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Colour plays an important role among the quality traits of durum wheat, attracting consumer attention for the pasta market. The traits involved in colour expression are affected by genotype, environment, and processing. In the present study, based on eighteen durum wheat genotypes grown in eight environments, the effects of different traits related to colour expression were evaluated. Carotenoid pigments, such as lutein and β-carotene content; yellow and brown indices; and lipoxygenase, peroxidase, and polyphenoloxidase activities were analysed in semolina. The effects of processing were evaluated by measuring both the content of carotenoid pigments and colorimetric indices in pasta. The genotype, the environment, and their interaction were significant for all traits, although with a strong prevalence of genotypic effects, except for the brown index. After processing, a decrease in carotenoid content and the yellow index (86.7% and 16.0%, respectively) was observed, while the brown index increased (8.2%). A multiple regression analysis was performed on semolina traits, and the yellow index emerged as the main predictor for pasta colour, strengthening this trait as a fast and reliable criterion of selection. A High-Performance Index tool was also used to identify the genotype and environment that better combine all traits, positively influencing colour expression. All this information can be used in durum wheat breeding programmes for the prediction of pasta colour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Durum wheat is one of the most important cultivated cereal crops, providing nutrients to humans and domestic animals. Durum breeding programs prioritize the improvement of its main agronomic traits; however, the majority of these traits involve complex characteristics with a quantitative inheritance (quantitative trait loci, QTL). This can be solved with the use of genetic maps, new molecular markers, phenotyping data of segregating populations, and increased accessibility to sequences from next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies. This allows for high-density genetic maps to be developed for localizing candidate loci within a few Kb in a complex genome, such as durum wheat. Here, we review the identified QTL, fine mapping, and cloning of QTL or candidate genes involved in the main traits regarding the quality and biotic and abiotic stresses of durum wheat. The current knowledge on the used molecular markers, sequence data, and how they changed the development of genetic maps and the characterization of QTL is summarized. A deeper understanding of the trait architecture useful in accelerating durum wheat breeding programs is envisioned. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]