The fate of bioactive compounds during traditional preparation of einkorn wheat (Triticum monococcum L. subsp. monococcum) bulgur

Einkorn wheat bulgur is a traditional food deeply rooted in some areas of Turkey, since ages. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of simulated traditional bulgur preparation on einkorn wheat bioactive compound content.A local einkorn wheat grain sample from Turkey was boiled for 2, 3 and 4 h, then dried in a thermo-ventilated oven. Tocols, carotenoids, phytosterols and phenolics, determined as free (FPC) and bound (BPC) phenolic compounds, were analysed in hulled (spikelets) and dehulled (kernels) bulgur samples, to highlight also glumes’ contribute to their content and evolution.Kernel carotenoid and tocol content significantly decreased following bulgur preparation, to an extent of 42–58% and 15–30%, respectively. Phytosterols slightly decreased in cooked (12–19%), with respect to raw kernels. Phenolics showed different patterns, highlighting glumes’ contribute: kernel FPC increased (+87%) after 4 h of boiling, whereas no significant variations were observed for BPC. A drastic decrease of total and BPC (20.5–28.0%), was observed in spikelets following bulgur preparation. Ferulic and p-coumaric acid resulted the most abundant phenolic acids, respectively, in kernels and spikelets.Decreases in tocol, carotenoids and phytosterol contents were observed whereas an increase of kernel FPC content was calculated after cooking.     

Evidence for different supramolecular arrangements in pasta from durum wheat (Triticum durum) and einkorn (Triticum monococcum) flours

The effects of the replacement of einkorn flour on pasta proteins aggregation were studied by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and size exclusion high performance chromatography. Pasta was produced replacing durum wheat semolina with an increasing amount of einkorn flour (30, 50 and 100%). The polymeric protein structure of flours and related pasta and pasta mixture was determined by protein subunits composition and size of polymeric proteins. The unextractability of polymeric protein was related to the unextractable protein fraction and to the determination of –SH/-SS groups. Durum wheat semolina and einkorn flours increased their unextractable and polymeric fractions during pasta processing. The unexpected results derived from the areas of unextractable fractions and total and large unextractable polymeric fractions of 70/30 semolina/einkorn pasta mixture that were lower than those of 50/50 semolina/einkorn pasta mixture. Although the semolina flour contained more gluten proteins than einkorn flour, a higher aggregation was registered for 50/50 semolina/einkorn flour pasta. These results suggested that a different assessment of gluten network occurred in pasta mixture and it was regulated by a self-assembling machine influenced by nature of HMW-GS. The 50/50 semolina/einkorn pasta mixture determined a supramolecular structure in the developing of its network architecture.     

Nitrogen fertilisation effects on technological parameters and carotenoid,tocol and phenolic acid content of einkorn (Triticum monococcum L. subsp. monococcum): A two-year evaluation

Recent studies on einkorn wheat, an underutilised relative of durum and bread wheat, demonstrated its outstanding nutritional characteristics and fostered a renewed interest for its cultivation. Einkorn is a disease-resistant and thrifty crop, supplying flour with optimal composition even with minimal agronomic management. To understand the role of nitrogen fertilisation on its composition and nutritional quality, a two-year study comparing five different nitrogen treatments (0 kg/ha, 40 and 80 kg/ha at tillering, 40 and 80 kg/ha at heading) was performed on three einkorn accessions.The two years had similar temperatures but very different rainfall profiles, so the climate had a strong effect on most traits, including thousand kernels weight, Falling number, viscoamylographic parameters, carotenoid and phenolic acid concentration. On the other hand, nitrogen fertilisation improved protein content, SDS sedimentation volume and phenolic acids concentration. Carotenoids synthesis was slightly limited with increasing fertilisation; a similar, but less evident, effect was present for tocols. The results demonstrate that einkorn wheat does not require abundant nitrogen fertilisation to provide flour with good nutritional and technological characteristics.     

