Grain Quality Indicators in Winter Bread Wheat Breeding Lines

Abstract: Grain quality is a complex characteristic that depends on several traits, and the individual contribution of each trait varies depending on the specific response to environmental conditions. The effects of genotype and environment on quality characteristics of 1,200 wheat genotypes were assessed; the relationships between quality traits were also analyzed. Having summarized long-term data using year-standardized values, we identified sources of high test weight, high and low kernel vitreousness for the breeding of hard and soft cultivars; sources of high protein and gluten contents and high gluten quality, high rheological properties and baking scores. Among the cultivars, cvs. ‘Kharus’, ‘Astet’, ‘Vasylyna’, ‘Fermerka’, ‘Patriotka’, and ‘Maliovanka’ were distinguished by high dough resilience, flour strength and dough elasticity index, while cvs. ‘Malusha’ and a soft confectionery cultivar, ‘Mazurok’, were distinguished by low low values of these characteristics; the latter was also characterized by low kernel vitreousness. Cultivars ‘Pryvablyva’, ‘Pryvitna’, ‘Prynada’, ‘Haiok’, and ‘Pronia’ were distinguished by high test weight. High grain protein content and flour gluten content were intrinsic to cvs. ‘Pryvablyva’, ‘Pryvitna’, ‘Harmonika’, and ‘Mazurok’, with the maximum values in cv. ‘Prynada’. High loaf volume and overall baking score were recorded for cvs. ‘Kharus’, ‘Astet’, ‘Vasylyna’, ‘Statna’, ‘Fermerka’, ‘Dyvo’, ‘Harmonika’, ‘Prynada’, and ‘Mavka IR’. Relationships between grain quality traits were evaluated; it was shown that overall baking score was closely correlated with gluten deformation index, dough resilience, flour strength and dough elasticity index. Cluster and principal component analyses, which were conducted to summarize the data, divided the studied traits into four clusters with a Euclidean distance of 70% of the total variability; one of them is associated with baking qualities, another – with rheological properties, and two more – with protein and gluten contents, test weight and kernel vitreousness. Lines combining high values of different characteristics for different areas of use were selected. The results of this study can be used as breeding criteria to improve the quality of bread wheat grain in the region.