Summary
Variation in high molecular weight (HMW) glutenin subunit composition among 167 accessions of dicoccum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. var. dicoccum Schrank) of diverse origins was investigated using one-dimensional sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). A total of 20 alleles were identified, and 9 of them were found to be different from those previously detected by Payne and Lawrence (1983 b) in hexaploid wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). The newly discovered alleles enhance the genetic variability available to improve the industrial quality of wheats and some of them may facilitate basic research on the relationship of industrial quality with HMW glutenin subunit number. The novel variants include a GLU-A1 encoded subunit which has higher molecular mass than any other so far described in tetraploid and hexaploid wheats, and a ‘null’ GLU-B1 allele. Dicoccums containing neither GLU-A1- nor GLU-B1-encoded subunits were also identified. A comparison of the mean number of HMW glutenin subunits contained in various primitive and modern domesticated wheats of different ploidy levels and the identification of wheats containing no HMW glutenin subunits suggest that the occurrence of ‘null’ GLU-1 alleles in these species depends on chance rather on an inherent tendency on the part of modern polyploid wheats to suppress the activity of redundant GLU-1 genes.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bietz JA, Wall JS (1972) Wheat glutenin subunits: molecular weights determined by sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Cereal Chem 49:416–430
Bietz JA, Shepherd KW, Wall JS (1975) Single-kernel analysis of glutenin: use in wheat genetics and breeding. Cereal Chem 52:513–532
Burnouf T, Bouriquet R (1980) Glutenin subunits of genetically related European hexaploid wheat cultivars; their relation to bread-making quality. Theor Appl Genet 58:107–111
Galili G, Feldman M (1983) Diploidization of endosperm protein genes in polyploid wheats. Proc 6th Int Wheat Genet Symp, Kyoto, Japan, pp 1119–1123
Laemmli UK (1970) Cleavage of structural proteins during the assembly of the head of bacteriophage T4. Nature 227:680–685
Lawrence GJ, Shepherd KW (1980) Variation in glutenin protein subunits of wheat. Aust J Biol Sci 33:221–233
Lawrence GJ, Shepherd KW (1981) Chromosomal location of genes controlling seed proteins in species related to wheat. Theor Appl Genet 59:25–31
McFadden ES, Sears ER (1946) The origin of Triticum spelta and its freethreshing hexaploid relatives. J Hered 37:31–89 and 107–116
Miflin BJ, Field JM, Shewry PR (1983) Cereal storage proteins and their effects on technological properties. In: Daussant J, Mosse J, Vaughan J (eds) Seed proteins. Academic Press, London
Moonen JHE, Zeven AC (1984) SDS-PAGE of the HMW subunits of wheat glutenin and the characterization of 1R (1B) substitution and 1BL/1RS translocation lines. Euphytica 33:3–8
Moonen JHE, Scheepstra A, Graveland A (1983) The positive effects of the high molecular weight subunits 3+10 and 2* of glutenin on the bread-making quality of wheat cultivars. Euphytica 32:735–742
Payne PI, Corfield KG, Blackman JA (1979) Identification of a high-molecular-weight subunit of glutenin whose presence correlates with bread-making quality in wheats of related pedigree. Theor Appl Genet 55:153–159
Payne PI, Corfield KG, Holt LM, Blackman JA (1981a) Correlations between the inheritance of certain high-molecular weight subunits of glutenin and bread-making quality in progenies of six crosses of bread wheat. J Sci Food Agric 32:51–60
Payne PI, Holt LM, Law CN (1981b) Structural and genetical studies on the high-molecular weight subunits of wheat glutenin. Part 1. Allelic variation in subunits amongst varieties of wheat. Theor Appl Genet 60:229–236
Payne PI, Holt LM, Thomson RD, Bartels D, Harberd NP, Harris PA, Law CN (1983a) The high-molecular-weight subunits of glutenin: classical genetics, molecular genetics and the relationship to bread-making quality. Proc 6th Int Wheat Genet Symp, Kyoto, Japan, pp 827–834
Payne PI, Lawrence GJ (1983b) Catalogue of alleles for the complex gene loci, GLU-A1, GLU-B1, and GLU-D1 which code for high-molecular weight subunits of glutenin in hexaploid wheat. Cereal Res Commun 11:29–35
Payne PI, Holt LM, Jackson EA, Law CN (1984a) Wheat storage proteins: their genetics and their potential for manipulation by plant breeding. Philos Trans R Soc London, Ser B 304:359–371
Payne PI, Jackson EA, Holt LM (1984b) The association between Y-gliadin 45 and gluten strength in durum wheat varieties: a direct causal effect or the result of genetic linkage? J Cereal Sci 2:73–81
Pogna N, Mellini F, Dal Belin Peruffo A (1985) The role of PAGE in varietal identification and in developing new varieties of durum wheat with good spaghetti-making quality. Int Symp Durum Wheat, May 1985, Foggia, Italy. Monograf Genet Agric 7:199–212
Quick JS, Crawford RD (1983) Bread making potential of new durum wheat cultivars. Proc 6th Int Wheat Genet Symp, Kyoto, Japan, pp 851–856
Tsunewaki K (1966) Comparative gene analysis of common wheat and its ancestral species: II Waxiness, growth habit and awnedness. Jpn J Bot 19:175–229
Vallega V (1986) High-molecular-weight glutenin subunit composition of Italian Triticum durum cultivars and spaghetti cooking quality. Cereal Res Commun 14:251–257
Wagner K, Maier G (1982) Weizensortenidentifizierung durch Polyacrylamidgelelektrophorese. Bodenkultur 33:322–332
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by F. Salamini
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Vallega, V., Waines, J.G. High molecular weight glutenin subunit variation in Triticum turgidum var. dicoccum . Theoret. Appl. Genetics 74, 706–710 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00247545
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00247545