乌拉尔图和栽培一粒小麦抗病基因向普通小麦转移的研究

乌拉尔图小麦（Triticum urartu Tum．）和栽培一粒小麦（Triticum monococcum L．）是普通小麦的两个二倍体野生种，是进行小麦遗传改良的重要遗传资源。为了将其抗白粉病和抗条锈病基因转移到普通小麦中，用普通小麦分别与两份乌拉尔图小麦材料1010013和1010015及一份栽培一粒小麦材料1010048配制杂交组合。结果表明，乌拉尔图小麦与普通小麦杂交不能正常结实，必须进行幼胚拯救。成胚率为14．77％；而栽培一粒小麦与普通小麦杂交可正常结实，但结实率很低。杂种F1自交不育，与普通小麦回交可正常结实．但BC1自交结实率极低。对普通小麦与乌拉尔图小麦杂种F1花粉母细胞减数分裂中期Ⅰ的观察结果表明，平均单价体为17．36个．二价体为5．32个。进一步对杂种后代进行抗病鉴定和遗传分析，乌拉尔图小麦1010013和1010015分别含有一对显性抗白粉病基因。栽培一粒小麦1010048含有两对独立遗传的显性抗条锈病基因，并分别在杂种后代BC2F1和BC1F2中获得了染色体正常（2n=42）、细胞学稳定且抗性与供体亲本一致的抗白粉病和抗备锈病植株。说明来自二倍体乌拉尔图和栽培一粒小麦的抗病基因已通过遗传重组导入到普通小麦中。研究还发现普通小麦莱州953与乌拉尔图小麦和栽培一粒小麦杂交的结实率与中国春的同样高，表明其可能携带有远缘杂交亲和基因。     

Storage-induced changes in einkorn (Triticum monococcum L.) and breadwheat (Triticum aestivum L. ssp. aestivum) flours

To assess the effect of ageing on alpha-amylase activity, falling number, pasting properties and SDS sedimentation volume, whole meal and white flours of einkorn (cv Monlis) and bread wheat (cv Serio) were stored in darkness at different temperatures and analysed several times up to 374 days. Pregerminated bread wheat flours (cv Blasco) were also evaluated.     

Carotenoids and tocols content in genotypes of colored barley

Carotenoids and tocols of 20 genotypes of colored barley divided into three groups (A, B, C) were investigated. These included 16 F8 recombinant inbred lines obtained from crosses of four parental lines: 2005 FG, K4-31, L94 and Priora. The aim of the present study was to identify, quantify and profile characterize of tocols and carotenoids. Tocols profile is characterized by the prevalence of tocotrienols on tocopherols. The α-tocotrienol was the most represented tocol isomer, contributing about 53.03% of the total content. The highest α-tocotrienol content (33.67 μg g-¹) was found in the blue naked parental genotype 3007 (C-Group). The most abundant carotenoid was lutein on average 86% of total followed by zeaxanthin 10% and by α-carotene 3.40%. The Priora cultivar (C-Group) was the genotype with the highest lutein content (4.10 μg g-¹). The study found great variability in the content of carotenoids and tocols along the lines of each group.     

Determination of wheat bug (Eurygaster spp.) damage in durum wheat (Triticum durum L.) by electrophoresis and rapid visco analyser

The degradation effects of wheat bug protease(s) on glutenin proteins of durum wheat cultivars were investigated by electrophoresis and modified rapid visco analyser (RVA) test. Glutenin patterns of the bug damaged durum wheats changed substantially due to bug protease(s). Although high molecular weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GS) of three cultivars (Ege, Svevo, and Zenith) disappeared after 60 min of incubation, the HMW-GS of other two cultivars (Diyarbakir and Firat) were still visible even after the longest incubation period at medium damage level. It shows that there was an intercultivar variation in susceptibility to hydrolysis by bug proteolytic enzymes. Low molecular weight glutenin subunits of all cultivars decreased substantially after 30 min of incubation. The RVA curves indicated a clear reduction in viscosity in semolina samples with both medium and high damage levels as compared to their respective undamaged (control) samples. There were significant correlations (p < 0.001) between bug damage level and viscosities at 3 min (r = −0.765), at 4.5 min (r = −0.549) and at 10 min (r = −0.835), breakdown value (r = −0.534) and decay rate (r = 0.600). Consequently, hydrolysis rate of wheat bug protease(s) can be determined by modified RVA technique without much more chemicals, procedures and expensive equipments.     

