Molecular characterization of vernalization and response genes in bread wheat from the Yellow and Huai Valley of China.

Background: Flowering time greatly influences the adaptation of wheat cultivars to diverse environmental conditions and is mainly controlled by vernalization and photoperiod genes. In wheat cultivars from the Yellow and Huai Valleys, which represent 60%-70% of the total wheat production in China, the large-scale genotyping of wheat germplasms has not yet been performed in terms of vernalization and photoperiod response alleles, limiting the use of Chinese wheat germplasms to a certain extent.

Results: In this study, 173 winter wheat cultivars and 51 spring wheat cultivars from China were used to identify allelic variations of vernalization and photoperiod genes as well as copy number variations of Ppd-B1 and Vrn-A1.

Alveograph and Mixolab parameters associated with Puroindoline-D1 genes in Chinese winter wheats.

Background: Grain texture is one of the most important characteristics of bread wheat and has a significant influence on end-use qualities.

Results: Forty-three Chinese cultivars were tested under three environments and used to characterise kernel hardness, Puroindoline-D1 alleles and Alveograph and Mixolab parameters. The results indicated that SKCS hardness was positively correlated with Alveograph tenacity and P/L and Mixolab protein weakening (C2) and water absorption and negatively correlated with Mixolab starch gelatinisation (C3), amylasic activity (C4) and starch gelling (C5).