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Mr. Thushara Sinhabahu Abayawickrama
PhD Student
School School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences
Location Locked Bag 588, Boorooma Street, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, NSW 2678, Australia
Phone 044 925 4767
Email sabayawickrama@csu.edu.au
Project
Structural and Genetic Factors Influencing Rice Milling Quality
Summary
Milling quality is an important key factor in the rice industry. Among the different milling quality traits, head rice yield is an important property. Head rice (whole grain) is normally double the value as broken grains in the market. Also appearance, cooking and eating quality is affected by head rice yield which ranges from 25% to 65% depending on genetic and environmental factors. The presence of fissures in rice grains is known to be the main reason for low head rice yield. Higher head rice yield is a primary objective in most rice breeding programs.
The proposed project will help to identify critical environmental factors and grain structural properties at varying environmental stresses that minimize grain fissure formation. Also genes responsible for grain fissure resistance will be identified. This project will generate a platform for a molecular breeding program to increase head rice yield through incorporation of fissure resistance.
Supervisors
Dr. John Harper, Senior Lecturer, CSU
Dr. Melissa Fitzgerald, Head of the Grain Quality and Nutrition Center, IRRI
Dr. Russell Reinke, Rice Breeder, DPI, Yanco
Dr. Geoffrey Burrows, Associate Professor, CSU
Funding source
Faculty of Science Research Higher Degree Scholarship
Selected Publications
Abayawickrama ASMT, Kottearachchi NS, Gunarathna C and Samarasinghe WLG (2010). Molecular Screening of Genetically diverse rice germplasm for fragrance using fgr specific DNA marker. Annual Symposium of the Department of Agriculture, Sri Lanka. 12, 01-08.
Abayawickrama ASMT, Abeysiriwardane DSZ, Jayasinghe UWK and Tennakoon CJM (2009). Outcrossing rate and its response to selection in rice. Annual Symposium of the Department of Agriculture, Sri Lanka. 11, 01-08.
Abayawickrama ASMT and Toyoaki A (2008). Use of dCAPS markers in grain quality improvement of indica rice varieties. Annual Symposium of the Department of Agriculture, Sri Lanka. 10, 01-08.
Abayawickrama ASMT and Toyoaki A (2006). Comparison of regeneration efficiency of different genotypes of indica rice cultivars. Bulletin of the Faculty of Agriculture, Saga University, Japan. 92.
Abayawickrama ASMT, Fahim M, Abeysiriwardena DSZ, Madushani KC and Dharmaratne RM (2005). Contribution of yield related characteristics to grain yield improvement in different age groups of rice. Annual Symposium of the Department of Agriculture, Sri Lanka.7, 1-11.