Genome-wide association study of seedling nitrogen-use efficiency-associated traits in common wheat(Triticum aestivum L.)

Nitrogen(N) fertilizer application is essential for crop-plant growth and development. Identifying genetic loci associated with N-use efficiency(NUE) could increase wheat yields and reduce environmental pollution caused by overfertilization. We subjected a panel of 389 wheat accessions to N and chlorate(a nitrate analog) treatments to identify quantitative trait loci(QTL) controlling NUE-associated traits at the wheat seedling stage. Genotyping the panel with a 660K single-nucleotide polymorphis...     

Cold temperatures and boron deficiency caused grain set failure in spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Boron (B) deficiency and cold temperatures during the reproductive development of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cause failure of grain to set. A pot experiment at the Plant Environment Laboratory, The University of Reading, UK, in 1996 examined whether wheat cultivars differ in response to these stresses, if any stage during reproductive development was more sensitive than another, and whether the effects of B deficiency and cold temperature were reversible. The experiment comprised a full four-factor combination of two cultivars of spring wheat with different field responses to B and cold temperature (Annapurna-3 and NL-683), three B treatments (no B added, 20 μM B L⁻¹ from sowing to maturity and 20 μM B L⁻¹ from flag leaf first visible (GS 37) to maturity), two temperature regimes (ambient UK temperatures and 8°/2°C day/night temperatures in growth cabinets), and three stages for different temperature regimes to be applied [flag leaf ligule visible (GS 39) to awn first visible (GS 49), from GS 49 to full ear emergence (GS 59) or from GS 59 to the completion of anthesis (GS 69)]. Control plants remained outdoors throughout. An additional B treatment was also applied in which 20 μM B L⁻¹ was supplied only until GS 37 without any cold treatments. NL-683 was more sensitive to cold temperature, producing >80% sterility, than Annapurna-3 (40% sterility). In contrast, Annapurna-3 was more susceptible to B deficiency (22% sterility compared to only 14% in NL-683). The principal effect of cold was to impair pollen viability: anthers were poorly developed, small, shrivelled and rarely dehisced. More than 75% of pollen grains were dead in NL-683 compared to about 25% in Annapurna-3. All periods from GS 39 to GS 69 were vulnerable to cold damage although the first stage (GS 39–49) was relatively more sensitive. The adverse effect of cold was irreversible even if ear emergence and anthesis of the stressed plants was in ambient temperatures. Cold temperature significantly reduced the response of plants to B and when cold stressed the cold susceptible cultivar (NL-683) accumulated less B. The effect of added B in terms of improved fertility was smaller in the main shoot ear but the fertility of tillers was greatly enhanced. Plants were more responsive to added B after the emergence of the penultimate leaf: the interruption of B supply during this stage led to a similar degree of sterility, as in plants grown without B throughout. However, resupply of B at this stage in the plants initially grown without B led to similar B concentrations and grain set as in plants grown with adequate B throughout. Boron concentrations in the flag leaf and ear also increased considerably from GS 39 to GS 60 indicating that these are the most sensitive stages for B nutrition and wheat plants can recover all of their B requirements if supply is not restricted from GS 37 onwards.     

Yield and agronomic traits of Khorasan wheat (Triticum turanicum Jakubz.)

