Scientists of the University of Silesia Dr Agnieszka Janiak, Dr Mirosław Kwaśniewski, Dr Justyna Guza-Wróbelska and Marta Sowa are the creators of patented inventions that will help to grow barley varieties more resistant to drought.

One invention is a method of detecting alleles of genes encoding proteins from the dehydrin and peroxidase families. The scientists developed special primers acting as molecular markers, allowing to identify genotypes of interest.

The second tool concerns the design of primer sequences to analyze the expression of four genes known to code for proteins of importance in the plant response to water stress.

Thanks to the inventions, scientists will be able to identify more quickly forms of barley that are more tolerant to droughts, which can be considered in breeding programs. The solution can be used also for plants that grow in optimal conditions for barley.