Carotenoids and tocols comparison in different Subspecies of Triticum turgidum and aestivum.

Carotenoids and Tocols in six genotypes of Triticum turgidum ssp. durum, five of Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccum, four of Triticum aestivum ssp. aestivum, and six of Triticum aestivum ssp. spelta were investigated. The aim of the present study was to identify, quantify, and compare the content of tocopherols, tocotrienols, and carotenoids in different primitive and modern genotypes of wheat species in order to evaluate the lines with the highest content and possibly use them for selection and breeding programs. The Triticum durum group showed the highest mean content of total carotenoids, with lutein being the most abundant, accounting for 80.12 % (Triticum spelta) to 86.65 % (Triticum turgidum) of total carotenoids. Among the genotypes, Line 6 (Triticum durum) had the highest lutein content (12.17 µg g-1), significantly differing from the lines within its group and the other groups of dicoccum, aestivum, and spelta.Triticum dicoccum exhibited a lower average content of total tocols compared to other Triticum species. The tocols profile showed a prevalence of tocotrienols over tocopherols. ß + Î³-T3 was the most abundant individual tocol isomer in all Triticum genotypes, contributing for 50.40 % (Triticum ssp. aestivum) and 42.50 % (Triticum spelta) of the total content, respectively. The highest ß + Î³-T3 content (23.83 µg/g) was found in Line 6 of Triticum durum. Correlation, principal component, and cluster analyses revealed positive correlations between total tocols and ß/γ tocotrienols, significant differences between various groups of the same species, formation of six clusters labeled as I to VI, and the identification of genotypes from the same species grouped in different clusters.

Genetic Diversity for Agronomic Traits and Phytochemical Compounds in Coloured Naked Barley Lines.

Interest of breeders is increasing toward the development of new barley cultivars with functional properties and adapted for food uses. A barley breeding program was initiated to develop germplasm with naked and coloured grains rich in bioactive compounds In the present study, a set of 16 F8 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from the following four parental lines: 2005FG, K4-31, L94 and Priora, were evaluated in the experimental trials in Foggia (Italy) during the 2017-2019 growing seasons with the aims to assess the genetic variability for desired traits and identify superior genotypes. Lines were characterised for agronomic traits (earliness, plant height, seed yield, specific weight, 1000-seed weight) and biochemical compounds accumulation (phenolics, anthocyanins, flavonoids, carotenoids, ß-glucans, proteins, antioxidant activity). A high heritability and selection response were observed for most of the biochemical compounds. The grain yield showed high significant positive genetic and phenotypic correlations (p < 0.05) with phenols and antioxidant activity. Cluster analysis grouped the genotypes into three groups. The barley RIL lines L1997, L3005, L3007 and L3009 were superior for more than four traits including seed yield and antioxidant compounds. These genotypes may serve as potential sources of nutraceuticals for healthy food and in breeding programs. In the present study, the new barley genotypes with naked and coloured grains have been selected without compromising their productivity.

Phenotypic Parent Selection Within a Khorasan Wheat Collection and Genetic Variation in Advanced Breeding Lines Derived by Hybridization With Durum Wheat.

Tetraploid relatives of durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. subsp. durum (Desf.) Husnot) represent an important reservoir of economically useful genes for development of new wheat cultivars. Two field experiments were conducted at Foggia (Italy), in the 2004 to 2006 and 2012 to 2015 growing seasons. In the first, 77 Khorasan wheat [T. turgidum subsp. turanicum (Jakubz.) Á. Löve & D. Löve] accessions from 23 countries of four geographic regions (Africa, Asia, Europe, and others) were evaluated to explore breeding opportunities. Seven agronomic traits were used to describe the diversity among the accessions: days to heading (HT), plant height (PH), grain yield (GY), specific weight (SW) as an indication of the density of the grain, 1000-grain weight (TGW), protein content, and gluten content. The total Shannon-Weaver diversity index was used to estimate phenotypic diversity, which ranged from monomorphic for PC (0.39) to highly polymorphic for TGW (0.67). A high level of total variation (87%) was attributed to the within-region diversity. The accessions grouped into six clusters, and seven elite accessions were selected as parents for crosses with durum wheat. In the second experiment, ten parents (seven Khorasan accessions and three durum wheat cultivars) and 790 F6 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) from the different T. durum × T. turgidum subsp. turanicum crosses were included to study genotypic and phenotypic variability of the same agronomic traits, plus the susceptibility index (SI) for disease. The genotypic coefficients of variation were lower than the phenotypic ones for all of the traits, which showed an environment effect on expression of these traits. High broad-sense heritability (h2 b > 86%) was recorded for all traits, and high h2 b coupled with high genetic gain as percentage of the mean (ΔG) was observed for HT, PH, GY, and SW, and for SI. This suggests that selection for these traits will provide good responses. Four principal components explained 70% of the total variation, and the genotypes were clustered into 20 groups. According to the results, some lines could be tested in varietal registration trials, and/or could be used as a significant breeding pool for durum wheat cultivar development in Mediterranean area.