The consumer's interest in natural, unconventional and nutritional foods led to the development of new specialty foods based on grain blends. Components of such foods are often so-called ‘ancient wheats’ which were never the subject of modern plant breeding programmes. Khorasan or Oriental wheat (Triticum turanicum) is a neglected and underutilised tetraploid wheat species, which probably survived over the centuries in subsistence farming systems in the Near East and Central Asia. In the present study the agronomic potential of Khorasan wheat was evaluated under eastern Austrian conditions.Fourteen accessions of Khorasan wheat were investigated together with check durum wheat cultivars over a period of 4 years in the Marchfeld region, north-east of Vienna. The crops were sown both in autumn and spring.The investigated material was inferior to modern durum wheats in most agronomic traits. No accession was found to tolerate soil temperatures below −5 °C. Tolerance to drought and fungal diseases was limited and/or modest, and grain yields were significantly lower. While the best performing turanicum accessions yielded in average 385.8 and 233.8 g m⁻² for autumn and spring sowing, respectively, the check winter durum yielded 466.5 g m⁻² and the check spring durums between 351.5 and 391.8 g m⁻². Several characteristic and interesting features were observed which permit successful marketing of pure Khorasan grain or as a component in grain blends, despite possible flour quality traits. The grain has an impressive kernel size and thousand kernel weight, in most cases greater than 50 g and often even greater than 60 g. The high thousand kernel weight might be a valuable trait to transfer into durum wheat to improve grain yield. Moreover, the grain has an amber colour and high vitreousness.Due to higher plant height, low lodging tolerance and high susceptibility against powdery mildew, Khorasan wheat is more suitable for organic farming systems. Although there is evidence that Khorasan wheat has low adaptation, it is of interest as an alternative cereal to increase diversity both in the field and on the consumer's table. However, further experiments are necessary: on the one hand to study the interactions between sowing rates, sowing dates, weed suppression, thousand kernel weight and kernel plumpness in order to find out optimal production procedures, and on the other hand to find out areas/fields with the best growth conditions for Khorasan wheat.     

Cloning,expression and functional analysis of HMW glutenin subunit 1By8 gene from Italy pasta wheat (Triticum turgidum L. ssp. durum)

Cloning and functional analysis of high molecular weight wheat glutenin subunit (HMW-GS) 1By8 from Italy durum cultivar Simeto was carried out in this study. All HMW-GS from Simeto were separated and characterized by appropriate electrophoresis methods, reversed-phased high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) and mass spectrometry (MS). The complete gene encoding 1By8 subunit was amplified by allele-specific PCR primers, including an upstream sequence of 857 bp and an open reading frame (ORF) of 2166 bp encoding a mature protein of 720 amino acid residues. The promoter sequence, containing -300 element (cereal glutenin gene control element) and enhancer was highly conserved among HMW-GS genes. Comparison with the sequence of subunit 1By9 from bread wheat demonstrated 99% identity with the main difference being that the 1By8 subunit possesses an additional insertion of 15 amino acid residues (QYPASQQQPA QGQQG) at position 342 and two residue substitutions at position 78 (leucine/proline) and 442 (arginine/glutamine). The molecular weight differences between MALDI-TOF-MS and deduced amino acid sequence of the coding gene revealed the possibility of some kinds of post-translational modifications present in 1By8 subunit. The protein subunit expressed in Escherichia coli showed a very similar mobility to the endogenous 1By8 of Simeto on SDS-PAGE. The function of the isolated protein on wheat processing quality was determined by 10 g Mixgraph analysis. Results demonstrated that addition of y-type HMW glutenin subunits into the base flour had significant positive effects on main mixing parameters and significant difference in effects were observed among different y-type subunits.     

