastest growing neurological disability in the world. A study published in the journal npj Parkinson’s Disease introduces a web-based screening test that asks users to recite two pangrams—short sentences using all 26 letters of the alphabet. Within seconds, the AI analyzes the voice recordings for subtle patterns linked to Parkinson’s, with nearly 86 percent accuracy.
Parkinson’s ...
Researchers led by UC Davis Health scientist Sanchita Bhatnagar have developed a promising gene therapy that could treat Rett syndrome. The therapy works on reactivating healthy but silent genes responsible for this rare disorder and possibly other X-linked conditions, such as fragile X syndrome.
Their findings were published in Nature Communications.
About Rett syndrome
Rett syndrome is a genetic condition that affects mostly girls. It is caused by a defective MECP2 gene located on the X chromosome. This ...
Infants, toddlers and preschoolers exhibit symptoms of long COVID, but the symptoms can be different and more difficult to identify in these children, according to Rutgers Health research.
The new study is part of the National Institutes of Health–funded Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER) initiative and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics.
Lawrence Kleinman, a professor and vice chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and a professor of global public health at Rutgers School of Public Health, is the lead investigator for the Collaborative Long-term study of Outcomes ...
University of Utah researchers have developed a material that addresses an urgent environmental challenges: the efficient removal and real-time detection of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a toxic and persistent member of the PFAS “forever chemicals” family, from contaminated water.
In an industry-funded study published in the Journal of Materials Chemistry C, Ling Zang, professor in the John and Marcia Price College of Engineering’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering, and his research team introduced a dual-functional metal-organic framework (MOF) known as UiO-66-N(CH₃)₃⁺, a zirconium-based material known ...
CORVALLIS, Ore. – A groundbreaking study led by Oregon State University scientists shows that multiple Portland neighborhoods have levels of noise that are likely unhealthy.
The research, the first of its kind in the United States, provides a framework for studying noise pollution in other cities in the U.S., which lags behind European nations in examining the effects of noise on human health.
The project directed by assistant professor Matthew Bozigar and graduate student Carson Mowrer of the OSU College of Health indicates that the loudest parts of Portland are also the most socially vulnerable, with lower incomes and higher proportions ...
