'Omics analysis in the world's oldest beverage

Beer is one of the world’s oldest processed beverages. Most regions of the world boasted a traditional fermented beverage made from a local grain or grains. The production of beer has contributed to the world’s culture, harvest festivals and religious rites. Beer is a simple product, made from four ingredients: malt, hops, water, and yeast. While only four ingredients are typically used, the total number of metabolites and proteins in final beer quality is still unknown, but suggested to be greater than 5,000. Through modern technologies such as proteomics and metabolomics, researchers can unravel the depth of brewing’s complex chemical and biochemical reactions. Some of our current research uses omics technologies to explore the diverse contribution of raw materials in beer.
Dr Glen Fox’s areas of research are barley, malt and brewing quality. His current research focus is on starch structure and its impact on wort and beer quality. Another research interest is using a number of ‘omics platforms to understand the complex biochemical changes during malting and brewing and the final compositional profile of beer. In 2018, he elected a Fellow of the Institute of Brewing. He has numerous book chapters and over 100 peer-reviewed journal articles and is senior editor of the book “Achieving sustainable cultivation of barley”. Dr. Fox is co-author of the recent published book “Scientific Principles of Malting & Brewing Science (2nd)” (2023).
About Science Seminars
UQ's Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation hosts science seminars across the disciplines of animal, horticulture, crop, food and nutritional sciences. With a range of speakers from Australia and abroad, the series explores how high-impact science will significantly improve the competitiveness and sustainability of the tropical and sub-tropical food, fibre and agribusiness sectors.