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A comparison of grain protein content QTLs and flour protein content QTLs across environments in cultivated wheat

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Abstract

The protein content of cultivated wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is an important determinant factor of the nutritional value of the grain and the technological properties and rheological properties of flour. In order to examine the genetic basis of protein content, we searched for grain protein content quantitative trait loci (QTLs) and flour protein content QTLs in a newly developed doubled haploid (DH) line and identified the genetic correlation between grain protein content and flour protein content in the same DH population. Both the DH population and its parental lines were evaluated for grain protein content and flour protein content in three field trials. Four additive effect QTLs, two pairs of epistatic QTLs, and two QTLs × environment (QE) interaction for grain protein content were identified. The model explained 51.52% of the phenotypic variation (PVE), with epistatic effects being better explained by the higher PVE than additive effects. Four additive effect QTLs, five pairs of epistatic QTLs, and one QE were detected for flour protein content. The model explained 45.8% of the PVE. Of the 15 QTLs identified, three additive QTLs and one pair of epistatic QTLs were determined for both grain protein content and flour protein content; of these, the QTLs for protein content were considered to be more 'stable' than those detected for only grain protein content or for only flour protein content. The data reported here may be useful for manipulating the QTLs for protein content by marker-assisted selection in future wheat breeding programs.

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Abbreviations

AFLP:

Amplified fragment length polymorphism

DH:

Doubled haploid

EST:

Expressed sequence tag

ISSR:

Inter-simple sequence repeat

QTL:

Quantitative trait locus/loci

RFLP:

Restriction fragment length polymorphism

SSR:

Simple sequence repeats

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 30971764 and the Hi-Tech Research and Development (863) Program of China (No. 2006AA100101) and the Doctor Foundation of China (No. 23023).The authors are grateful to Professor Yan Hai (Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhengzhou, China) for kindly providing the research materials, Dr. Xianchun Xia (Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China) and Dr. Sishen Li (Shandong Agricultural University, Shandong, China) for their donation of a number of primers, and Professor Weisheng Zhu (Suzhou Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Suzhou, China) for helping to plant the research materials and collect the phenotypic data in Suzhou.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Group of Quality Wheat Breeding of Shandong Agricultural University, No. 61 Daizong Road, 271018, Taian, China

    Liang Zhao, Kun-Pu Zhang, Bin Liu, Zhi-ying Deng & Ji-Chun Tian

  2. District Bureau of Agriculture, 277000, Xuecheng, Zaozhuang, China

    Hou-Lan Qu

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  1. Liang Zhao
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  2. Kun-Pu Zhang
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  3. Bin Liu
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Correspondence to Ji-Chun Tian.

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Zhao, L., Zhang, KP., Liu, B. et al. A comparison of grain protein content QTLs and flour protein content QTLs across environments in cultivated wheat. Euphytica 174, 325–335 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10681-009-0109-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10681-009-0109-z

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