A NUTRITIONALLY-enhanced sweet corn has been developed at The University of Queensland to help prevent blindness in the elderly.
Create a free account to read this article
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Super Gold sweet corn varieties contain 10 times the amount of the antioxidant zeaxanthin than occurs naturally in sweet corn and according to researchers slows the onset of advanced macular degeneration.
The varieties should be available in supermarkets in the next few years.
"Zeaxanthin, which is one of the yellow pigments in corn, is also a macular pigment contained in the eye and is believed to reduce the risk of light-induced damage that could lead to macular degeneration," said UQ Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation (QAAFI) senior researcher Dr Tim O'Hare.
"When we first started we had no idea how the corn would change by increasing the levels of zeaxanthin.
"We ended up increasing it by 10 times - or 1000 per cent, which no-one had ever tried before."
The SuperGold sweet corn varieties were developed through a collaborative breeding program between the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) and QAAFI.
The Queensland Government began work on the high zeaxanthin varieties in 2008 and has funded continuation of the work through QAAFI.
Royalty income from SuperGold will be invested by DAF in developing more novel, high-value fruit and vegetable lines.
Macular degeneration is the name given to a group of degenerative diseases of the retina that cause progressive, painless loss of central vision, affecting the ability to see fine detail, drive, read and recognise faces. Although there is no cure for MD, there are treatment options that can slow down its progression, depending on the stage and type of the disease (wet, dry, and other forms). The earlier the disease is detected, the more vision is likely to be retained.