Genetic analysis of resistance to spot blotch disease in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in Zambia

Understanding the genetics of resistance to spot blotch disease, caused by Bipolaris sorokiniana (Sacc.) Shoem, is important to design an appropriate breeding strategy to improve the trait. The objective of this study was to determine the gene action and mode of inheritance of resistance to spot blotch in wheat. Eight genotypes with varying resistance to the disease were crossed in a full diallel mating design. Parents and their progenies were evaluated for spot blotch resistance. Data were analyzed using Hayman’s diallel analysis. The results suggested the importance of additive gene effects in controlling the resistance to spot blotch in the materials under study. No epistasis, maternal, or reciprocal effects were detected. Resistance to spot blotch exhibited partial dominance. Therefore, exercising selection for resistance in the early segregating generation should be an effective approach because of the predominance of additive gene effects. The Wr/Vr graph showed that the parents 30SAWSN5 (P3) and Coucal (P4) possessed more dominant genes, which makes them particularly suitable for inclusion in breeding for resistance to spot blotch.     

Intercropped wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and bean (Vicia faba L.) as a whole-crop forage: effect of harvest time on forage yield and quality

Abstract Sole crops and intercrops of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and bean (Vicia faba L.), at three harvest dates, representing successive growth stages, were evaluated for biomass production of whole‐crop forage and quality characteristics of crude protein (CP), neutral‐detergent fibre (NDF), acid‐detergent fibre (ADF), water‐soluble carbohydrate (WSC) concentrations and ash content. These tests were carried out for two field experiments, respectively, drilled during the spring of 1997 and autumn of 1997 on Imperial College Farm, Wye, UK. Results indicated that optimum forage yield and quality were obtained from the second to third harvest dates for the spring‐drilled experiment and the second harvest for the autumn‐drilled experiment. Wheat and bean intercrops were higher in total forage dry matter (DM) yield than either wheat or bean grown as sole crops. Field bean intercropped with wheat led to increased forage quality (CP and NDF concentrations) compared with sole wheat, and higher WSC concentrations compared with sole bean. Intercrops also enhanced weed suppression compared with sole bean. It is suggested that winter wheat–bean intercrops may have considerable potential as a moderate‐yielding, relatively high‐quality, low‐input and environmentally benign forage crop with considerable potential with regard to yield and quality and warrant further study.     

Effect of high-nitrogen fertilizer on gliadin and glutenin subproteomes during kernel development in wheat(Triticum aestivum L.)

Nitrogen(N),a macronutrient essential for plant growth and development,is needed for biosynthesis of protein and starch,which affect grain yield and quality.Application of high-N fertilizer increases plant growth,grain yield,and flour quality.In this study,we performed the first comparative analysis of gliadin and glutenin subproteomes during kernel development in the elite Chinese wheat cultivar Zhongmai 175 under high-N conditions by reversed-phase ultra-performance liquid chromatography and twodimensional difference gel electrophoresis(2D-DIGE).Application of high-N fertilizer led to significant increases in gluten macropolymer content,total gliadin and glutenin content,and the accumulation of individual storage protein components.Of 126 differentially accumulated proteins(DAPs)induced by high-N conditions,24 gliadins,12 high-molecularweight glutenins,and 27 low-molecular-weight glutenins were significantly upregulated.DAPs during five kernel developmental stages displayed multiple patterns of accumulation.In particular,gliadins and glutenins showed respectively five and six accumulation patterns.The accumulation of storage proteins under high-N conditions may lead to improved dough properties and bread quality.     

Identification of KASP markers and putative genes for pre-harvest sprouting resistance in common wheat(Triticum aestivum L.)

Common wheat(Triticum aestivum L.) is the most important crop in the world and a typical allopolyploid with a large and complex genome. Pre-harvest sprouting(PHS) leads to a significant reduction in grain quality worldwide. PHS is a complex trait with related QTL located on different chromosomes.However, the study of markers and genes related to PHS resistance is limited especially for whitegrained wheat. Four pairs of near isogenic lines(NILs) from a white-grained wheat cross of Chara × DM5637B...     

