Grain Quality Indices in the Program of Winter Bread Wheat Breeding for the Steppe Region of Ukraine

Abstract

Grain quality of winter bread wheat (T. aestivum), as it was shaped inUkraine, is considered mainly from thestandpoint of using wheat grainfor breadmaking industry. All 65 varieties that are included into statelist of Ukraine for year 2000 belong to hard red wheat type. In thebreeding program of winter bread wheat in Plant Breeding and GeneticsInstitutes (Odessa) traditionally scrupulous attention is given to suchgrain quality indices as protein and gluten content, flour strenght(Chopin alveograph, W), loaf volume, overall bread value. In the courseof wheat variety changes during 80 years of wheat bleeding in southernUkraine genetic yield potential increased more than twice (from 3,7 to8,0 t ha(-1)).Simultaneously protein and gluten content decreased on the average from16,8 to 14,0 % and from 42,1 to 31,0% respectively. However, proteinyield per hectar increased from 7,14 to 10,90 kg ha(-1) (152%). Proteinand gluten quality as well as breadmaking quality have pronouncedtendency towards improvement. Introduction into local wheat germplasmsuch new alleles of grain quality as Gld 1A4 from variety Bezostaya 1and Gld 1D4 Gld 6D3 from spring bread wheat Red River 68 has played theleading role in improving grain quality of our modern varieties. Inbreeding for grain quality one should keep in mind the availability ofnegative correlation between grain protein content and yield (r3D-0,57{*}85-0,75{*}{*}) as well as between the former and harvest index(r 3D - 0,64{*}{*}85-0,81{*}{*}). It was found however that differentdwarf genes affected reduction of protein content due to grain yieldincrease in different ways. The achievements in bleeding wheat for grainquality can be done due to developing and utilization of new geneticsources of high grain quality and subsequent selection of desirablegenotypes in the course of breeding process. To get such genotypes weshould use various techniques and methods for evaluation of grainquality! accumulate gliadin and dlutenin coding loci that positivelyaffect grain quality indices in one genotype using biochemical markers.There has developed a set of commercial varieties (Albatros odesskiy,Ukrainka odesskaya, Fantaziya odesskaya, Krasunya odesskaya, Simvolodesskiy, Victoriya odesskaya, Lada odesskaya, Znahidka odesskaya,Panna, Leleka) which are characterised by high and extra high indices ofgrain quality.