Establishment of modified genes If genes from genetically modified plants were to be passed on to their wild relatives, there could be serious ecological consequences, particularly if these genes were to become established in the genomes of wild plants. So far, little is known about these processes. Background One possible risk associated with genetically modified crop plants is the propagation of their genes through cross-breeding with closely related species. Scientists are seeking to assess whether resistance could be transferred from crop plants to weeds in this way and subsequently propagated in the weeds. If this was the case, these weeds would also become resistant to diseases or herbicides, an undesirable side effect. Objectives Hybrids of transgenic wheat and a close relative, jointed goatgrass (Aegilops cylindrica), will be grown under greenhouse conditions to generate information on the propagation of modified genes and whether they can become established in the genome of a wild species over several generations. The ecological consequences of this type of gene transfer will be investigated as part of the field trial with transgenic wheat (cf. Keller project I). Methods A first generation of transgenic wheat and jointed goatgrass hybrids will be bred in a greenhouse trial. Subsequent generations will be studied to see how the transgenic sequences from the wheat are passed on in the hybrids and how active they are. In addition, the ecological consequences will be assessed in a field trial. Significance There is already considerable information about the risk of cross-breeding between transgenic crop plants and their wild relatives, but little is known about the ecological consequences. The project closes this gap by investigating how the modified genes from transgenic wheat can be inherited in cross-breeding with goatgrass and whether the resulting plants have new ecological traits such as undesirable resistance.