Grain quality in breeding

Authors: HELGUERA, MARCELO - National Institute Of Agricultural Technology(INTA); ABUGALIEVA, AIGUL - Kazakh Scientific Research Institute Of Agriculture And Plant Growing; BATTENFIELD, SARAH - Syngenta; BEKES, FIRINC - Fbfd Pty Ltd; BRANLARD, GERARD - Inra, Génétique Animale Et Biologie Intégrative , Jouy-En-josas, France; CUNIBERTI, MARTHA - National Institute Of Agricultural Technology(INTA); HUESKEN, ALEXANDRA - Max Rubner-Institut (MRI); JOHANSON, EVA - Swedish University Of Agricultural Sciences; Morris, Craig; NURIT, ERIC - Inra, Génétique Animale Et Biologie Intégrative , Jouy-En-josas, France; PENA, JAVIER - International Maize & Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT); SISSONS, MIKE - Tamworth Agricultural Institute; VAZQUEZ, DANIEL - National Agricultural Research Institute(INIA)

Submitted to: Book Chapter
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/9/2019
Publication Date: 4/14/2020
Citation: Helguera, M., Abugalieva, A., Battenfield, S., Bekes, F., Branlard, G., Cuniberti, M., Huesken, A., Johanson, E., Morris, C.F., Nurit, E., Pena, J., Sissons, M., Vazquez, D. 2020. Grain quality in breeding. In: Igrejas, G., Ikeda, T.M., and Guzmán, C., editors. Wheat Quality for Improving Processing and Human Health. Switzerland: Springer Nature. p. 273-307. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-34163-3.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-34163-3

Interpretive Summary: As staple food for over 35% of world's population wheat is the most important food crop at global level. This central role can be explained by at least two factors: (1) its wide adaptation to different environments, (2) it can be consumed as food with minimal processing, in many different manners or end uses, each one with a specific quality requirement. Grain characteristics (hardness, protein content/quality, starch properties, enzymatic activity, etc.) play an important role in the definition of end use quality for wheat-based products. Among them, gluten strength and extensibility, mostly determined by glutenin and gliadin composition, are two of the main factors that determine gluten quality. The complex inheritance of most quality traits has led to the development of indirect tests used in breeding for early and advanced selection. The main focus of breeders is adding resistance to biotic stress (fungi, insects, nematodes, etc.,) and increasing grain yield without neglecting the quality for different industrial uses especially in stabilized materials. Evaluation of quality in early generations requires suitable tests, preferably non-destructive. Increasing knowledge of the genes involved in quality will facilitate more precise and effective selection. Recent advances in wheat genome sequencing and the extensive genotyping of mapping populations has led to a precise molecular characterization of HMW and LMW glutenins, as well as the discovery of genes associated with quality traits like grain hardness, starch waxy genes, etc. Massive genomic data will impact in breeding programs allowing quality fine tuning by precise selection of glutenins, starch, hardness and other traits, for specific end uses through marker assisted selection, genomic selection, etc. This chapter will deal with the integration of local breeding programs with the extremely diverse end-uses of wheat based on a series of case-studies, with particular emphasis in quality screening tools. Current and potential approaches to quality evaluation in durum wheat and triticale breeding programs will be also presented.

Technical Abstract: As staple food for over 35% of world's population wheat is the most important food crop at global level. This central role can be explained by at least two factors: (1) its wide adaptation to different environments, (2) it can be consumed as food with minimal processing, in many different manners or end uses, each one with a specific quality requirement. Grain characteristics (hardness, protein content/quality, starch properties, enzymatic activity, etc.) play an important role in the definition of end use quality for wheat-based products. Among them, gluten strength and extensibility, mostly determined by glutenin and gliadin composition, are two of the main factors that determine gluten quality. The complex inheritance of most quality traits has led to the development of indirect tests used in breeding for early and advanced selection. The main focus of breeders is adding resistance to biotic stress (fungi, insects, nematodes, etc.,) and increasing grain yield without neglecting the quality for different industrial uses especially in stabilized materials. Evaluation of quality in early generations requires suitable tests, preferably non-destructive. Increasing knowledge of the genes involved in quality will facilitate more precise and effective selection. Recent advances in wheat genome sequencing and the extensive genotyping of mapping populations has led to a precise molecular characterization of HMW and LMW glutenins, as well as the discovery of genes associated with quality traits like grain hardness, starch waxy genes, etc. Massive genomic data will impact in breeding programs allowing quality fine tuning by precise selection of glutenins, starch, hardness and other traits, for specific end uses through marker assisted selection, genomic selection, etc. This chapter will deal with the integration of local breeding programs with the extremely diverse end-uses of wheat based on a series of case-studies, with particular emphasis in quality screening tools. Current and potential approaches to quality evaluation in durum wheat and triticale breeding programs will be also presented.