Phenolic acids variability and grain quality of organically and conventionally fertilised old wheats under a warm climate.

BACKGROUND: We investigated three old wheats (Triticum dicoccum, Triticum durum, Triticum spelta) for effects of organic and conventional cultivation under equivalent nitrogen fertilisation (100 kg ha-1 ) on antioxidant content and composition, and on quality traits. RESULTS: Compared to conventional cultivation, organic cultivation had positive effects on test weight, while grain quality traits of protein content, gluten content and sodium dodecyl sulphate microsedimentation volume were 19.2%, 9.3% and 22.7% lower, respectively. Despite lower protein content with organic cultivation, this was still high (147 g kg-1 ); thus with adequate organic nitrogen fertilisation, the quality traits related to the technological properties of flour were maintained. Total phenolic content (TPC) was significantly higher for organic versus conventional cultivation, although free and bound phenolic acids were not significantly different. With discriminant analysis, only durum wheat differentiated the qualitative and compositional traits according to cultivation system. Separation of organic versus conventional cultivation in durum wheat and emmer was strongly affected by antioxidants (antioxidant capacity, TPC, yellow pigment content), dietary fibre, protein content and test weight. CONCLUSIONS: With adequate organic nitrogen fertilisation, protein and gluten contents remain high enough for good quality pasta. However, except for TPC, organic cultivation did not affect phenolic acids profile and antioxidant activity. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry.

Phenolic acids profile, nutritional and phytochemical compounds, antioxidant properties in colored barley grown in southern Italy.

Free, soluble conjugated, and insoluble bound phenolic acids and some of the main antioxidant phytochemicals (i.e., total polyphenols, proanthocyanidins, carotenoids) were investigated in 20 genotypes of colored barley. These included 16F8 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) obtained from crosses of four parental lines: '2005 FG', 'K4-31, 'L94', and 'Priora'. The aim of this work was these to promote the introduction of new barley genotypes with high contents of such natural antioxidants, and of dietary fiber. These new genotypes will enlarge the market of novel functional foods. Large variations were seen in the contents of phytochemicals and ß-glucans across these barley genotypes. The highest protein (14.4%) and ß-glucan (4.6%) contents were in the blue naked parental genotype '2005 FG'. Overall, insoluble bound phenolic acids represented 88.3% of the total phenolic acids, and ferulic acid was the main conjugated phenolic acid. Salicylic and gallic acids were the most represented among the free phenolic acids, with no p-coumaric and cinnamic acids detected. Total polyphenols and proanthocyanidins were highest in the RILs '3009' (2917 µg g-1) and '1997' (1630 µg g-1). The barley line with high total polyphenols (RIL '3009') also showed the highest antioxidant capacities (by both DPPH and ABTS methods: 13.4 µmol g-1 and 15.6 µmol g-1, respectively). Among the RILs examined, '3004', '3008', and '3009' showed 30% higher antioxidant capacities than their parentals, thus providing potential health-promoting benefits.

Chemical, technological, and nutritional characteristics of two lines of "farro" (Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccum).

In recent years, the renewed interest for foods with a natural image has increased the demand for dry pasta produced from "hulled" wheat such as the Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccum, also known as "farro". In order to contribute to the general knowledge, two lines of farro were considered in this study. To have a comparison, an old cultivar of Triticum turgidum ssp. durum (Senatore Cappelli) in addition to a commercial semolina were also examined. All semolina samples were used to produce pasta samples. Results showed some differences among pasta samples that seem to be due not to the presence of specific protein subunits but especially to the quantitative ratio between the different subunits. Results also reconfirmed the role played by the drying technology that is able to affect the sensory characteristics of pasta products.

Assessment of the agronomic and technological characteristics of Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccum Schrank and T. spelta L.

Recently, the peoples interest in natural and organic products led to a "rediscovery" of hulled wheat, particularly T. turgidum ssp. dicoccum, commonly known as "farro". Compared with durum wheat (T. turgidum ssp. durum), farro is characterized by low productivity and low quality semolina and flour, which makes it unsuitable for the production of bread and pasta. In this paper, the agronomic, technological and nutritional characteristics of three new varieties of farro obtained by crossing the T. turgidum ssp. dicoccum c.v. Molise with T. turgidum ssp. durum c.v. Simeto, were analysed. Data were then compared with those concerning older populations of T. turgidum and of two varieties of T. spelta. The aim of this work is to highlight the productive advantages of the new varieties and to emphasize their prospective use in the production of bread and pasta with considerable health properties due to nutritional characteristics of hulled cereals.