Wheat breeding for quality: A historical review

Abstract

Background and objectives: Wheat (Triticum spp. L.) is a leading cereal contributing to the nourishment of humankind. Since its domestication ca. 12,000 years ago, humans have profoundly influenced its evolution. In the more recent past, breeding via cross-hybridization and the selection of progeny with superior end-use quality have moved from solely phenotyping (e.g., bread baking quality), to a more detailed genetic approach of selecting genes, alleles, and whole-genome structure for desirable traits. Findings: The present review provides a brief historical summary of wheat improvement for end-use quality. In the last~150 years, wheat improvement has benefited from advances in genetics, chemistry and biotechnology. In the past couple decades, rapid advances in DNA and next-generation sequencing technology have promised a revolution in wheat improvement. The various technologies are reviewed here. Conclusions: The "future" of wheat improvement may involve the whole-genome-based analysis, "genomic selection." However, to date, the plethora of QTL generated over the recent years have largely remained unused. Significance and novelty: Wheat is vital to the survival of humankind, and new cultivars must be continually developed. These cultivars should have high quality for processing and consumer products. An important means of breeding and selecting for high quality is through rapidly evolving genome-based technologies.

Determinants of wheat noodle color

“…As discussed by Kiszonas and Morris, molecular genetic approaches to wheat quality improvement have distinct advantages over simple ‘phenotyping.’ In this regard, the following section briefly reviews the molecular genetics of PPO in wheat. Polyphenol oxidase exists in duplicated paralogous gene families, Ppo‐1 and Ppo‐2 .…”

Analysis of Wheat Bread-Making Gene (wbm) Evolution and Occurrence in Triticale Collection Reveal Origin via Interspecific Introgression into Chromosome 7AL

“…High molecular weight (HMW) glutenin genes (Glu-A1, Glu-B1, and Glu-D1) [2], located on the long arm of group 1 chromosomes, are the most well studied among the major genes controlling bread-making quality. A number of markers have been developed to distinguish different alleles of glutenin genes [5][6][7][8][9][10]. A gene, called wheat bread-making (wbm), was identified in wheat, and its elevated expression level in the endosperm during wheat grain development has been demonstrated [11].…”

Influence of Soft Kernel Texture on Fresh Durum Pasta

“…As such it would be possible to increase the yellowness of soft durum pasta by finding a highly pigmented durum variety and introducing the soft kernel phenotype. Common flour lacks the yellow color of durum wheat, and is typically much higher in polyphenol oxidase (Kiszonas & Morris, ; Morris, ) resulting in an undesirable color.…”