Search

Different grain sources of whiskey have great potential for aroma expression. In this paper, four whiskeys fermented from different raw materials (barley, wheat, highland barley, and sorghum) were compared. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and sensory evaluation were used to determine the composition of the aromatic compounds. A correlation analysis was further conducted between the aromatic compounds and sensory evaluations. Barley whiskey and wheat whiskey had more pronounced fruity, floral, and grain aromas, attributed to esters and terpenes. Barley whiskey had the most compounds (55), followed by highland barley whiskey (54). Highland barley whiskey had the greatest number of unique aroma compounds (seven). It exhibited a unique cocoa aroma related to concentrations of trans-2-nonenal, γ-nonanolactone, 1-nonanol, isoamyl lactate, 2-butanol, and 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one. Sorghum whiskey had a specific leather and mushroom aroma attributed to 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one, ethyl lactate, ethyl caprate, phenethyl octanoate, farnesol, α-terpineol, 3-methyl-1-pentanol, and methyleugenol. Alcohols were the main aroma components of grain whiskeys. Isoamyl alcohol (231.59~281.39 mg/L), phenylethyl alcohol (5.755~9.158 mg/L), citronellol (0.224~4.103 mg/L), β-damascenone (0.021~2.431 mg/L), geraniol (0.286~1.416 mg/L), isoamyl acetate (0.157~0.918 mg/L), phenylacetaldehyde (0.162~0.470 mg/L), linalool (0.024~0.148 mg/L), 1-octen-3-ol (0.016~0.145 mg/L), trans-2-nonenal (0.027~0.105 mg/L), and trans-2-octen-1-ol (0.011~0.054 mg/L) were all important aroma compounds in the whiskeys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Grain size is one of the important traits in wheat breeding programs aimed at improving yield, and cytokinins, mainly involved in cell division, have a positive impact on grain size. Here, we identified a novel wheat gene TaMADS‐GS encoding type I MADS‐box transcription factor, which regulates the cytokinins signalling pathway during early stages of grain development to modulate grain size and weight in wheat. TaMADS‐GS is exclusively expressed in grains at early stage of seed development and its knockout leads to delayed endosperm cellularization, smaller grain size and lower grain weight. TaMADS‐GS protein interacts with the Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) and leads to repression of genes encoding cytokinin oxidase/dehydrogenases (CKXs) stimulating cytokinins inactivation by mediating accumulation of the histone H3 trimethylation at lysine 27 (H3K27me3). Through the screening of a large wheat germplasm collection, an elite allele of the TaMADS‐GS exhibits higher ability to repress expression of genes inactivating cytokinins and a positive correlation with grain size and weight, thus representing a novel marker for breeding programs in wheat. Overall, these findings support the relevance of TaMADS‐GS as a key regulator of wheat grain size and weight. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key message: QTL controlling flag leaf length, flag leaf width, flag leaf area and flag leaf angle were mapped in wheat.Abstract: This study aimed to advance our understanding of the genetic mechanisms underlying morphological traits of the flag leaves of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). A recombinant inbred line (RIL) population derived from ND3331 and the Tibetan semi-wild wheat Zang1817 was used to identify quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling flag leaf length (FLL), flag leaf width (FLW), flag leaf area (FLA), and flag leaf angle (FLANG). Using an available simple sequence repeat genetic linkage map, 23 putative QTLs for FLL, FLW, FLA, and FLANG were detected on chromosomes 1B, 2B, 3A, 3D, 4B, 5A, 6B, 7B, and 7D. Individual QTL explained 4.3-68.52% of the phenotypic variance in different environments. Four QTLs for FLL, two for FLW, four for FLA, and five for FLANG were detected in at least two environments. Positive alleles of 17 QTLs for flag leaf-related traits originated from ND3331 and 6 originated from Zang1817. QTLs with pleiotropic effects or multiple linked QTL were also identified on chromosomes 1B, 4B, and 5A; these are potential target regions for fine-mapping and marker-assisted selection in wheat breeding programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Differential gene