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Diversity surveys of crop germplasm are important for gaining insights into the genomic basis for plant architecture and grain yield improvement, which is still poorly understood in wheat. In this study, we exome sequenced 287 wheat accessions that were collected in the past 100 years. Population genetics analysis identified that 6.7% of the wheat genome falls within the selective sweeps between landraces and cultivars, which harbors the genes known for yield improvement. These regions were asymmetrically distributed on the A and B subgenomes with regulatory genes being favorably selected. Genome-wide association study (GWAS) identified genomic loci associated with traits for yield potential, and two underlying genes, TaARF12 encoding an auxin response factor and TaDEP1 encoding the G-protein γ-subunit, were located and characterized to pleiotropically regulate both plant height and grain weight. Elite single-nucleotide haplotypes with increased allele frequency in cultivars relative to the landraces were identified and found to have accumulated over the course of breeding. Interestingly, we found that TaARF12 and TaDEP1 function in epistasis with the classical plant height Rht-1 locus, leading to propose a "Green Revolution"-based working model for historical wheat breeding. Collectively, our study identifies selection signatures that fine-tune the gibberellin pathway during modern wheat breeding and provides a wealth of genomic diversity resources for the wheat research community.

Bread wheat (or common wheat, Triticum aestivum) is an allohexaploid (AABBDD, 2n = 6x = 42) that arose by hybridization between a cultivated tetraploid wheat T. turgidum (AABB, 2n = 4x = 28) and the wild goatgrass Aegilops tauschii (DD, 2n = 2x = 14). Polyploidization provided niches for rigorous genome modification at cytogenetic, genetic, and epigenetic levels, rendering a broader spread than its progenitors. This review summarizes the latest advances in understanding gene regulation mechanisms in newly synthesized allohexaploid wheat and possible correlation with polyploid growth vigor and adaptation. Cytogenetic studies reveal persistent association of whole-chromosome aneuploidy with nascent allopolyploids, in contrast to the genetic stability in common wheat. Transcriptome analysis of the euploid wheat shows that small RNAs are driving forces for homoeo-allele expression regulation via genetic and epigenetic mechanisms. The ensuing non-additively expressed genes and those with expression level dominance to the respective progenitor may play distinct functions in growth vigor and adaptation in nascent allohexaploid wheat. Further genetic diploidization of allohexaploid wheat is not random. Regional asymmetrical gene distribution, rather than subgenome dominance, is observed in both synthetic and natural allohexaploid wheats. The combinatorial effects of diverged genomes, subsequent selection of specific gene categories, and subgenome-specific traits are essential for the successful establishment of common wheat.