Research project
Novel Approaches for Precision Breeding in Pea
- Start date: 1 January 2026
- End date: 31 December 2027
- Funder: Rank Prize Funds
- Value: 51,233.93
- Primary investigator: Natasha Yelina
- External co-investigators: Universite Paris-Saclay, INRAE, France
Project title
Novel Approaches for Precision Breeding in Pea
Description
Pea is a major UK legume crop, valued as a direct source of plant-based protein for human diets and as a sustainable alternative to soybean – of which the UK imports 3.5 million tonnes (~£0.5 bn) annually – for use in animal feed. As a legume that fixes atmospheric nitrogen through symbiotic association with bacteria, peas used in crop rotations with cereals reduce the need for external inorganic fertilisers and provide human nutrition at a lower environmental cost.
Beyond its importance for human nutrition and sustainable agriculture, pea is genetically tractable: it is diploid, with an unusually high proportion of genes that are single copy. Large germplasm collections and powerful genomic resources have enabled unprecedented discovery of pea genes and genomic loci controlling key traits, e.g. seed nutritional quality, plant architecture, and resilience to biotic and abiotic stresses.
In pea, genetic improvement is needed to ensure yield stability, remove pulse-associated off-flavours and increase digestibility. With the slow pace of conventional breeding, precision breeding via CRISRP/Cas gene editing provides a faster alternative to crop genetic improvement. However, the major barrier to pea genetic improvement for stable yields and better nutritional qualities via CRISPR/Cas gene editing is the extremely low efficiency of pea transformation (0.5–2%), which is further complicated by the need for grafting, as regenerated pea transformants fail to root.
This project aims to develop fast, robust and accessible CRISRP/Cas gene editing that has minimal or no requirement for genetic transformation in peas. The longer-term overarching aim of this research is to use this expedited gene editing platform to accelerate nutritional and agronomic improvement in pea, paving the way for the development, commercialisation, and release of improved pea varieties, contributing to a more sustainable food system by supporting a dietary shift from animal- to plant-based proteins.