Quantitative Protein Composition and Baking Quality of Winter Wheat as Affected by Late Sulfur Fertilization

Increasing prices for wheat products and fertilizers, as well as reduced sulfur (S) contributions from the atmosphere, call for an improvement of product quality and agricultural management. To detect the impact of a time-dependent S fertilization, the quantitative protein composition and the baking quality of two different wheat cultivars, Batis and Turkis, were evaluated. The glutathione concentration in grains serves as a reliable marker of the need for added S fertilizer. The quantitation of gliadins and glutenin subunits by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography confirmed that S-rich proteins significantly increased with S fertilization, whereas the S-poor proteins significantly decreased. Proteome analysis by means of high-resolution protein profiles detected 55 and 37 proteins from Batis and Turkis changed by late S fertilization. A microscale baking test using wholemeal flour was implemented for the evaluation of baking quality, and late S fertilization was found to improve the composition of gluten proteins and baking quality.