Genetically-modified wheat used to make coeliac-friendly bread

People forced to avoid gluten could soon have their bread (and cake) and eat it. Now there are strains of wheat that do not produce the forms of gluten that trigger a dangerous immune reaction in as many as 1 in 100 people.

Because the new strains still contain some kinds of gluten, though, the wheat can still be used to bake bread. “It’s regarded as being pretty good, certainly better than anything on the gluten-free shelves,” says Jan Chojecki of PBL-Ventures in the UK, who is working with investors in North America to market products made with this wheat.

So Barro’s team next tried using CRISPR gene-editing to get rid of the genes entirely. More genes need to be disabled before the CRISPR strain is ready for testing, but it should be worth all the effort: the team have already shown that the GM wheat strain makes an acceptable bread.

It cannot be used for making large sliced loafs, but is good enough for baguettes and rolls, says Chojecki.

UCJ, UNILORIN.