Seed dormancy is a very tricky agronomic trait. It plays a primary role in
the different life cycles of annual plants, and thus is an important
adaptive trait. However, many wheat (Triticum aestivum) cultivars lack a
sufficient level of seed dormancy and are vulnerable to premature seed
germination of mature grains. On the other hand, barley (Hordeum vulgare)
has too great a level of dormancy which prevents rapid and uniform
germination. A certain optimal balance between the two extremes of dormancy
is a valuable trait for agricultural production.

The DOG1 gene is an Arabidopsis gene that underlies natural variation in
seed dormancy. Meanwhile, the DOG1-like gene, found in cereals, functions
similarly as DOG1 gene based on previous studies. In this recent study, two
DOG1-like genes, TaDOG1L4 from wheat and HvDOG1L1 from barley, were
introduced individually into the wheat cultivar Fielder. Their
overexpression enhanced the seed dormancy level of the transgenics while
leaving other traits unaffected. TaDOG1L4 was then found to be more
effective than HvDOG1L1I in enhancing dormancy. Knock down of TaDOG1L4 gene
in Fielder using double-strand RNA interference also decreased the seed
dormancy level in transgenic Fielder.

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