Chromosomal Location of Genes for Grain Protein Content of Wild Tetraploid Wheat

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Abstract
The improvement of grain‐protein content is an important goal of durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L.) and other wheat breeding programs. The objective of this study was to determine the chromosomal location of genes for high grain‐protein content in an accession of wild tetraploid (emmer) wheat (T. turgidum L. var. dicoccoides) having seeds with high grain‐protein content. The method was to substitute each of the dicoccoides (DIC) chromosomes into ‘Langdon’ (LDN) durum by crossing and backcrossing with a set of LDN D‐genome disomic substitution lines. All of the Langdon‐dicoccoides, LDN(DIC), substitution lines were vigorous and fertile except the LDN(DIC‐2B), lines, which were low in vigor and partially sterile. The substitution lines for each of the other 13 chromosomes, the 1D(1A), 4D(4B), and 7D(7A) D‐genome disomic substitutions, and the cultivars LDN, Ward, Monroe, and Vie were grown in field experiments with four replicates at two locations in each of two years and were evaluated for grain‐protein content. The following lines had significantly higher grain‐protein content than LDN: LDN(DIC‐6B) > LDN(DIC‐2A) > LDN(DIC‐SB) = LDN(DIC‐3A) = LDN(DIC‐6A). Lines with significantly less grain protein than the recurrent parent LDN were LDN(DIC‐3B), LDN(DIC‐4B), and LDN(DIC‐7B). The high grain‐protein content of the LDN(DIC‐2A) lines may have been related to their low grain yield. The consistently high grain‐protein content of the LDN(DIC‐6B) lines suggests that this DIC chromosome has one or more important genes affecting this character. These LDN(DIC) substitution lines should prove useful in breeding improved durum wheat cultivars with increased grain‐protein content.