Interspecific hybridisation between hexaploid and tetraploid wheat species leads to the development of F1 pentaploid hybrids with unique chromosomal constitutions. Pentaploid hybrids derived from bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and durum wheat (Triticum turgidum spp. durum Desf.) crosses can improve the genetic background of either parent by transferring traits of interest. The genetic varia...

Diets containing low-quality durum wheat (716 g/kg) for production of pasta were used to feed male broiler chicks. The efficacy of xylanase supplementation and the impact of xylanase inhibitors on losses in exogenous enzyme activity were analyzed. Birds fed on the basal diet, not supplemented with recombinant xylanases or Roxazyme G, reached a BW of 1,509 g with a feed conversion ratio of 1.77 ...

The new branched spike forms of wheat were synthesized from the crosses between a complex wheat line 171ACS {Aegilotriticale [(T. durum Desf. × Ae. tauschii Coss.) × Secale cereale L. ssp. segetale Zhuk.] × T. aestivum L. ‘Chinese Spring’} (2n = 6x = 42, AABBDD) and durum wheat variety T. durum Desf. ‘Bereketli-95’ (2n = 4x = 28, AABB) and also between a dwarf line 237KACS (Aegilotriticale × T....

Wild emmer wheat (Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccoides) is considered a promising source for improving stress resistances in domesticated wheat. Here we explored the potential of selected quantitative trait loci (QTLs) from wild emmer wheat, introgressed via marker-assisted selection, to enhance drought resistance in elite durum (T. turgidum ssp. durum) and bread (T. aestivum) wheat cultivars. Th...

Phospholipases A2 (PLA2s) are known to mediate signaling cascades during plant growth and development, as well as biotic and abiotic stress responses. In this context, the present study provides extensive characterization of specific PLA2s in durum wheat, and assesses their involvement in durum wheat response to drought stress. In durum wheat leaves, four full-length expressed sequences encodin...

Sources of resistance to Fusarium head blight (FHB) in wheat are mostly restricted to Chinese hexaploid genotypes. The effort to incorporate the resistance from hexaploid wheat or wild relatives to cultivated durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. var. durum Desf.) have not been successful in providing resistance to the level of the donor parents. In this study, we used 171 BC(1)F(6) and 169 BC(1)F(...

Domestication of plants and animals is the major factor underlying human civilization. Cultivated wheats refer mainly to two types: the hexaploid bread wheat (Triticum aestivum) accounting for about 95% of world wheat production, and the tetraploid durum wheat (T. durum) accounting for the other 5%. T. aestivum derived from a cross between domesticated emmer T. dicoccum and the goat grass Aegil...

The transfer of alien genes to crop plants using chromosome engineering has been attempted infrequently in tetraploid durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. subsp. durum). Here, we report a highly efficient approach for the transfer of two genes conferring resistance to stem rust race Pgt-TTKSK (Ug99) from goatgrass (Aegilops speltoides) to tetraploid wheat. The durum line DAS15, carrying the stem r...

Water deficit and increasing salinization reduce productivity of wheat, the leading crop for human diet. While the complete genome sequence of this crop has not been deciphered, a BAC library screening allowed the isolation of TdERF1, the first ethylene response factor gene from durum wheat. This gene is putatively involved in mediating salt stress tolerance and its characterization provides cl...

Natural variation occurs in the uptake and distribution of essential and nonessential trace elements among crop species and among cultivars within species. Such variation can be responsible for trace element deficiencies and toxicities, which in turn can affect the quality of food. Plant breeding can be an important tool to both increase the concentration of desirable trace elements and reduce ...