Genome Engineering for Crop Improvement

2Distribution of Nutritional and Mineral Components in Important Crop Plants

Katarina Vogel‐Mikuš^1,2, Paula Pongrac^1,2, Ivan Kreft³, Primož Pelicon², Primož Vavpetič², Boštjan Jenčič², Johannes Teun van Elteren⁴, Peter Kump², Sudhir P. Singh⁵, and Marjana Regvar¹

¹ Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia

² Jozef Stefan Institute, Ljubljana, Slovenia

³ Nutrition Institute, Ljubljana, Slovenia

⁴ National Institute of Chemistry, Ljubljana, Slovenia

⁵ Center of Innovative and Applied Bioprocessing (DBT‐CIAB), Mohali, Punjab, India

CHAPTER MENU

• 2.1 Introduction
• 2.2 Exploring Nutrient Distribution in Grain
  • 2.2.1 Matrix Assisted Laser/Desorption/Ionization
  • 2.2.2 Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy
  • 2.2.3 Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy
• 2.3 Exploring the Mineral Distribution in Grain
  • 2.3.1 Nuclear Microprobe
  • 2.3.2 Synchrotron Radiation X‐Ray Florescence Spectrometry
  • 2.3.3 Laser Ablation‐Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry
  • 2.3.4 Nano Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry
  • 2.3.5 Sample Preparation
• 2.4 Prospect

2.1 Introduction

Plants provide us with essential energy‐rich compounds, minerals, vitamins, amino and fatty acids, and a wealth of health‐promoting compounds (Eckardt 2011). The cultivation of new, high‐yielding varieties and the ever‐increasing use of mineral fertilizers and pesticides has led to a significant increase in crop yields. However, the quality of edible plants related to human nutrition did not receive proper attention ...