Search Results (8)

Against the backdrop of growing climatic variability, the identification of genotypes combining high yield with stability and resilience to stress factors has become a central objective of contemporary wheat breeding. Therefore, the objective of this work was to assess the stability and adaptability of a collection of 13 wheat–wheatgrass hybrids (WWHs, lines) (Triticum aestivum L. (2n = 42)) in comparison with 10 commercial spring bread wheat (Tr. aestivum L.) cultivars under various meteorological conditions. This study was conducted in one location (Moscow region, Russia) over three growing seasons (2020, 2021, and 2022), which included a highly stressful year (2021) characterized by a severe combination of drought and heat during critical growth stages. Statistical analysis employed analysis of variance (ANOVA), clustering, and modern models for assessing the genotype-by-environment interaction (GEI)—AMMI (Additive Main Effects and Multiplicative Interaction). The results showed a significant effect of year conditions on all yield components. Under the stressful conditions of 2021, most genotypes exhibited a 30–70% decrease in productivity. Cluster analysis revealed a dynamic regrouping of genotypes depending on the conditions of the growing season. The AMMI model identified genotypes with high stability, such as Sudarinya (ASV = 9.3) and WWH 200 (ASV = 11.2), as well as genotypes specifically adapted to certain conditions: KWS Akvilon (ASV = 52.1) to stressful conditions and WWH 127 (ASV = 55.9) to favorable conditions. Under stress, lines WWH 107, WWH 127, and WWH 2430 exhibited the most adaptive strategies, including compensatory mechanisms, making these hybrids promising for further breeding. In conclusion, although wheat–wheatgrass hybrids demonstrate high productive potential under favorable conditions, their successful use in breeding requires the selection of genotypes that combine productivity and stress resistance. The identified stable and adaptive genotypes are valuable for developing new competitive cultivars under changing climatic conditions. Full article

The review summarizes the historical and current research on perennial grain breeding in Russia within the context of growing global interest in perennial crops. N.V. Tsitsin’s pioneering work in the 1930s produced the first wheat–wheatgrass amphiploids, which demonstrated the capacity to regrow after harvest and survive for 2–3 years. Subsequent research at the Main Botanical Garden in Moscow focused on characterizing Tsitsin’s material, selecting superior germplasm, and expanding genetic diversity through new cycles of hybridization and selection. This work led to the development of a new crop species, Trititrigia, and the release of cultivar ‘Pamyati Lyubimovoy’ in 2020, designed for dual-purpose production of high-quality grain and green biomass. Intermediate wheatgrass (Thinopyrum intermedium) is native to Russia, where several forage cultivars have been released and cultivated. Two large-grain cultivars (Sova and Filin) were developed from populations provided by the Land Institute and are now grown by farmers. Perennial rye was developed through interspecific crosses between Secale cereale and S. montanum, demonstrating persistence for 2–3 years with high biomass production and grain yields of 1.5–2.0 t/ha. Hybridization between Sorghum bicolor and S. halepense resulted in two released cultivars of perennial sorghum used primarily for forage production under arid conditions. Russia’s agroclimatic diversity in agricultural production systems provides significant opportunities for perennial crop development. The broader scientific and practical implications of perennial crops in Russia extend to climate-resilient, sustainable agriculture and international cooperation in this emerging field. Full article

The leaf surface micromorphology and the size of the stomatal complex of hybrids in the eighth seed generation from the crossing of ×Trititrigia cziczinii × Elymus farctus (f11814) on the wheat-like wheat-wheatgrass hybrid w107 were investigated by performing scanning electron microscopy of frozen samples (cryoSEM). The micromorphological characteristics of the paternal plants (w107) were dominant in the hybrid leaves. Costal long cells with silicified wavy walls, characteristic of w107 but absent in the mother plants f11814 and E. farctus, were observed in all hybrid samples examined. Conversely, shield-shaped prickles, a characteristic feature of E. farctus, were retained only in some hybrids. In addition, the maternal feature of Ω-shaped junctions of long epidermal cells in the intercostal zone was completely absent in hybrids. Quantitative parameters of the stomatal apparatus showed a weak correlation with micromorphological markers. Stomatal density on the adaxial side was inversely correlated with stomatal size, while variation in these parameters on the abaxial side occurred independently. The prevalence of paternal micromorphological traits in the hybrids seems to be a consequence of the elimination of genetic material from E. farctus, analogous to the loss of chromosomes from wild species observed in other distant crosses. Full article

The article presents the research results on the cultivation of a new perennial cereal crop of winter wheat hybrid and wheatgrass—perennial winter wheat (Trititrigia) of the “Pamyati Lyubimovoy” variety (hereinafter—Trititrigia) in the southern zone of the Rostov region over two years. The purpose of the research is to assess the degree of suitability for the use of a new perennial cereal crop—Trititrigia in the southern zone of the Rostov region. The yield, technological indicators of grain, and baking properties of flour were taken as evaluation criteria. The study of all aspects of Trititrigia cultivation was carried out in comparative sowings with winter wheat of the Stanichnaya variety, common in the Rostov region, of the Agricultural Research Center “Donskoy” (ARC Donskoy). As a result of the research, it was found that the average biological yield of Trititrigia in the southern zone of the Rostov region in two years was 4.28 t ha⁻¹, which was 1.57 t ha⁻¹ less than that of the control sowing of winter wheat of the Stanichnaya variety. The weight of the straw part with an ear of Trititrigia is 1.9 times higher than that of winter wheat of the “Stanichnaya” variety. Technological indicators of the quality of Trititrigia grain corresponded to the first class in terms of amount of protein (more than 19%), gluten (33.34%), and falling number (274 s); the third class according to the gluten deformation index (GDI) (81.5 points); the fifth class according to the natural mass of grain (691 g L⁻¹). The general baking evaluation of Trititrigia grain allowed it to be classified as valuable wheat. Full article

