Inheritance of some w-gliadin protein subunits in spelt wheat and their linkage with the red glume coding Rg-1 locus.

Jacek Waga

Abstract

The Gli B1 locus controlling the synthesis of certain fractions of wheat storage proteins belonging to the group of ω-gliadins is tightly linked with the Rg1 gene responsible for red glume colour. The inheritance of selected ω-gliadin subunits and of glume colour was studied in order to identify markers of this trait among protein fractions specific to spelt wheat. Electrophoretic analysis for 217 single plants of the F₂ generation in the cross Tr. aestivum (cultivar Elena) × Tr. spelta was done. Four out of five protein subunits specific for spelt wheat (O1, O3, O4 and O5) as well as gliadin block Gli B1-1 of the Elena cultivar were inherited according to Mendelian segregation ratio 1:2:1 assumed for two allelic protein variants of one gene. The above mentioned fractions of spelt wheat formed a block, which has been denoted by the symbol Gli B1-6. The results of segregation analysis regarding glume colour indicate Mendelian, single-gene inheritance of this trait (3:1 ratio of red and white glumes), which differs from the results of other investigations suggesting the existence of two genes controlling the red colour. The genetic distance between loci Gli B1 and Rg1 has been estimated to be 1.9 cM.