Discovered gene could help protect barley - and beer supply

A recently discovered gene, named Rph20, could help protect barley against lead rust, a study lead by the University of Queensland has found.

Barley is used to make beer, but is also a food staple across parts of North Africa and southwest Asia. Lead rust has the potential to destroy a third of Australia’s barley crop.

After field trials in Australia and Uruguay, the study traced the barley’s DNA marker back to a variety of barley first cross-bred in the Netherlands in 1928.