Catherine Feuillet facts for kids

Catherine Feuillet (born July 1965) is a French geneticist. A geneticist is a scientist who studies genes and heredity. She is currently the Chief Scientific Officer at Inari Agriculture. This is a biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Feuillet earned her PhD in plant molecular biology. Her studies focused on genes that help wood form in eucalyptus trees. In 1994, she began working on how wheat plants resist diseases. She did this during her post-doctoral studies in Switzerland. Later, she moved to the University of Zurich. There, she studied how wheat and barley resist fungal diseases. She also found and copied the first gene for leaf rust resistance in wheat.

In 2004, she became a research director in France at the INRA. She led big European and international projects. These projects focused on understanding the genes of wheat. This field is called wheat genomics.

In 2008, Catherine Feuillet and her team made a big discovery. They successfully mapped the largest wheat chromosome, called 3B. Mapping means creating a detailed guide of its genes. In 2014, they were the first to publish the full sequence of this chromosome. A sequence is like reading the entire genetic code. They also helped create the first full genetic map of the entire wheat plant. This was done with the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (IWGSC).

Feuillet was one of the first members of the IWGSC. She also helped lead the group from 2005 to 2018. In 2013, she joined Bayer Crop Science. There, she led research to find genes that could improve crops. These crops included soybean, cotton, canola, and wheat. The goal was to make them grow better and resist plant diseases. She has received several important awards for her work. These include the Prix Foulon and the Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. She is also a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Early Life and Education

Catherine Feuillet was born in Orléans, France. This city is about 130 kilometers (80 miles) south of Paris. She grew up near Paris. She went to university in Toulouse to study plant molecular biology. In 1993, she earned her doctorate from Paul Sabatier University in Toulouse. Her research was on genes that help wood form in Eucalyptus trees.

From 1994 to 1997, she did more studies in Zürich, Switzerland. She worked on finding genetic markers. These markers help in breeding wheat that can resist fungal diseases. During this time, she started working on wheat genomics. She also continued to find and copy disease resistance genes. She worked on projects related to comparative genomics in wheat and barley. She did this as a junior group leader and assistant professor.

Important Discoveries and Awards

In 2004, Catherine Feuillet joined the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA) in Clermont-Ferrand, France. She became a research director there. In 2005, she helped start the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (IWGSC). This was a global effort to create a high-quality map of the bread wheat genome. This was a huge scientific challenge. The wheat genome is five times larger than the human genome!

In 2008, Feuillet's team published a major discovery in the journal Science. They showed the first mapping results of wheat chromosome 3B. This is the largest of the 21 wheat chromosomes. That same year, she joined the International Triticeae Mapping Initiative (ITMI). This group helps plan and coordinate research projects.

On November 24, 2009, Feuillet received the Prix Foulon from the French Academy of Sciences. This award was for her work in understanding the wheat genome. That same year, she also won the gold Trophée de la Femme for her research. On September 10, 2010, she received the Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. This is a very high award in France.

In 2011, she joined the Wheat Initiative. This group was created by G20 countries to improve wheat production worldwide. That same year, she became a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Feuillet received the Jean Dufrenoy Prize in 2012. This award came from the Académie d'Agriculture of France.

After her team at INRA finished sequencing chromosome 3B, she joined Bayer CropScience. She became the head of their Trait Research Department.

Why Wheat Genome Sequencing Matters

A close-up view of a wheat ear.

In 2004, Catherine Feuillet started working on sequencing the bread wheat genome. This genome is very large, with 21 chromosomes. Her main goal was to understand chromosome 3B. This single chromosome is as big as the entire soybean genome. It is also more than twice the size of the entire rice genome.

The first plan for the IWGSC was to create physical maps of each chromosome. Then, they would sequence them to get a full genetic map. At that time, sequencing an entire genome was hard. This was because the wheat genome has many repeating sequences.

Feuillet and her team were the first to create a physical map of chromosome 3B. This was published in Science in 2008. This work helped other teams map the other 20 chromosomes. In 2014, Feuillet's team published the full sequence of chromosome 3B. This was published at the same time as the IWGSC's first draft of all 21 chromosomes.

The sequence of chromosome 3B showed how its more than 8,000 genes are arranged. It also helped scientists understand how large, complex genomes like wheat are organized. The draft sequence of all 21 chromosomes helped identify 124,201 genes. It also allowed for comparisons with other types of wheat. These sequences are like a springboard for scientists. They help find genes faster and develop new genetic markers. They also allow for precise breeding using genome editing. This helps speed up wheat breeding.

In 2016, a company called NRGene made a breakthrough. They found a way to assemble highly repetitive sequences. After this, the IWGSC combined different sequencing methods. They created a high-quality map of the bread wheat genome. This was published in 2018. Since then, many studies have used this map. This shows how useful it is. It fulfilled the vision that Feuillet and her colleagues had in 2005.

Sequencing the wheat genome is very important for farmers worldwide. Wheat provides over 20% of all calories people eat globally. As the world's population grows, we need more wheat. However, wheat production has not kept up with demand. This is due to economic and natural challenges. By 2050, the need for wheat is expected to increase by 70 percent. This means about a 1.6 percent increase each year.

Sequencing the wheat genome gives scientists a valuable tool. It helps them improve wheat faster. It also helps wheat cope with climate change. This allows wheat to be grown in a sustainable and eco-friendly way. This is done through advanced breeding and technology.

Current Research

Catherine Feuillet now leads the science team at Inari Agriculture. She is their Chief Scientific Officer. Inari's science team has about 70 employees. They work in Ghent, Belgium, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and West Lafayette, Indiana.

Feuillet and her team find parts of plant genomes to change. They also create special tools for genome editing. Genome editing is like making tiny, precise changes to a plant's DNA. This allows them to improve major crops. These crops include corn, soybean, wheat, and tomato. Their goal is to bring plant breeding into a new era. They want to quickly create hundreds of new plant varieties. These varieties will grow best in their local environment. They will also need very few natural resources.

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  The University of Zurich in Switzerland