expression between hybrids and their parents is considered to be associated with heterosis. However, the physiological functions and possible contribution to heterosis of these differentially expressed genes are unknown. We have isolated one hybrid upregulated gene encoding putative wheat ADP-ribosylation factor, designated TaARF. In this study, real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction analysis indicated that the TaARF transcript was preferentially expressed in root, node and crown, and the accumulation of TaARF mRNA in hybrid was more than 1.5-fold higher than that in two parents. In order to understand possible roles of the putative wheat ARF gene, TaARF was overexpressed in Arabidopsis, and the transgenic plants were characterized. We show that ectopic overexpression of TaARF in Arabidopsis leads to increased leaf area, increased growth rate and earlier transition to flowering, suggesting that TaARF plays significant roles in growth and development. This study provides evidence demonstrating that TaARF plays important roles in growth and development and we speculate that the upregulated expression of this gene might contribute to the heterosis observed in wheat root and leaf growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• HSP90s were identified to be substrates of TaSAP5 using two independent methods. • TaSAP5 interacts with HSP90C and facilitates their ubiquitination in vivo. • TaSAP5 promotes degradation of HSP90C protein via the 26S proteasome. Protein ubiquitination is a major post-translational modification important for diverse biological processes. In wheat (Triticum aestivum) and Arabidopsis thaliana , STRESS-ASSOCIATED PROTEIN 5 (SAP5) is involved in drought tolerance, acting as an E3 ubiquitin ligase to target DRIP and MBP-1 for degradation. To identify further target proteins of SAP5, we implemented two independent approaches in this work. We used ubiquitylome capture with a di-Gly-Lys antibody-based peptide enrichment and affinity purification with a polyubiquitin antibody coupled with mass spectrometry to elucidate the SAP5-dependent ubiquitylation of its target proteins in response to osmotic stress. Wild type or TaSAP5 -overexpressing Arabidopsis line, which was more tolerant to osmotic stress according to our previous study, were used here. We identified HSP90C (chloroplast heat shock protein 90) as a substrate of TaSAP5. Further biochemical experiments indicated that TaSAP5 interacts with HSP90C and mediates its degradation by the 26S proteasome. Our work also demonstrates that ubiquitylome profiling is an effective approach to search for substrates of the TaSAP5 E3 ubiquitin ligase when heterologously expressed in Arabidopsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Grain weight and size are major traits targeted in breeding to improve wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) yield. Here, we find that the histone acetyltransferase GENERAL CONTROL NONDEREPRESSIBLE 5 (GCN5) physically interacts with the calmodulin-binding transcription factor CAMTA2 and regulates wheat grain size and weight. gcn5 mutant grains were smaller and contained less starch. GCN5 promoted the expression of the starch biosynthesis genes SUCROSE SYNTHASE 2 (Sus2) and STARCH-BRANCHING ENZYME Ic (SBEIc) by regulating H3K9ac and H3K14ac levels in their promoters. Moreover, immunoprecipitation followed by mass spectrometry (IP-MS) revealed that CAMTA2 physically interacts with GCN5. The CAMTA2-GCN5 complex activated Sus2 and SBEIc by directly binding to their promoters and depositing H3K9ac and H3K14ac marks during wheat endosperm development. camta2 knockout mutants exhibited similar phenotypes to gcn5 mutants, including smaller grains that contained less starch. In gcn5 mutants, transcripts of high molecular weight (HMW) Glutenin (Glu) genes were downregulated, leading to reduced HMW glutenin protein levels, gluten content, and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) sedimentation volume. However, the association of GCN5 with Glu genes was independent of CAMTA2, since GCN5 enrichment on Glu promoters was unchanged in camta2 knockouts. Finally, we identified a CAMTA2-AH3 elite allele that corresponded with enhanced grain size and weight, serving as a candidate gene for breeding wheat varieties with improved grain weight., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of American Society of Plant Biologists.)