Researchers have conducted a large scale study on the genomics of wheat, and their results show that wheat has a broad genetic diversity that is significant for increased crop improvement. They characterized 79,191 wheat samples genetically.

The ICARDA or International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas and the CIMMYT or International Maize & Wheat Improvement Center provided the materials for their study derived from their germplasm banks.

The study has been published today in the journal Nature Communications.

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Wheat as a Global Crop

Among all crops worldwide, wheat is the one that is most planted. It has a yearly production that surpasses 600 M tons, and around 95% of its yield is bread wheat, with the last 5% being pasta wheat or durum.

Objectives of the Study

The researchers who conducted the analysis are involved in the SeeD or Seeds of Discovery initiative, aiming to effectively use wheat and maize's genetic diversity.

The new study's main objective was to characterize wheat's genetic diversity from the international collections of the organizations mentioned above. These collections constitute the most extensive collection anywhere.

The research team set out to map the genetic variants to identify genes useful in breeding wheat. It is a massive genotyping effort and analysis of wheat diversity of 27 wild species and pasta and bread wheat; the two wheat types have grown worldwide.

The research team also genotyped the wheat samples to determine the various molecular markers associated with characteristics present in domesticated wheat and their wild relatives.

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Results of the Study

The study showed specific biological groupings among bread wheat species, suggesting that a significant portion of their genetic diversity has not been maximized for the development of new nutritious, high-yielding, and resilient wheat varieties.

Underutilized Wheat Diversity

The authors' analysis showed how little of the available diversity in wheat landraces are utilized inbreeding. According to CIMMYT sequencing and genotyping specialist and lead researcher Carolina Sansaloni, this reveals an important opportunity to tap these variations' potential.

Genetic Representation

The research team also discovered that pasta wheat's genetic diversity is primarily represented in its modern varieties, except for an Ethiopian subgroup.

Molecular Markers

Sansaloni says that an average of 72% of these molecular markers has unique positions in three reference maps. Simultaneously, approximately half of them are found in regions where specific valuable breeding characteristics are controlled, like tolerance to drought and heat, protein content, and potential yield.

Providing Open Access To All Scientists

The study analysis, visualization tools, and all its data have been provided by the authors available free of charge to the entire scientific community so that global research in wheat and enhanced wheat breeding may be significantly advanced.

Sansaloni said that their findings are useful for gene discovery, marker development, cloning, genomic selection & prediction, genome-wide association studies, marker-assisted selection, and many other applications. These will be a tremendous help in wheat genomics and genetic diversity research and can help crop improvement.

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