Integrated effect of allelochemicals and herbicides on weed suppression and soil microbial activity in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

To evaluate the allelopathic effects of major crops and weeds, studies were conducted during 2011–12 and 2012–13 by utilizing water extracts of allelopathic plants namely rice (Oryza sativa L.), Parthenium hysterophorus L., Phragmites australis Cav., and Datura alba L. with reduced rates of fenoxaprop-p-ethyl and bromoxynil plus MCPA to control weeds. Application of Phragmites australis and Parthenium hysterophorus along with lower rates of fenoxaprop-p-ethyl and bromoxynil plus MCPA showed promising results by controlling weeds and improving yield. Parthenium hysterophorus extract with half of the recommended dose of fenoxaprop-p-ethyl and bromoxynil plus MCPA reduced weed density by 51 and 50% during year 1 and year 2, respectively, compared with the control. Phragmites australis extract with half of the recommended dose of fenoxaprop-p-ethyl produced grain yield (5.7 and 6.1 t ha⁻¹ during year 1 and 2, respectively) in wheat. However, these results were also at par with Parthenium hysterophorus and Datura alba extracts in combinations with half the recommended doses of the above mentioned herbicides. The study of microbial activity showed higher amount of mineralizable carbon in D. alba with half the recommended dose of fenoxaprop-p-ethyl treated plots (0.073 g during both the years). The lowest amount of mineralizable carbon (0.035 and 0.030 g during year 1 and 2, respectively) was observed in the control plots. The presence of allelopathic plants in field crops and subsequent mixing in soil by tillage may create problems in crop production. Therefore, further studies are suggested to fully explore all the possible interactions among allelochemicals and herbicides.     

Optically assessed contents of leaf polyphenolics and chlorophyll as indicators of nitrogen deficiency in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

There is an increasing need for diagnostic tools that can assess the crop nitrogen (N) nutrition status during the growth cycle. In addition to the leaf chlorophyll (Chl) content, we proposed here the use of the leaf content of polyphenolics (Phen) as a potential indicator of crop N status. Because of their absorption features in the visible and in the UV part of the spectrum, both Chl and Phen can be measured by rapid and non-destructive optical methods. Therefore, we used two leaf-clip devices, the Minolta SPAD-502 for Chl, and the Dualex for Phen. The latter is a prototype (patent pending) that measures the UV absorbance of the leaf epidermis, which is related to the leaf Phen content. Dynamics of Phen and Chl were measured on the last fully developed leaves of two winter wheat cultivars subjected to different levels of N availability, from tillering to flowering, in 2001, 2002 and 2003. Both Phen and Chl contents were found to increase along the leaf, starting from the ligula, regardless of the stage of development. Both variables were highly correlated with the N concentration of leaves. The average Chl content of the leaf increased, and the average Phen content decreased, with the increased application of N to the field, irrespective of the growth stage, the cultivar and the year of experiment. Therefore, both Phen and Chl can be considered as probes of the crop N nutrition status. Still, the relationship between Chl and the nitrogen nutrition index (NNI), used as a reference indicator of N deficiency, was influenced by the growth stage, whereas the year of experiment affected the relationship between Phen and the NNI. We also propose the use of the simple Chl/Phen ratio as an indicator of leaf N content at the canopy level, for future application in precision agriculture. This ratio would alleviate, at least partially, the problem of gradients along leaves, and would even accentuate the differences among levels of crop N deficiencies because of the Chl and Phen inverse dependence on the crop N nutrition status.     

Filtering for SNPs with high selective constraint augments mid-parent heterosis predictions in wheat(Triticum aestivum L.)

To extend the contemporary understanding into the grain yield heterosis of wheat, the current study investigated the contribution of deleterious alleles in shaping mid-parent heterosis(MPH). These alleles occur at low frequency in the genome and are often missed by automated genotyping platforms like SNP arrays. The deleterious alleles herein were detected using a quantitative measurement of evolutionary conservation based on the phylogeny of wheat and investigations were made to:(1) assess the ...