Genome-Wide Association Study of Kernel Traits in .

is the diploid progenitor of the D subgenome of hexaploid wheat (ivum L.). Here, the phenotypic data of kernel length (KL), kernel width (KW), kernel volume (KV), kernel surface area (KSA), kernel width to length ratio (KWL), and hundred-kernel weight (HKW) for 223 accessions were gathered across three continuous years. Based on population structure analysis, 223 were divided into two subpopulations, namely T-group (mainly included ssp. accessions) and S-group (mainly included ssp. ). Classifications based on cluster analysis were highly consistent with the population structure results. Meanwhile, the extent of linkage disequilibrium decay distance ( = 0.5) was about 110 kb and 290 kb for T-group and S-group, respectively. Furthermore, a genome-wide association analysis was performed on these kernel traits using 6,723 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers. Sixty-six significant markers, distributed on all seven chromosomes, were identified using a mixed linear model explaining 4.82-13.36% of the phenotypic variations. Among them, 15, 28, 22, 14, 21, and 13 SNPs were identified for KL, KW, KV, KSA, KWL, and HKW, respectively. Moreover, six candidate genes that may control kernel traits were identified (, and ). The transfer of beneficial genes from to wheat using marker-assisted selection will broaden the wheat D subgenome improve the efficiency of breeding.