qPCR is widely used in quantitative studies of plant genomes and transcriptomes. In this article, this method is considered as an auxiliary step in the preparation and selection of markers for FISH analysis. Several cases from the authors’ research on populations of the same species were reviewed, and a comparison of the closely related species, as well as the adaptation of the markers, based on satellite tandem repeats (TRs) using quantitative qPCR data was conducted. In the selected cases, TRs with contrast abundance were identified in the cases of the Dasypyrum, Thinopyrum and Aegilops species, and the transfer of TRs between the wheat and related species was demonstrated. TRs with intraspecific copy number variation were revealed in Thinopyrum ponticum and wheat-wheatgrass partial amphidiploids, and the TR showing predominant hybridization to the sea buckthorn Y chromosome was identified. Additionally, problems such as the absence of a reference gene for qPCR, and low-efficiency and self-complementary primers, were illustrated. In the cases considered here, the qPCR results clearly show high correlation with the subsequent results of the FISH analysis, which confirms the value of this method for cytogenetic studies. Full article

Starch, as the main component of grain in cereals, serves as the major source of calories in staple food and as a raw material for industry. As the technological and digestive properties of starch depend on its content, the management of its components, amylose and amylopectin, is of great importance. The starch properties of wheat grain can be attuned using allelic variations of genes, including granule-bound starch synthase I (GBSS I), or Wx. The tertiary gene pool, including wheatgrass (Thinopyrum) species, provides a wide spectrum of genes-orthologs that can be used to increase the allelic diversity of wheat genes by wide hybridization. Octaploid partial wheat–wheatgrass hybrids (amphidiploids, WWGHs) combine the complete genome of bread wheat (BBAADD), and a mixed genome from the chromosomes of intermediate wheatgrass (Thinopyrum intermedium, genomic composition J^rJ^rJ^vsJ^vsStSt) and tall wheatgrass (Th. ponticum, JJJJJJJ^sJ^sJ^sJ^s). Thus, WWGHs may carry Wx genes not only of wheat (Wx-B1, Wx-A1 and Wx-D1) but also of wheatgrass origin. We aimed to assess the level of amylose in starch and investigate the polymorphism of Wx genes in 12 accessions of WWGHs. Additionally, we characterized orthologous Wx genes in the genomes of wild wheat-related species involved in the development of the studied WWGHs, Th. intermedium and Th. ponticum, as well as in the putative donors of their subgenomes, bessarabian wheatgrass (Th. bessarabicum, J^bJ^b) and bluebunch wheatgrass (Pseudoroegneria stipifolia, St₁St₁St₂St₂). Although no significant differences in amylose content were found between different WWGH accessions, SDS-PAGE demonstrated that at least two WWGHs have an additional band. We sequenced the Wx gene-orthologs in Th. bessarabicum, P. stipifolia, Th. intermedium and Th. ponticum, and developed a WXTH marker that can discriminate the Thinopyrum Wx gene in the wheat background, and localized it to the 7E chromosome in Th. elongatum. Using the WXTH marker we revealed the allelic polymorphism of the Thinopyrum Wx gene in the studied WWGHs. The applicability of Thinopyrum Wx genes in wheat breeding and their effect on starch quality are discussed. Full article

The cytogenetic study of wide hybrids of wheat has both practical and fundamental values. Partial wheat-wheatgrass hybrids (WWGHs) are interesting as a breeding bridge to confer valuable genes to wheat genome, as well as a model object that contains related genomes of Triticeae. The development of cytogenetic markers is a process that requires long and laborious fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) testing of various probes before a suitable probe is found. In this study, we aimed to find an approach that allows to facilitate this process. Based on the data sequencing of Thinopyrum ponticum, we selected six tandem repeat (TR) clusters using RepeatExplorer2 pipeline and designed primers for each of them. We estimated the found TRs’ abundance in the genomes of Triticum aestivum, Thinopyrum ponticum, Thinopyrum intermedium and four different WWGH accessions using real-time qPCR, and localized them on the chromosomes of the studied WWGHs using fluorescence in situ hybridization. As a result, we obtained three tandem repeat cytogenetic markers that specifically labeled wheatgrass chromosomes in the presence of bread wheat chromosomes. Moreover, we designed and tested primers for these repeats, and demonstrated that they can be used as qPCR markers for quick and cheap monitoring of the presence of certain chromosomes of wheatgrass in breeding programs. Full article

A wild wheatgrass, Thinopyrum ponticum (2n = 10x = 70), which exhibits substantially higher levels of salt tolerance than cultivated wheat, was employed to transfer its salt tolerance to common wheat by means of wide hybridization. A highly salt-tolerant wheat line S148 (2n = 42) was obtained from the BC₃F₂ progenies between Triticum aestivum (2n = 42) and Th. ponticum. In the cross of S148 × salt-sensitive wheat variety Chinese Spring, the BC₄F₂ seeds at germination stage segregated into a ratio of 3 salt tolerant to 1 salt sensitive, indicating that the salt tolerance was conferred by a dominant gene block. Genomic in situ hybridization analysis revealed that S148 had a single pair of Th. ponticum–T. aestivum translocated chromosomes bearing the salt-tolerance. This is an initial step of molecular breeding for salt-tolerant wheat. Full article