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Background Wheat ( Triticum spp.), the most cultivated species worldwide, is threatened by various stresses. Among these, the biotic stresses caused by phytopathogenic fungi, like Fusarium sporotrichioides , are responsible for food losses and mycotoxins poisoning. The green strategy based on recovery and use of frass deriving from Hermetia illucens reared on the standard Gainesville diet was applied, involving durum wheat ( Triticum durum Desf. var Simeto ) seed priming with 10% frass extract, alone or combined with T. afroharzianum T22 (T22), in pot/soil experiment. For this purpose, the agronomic traits, reduction of damping-off due to F. sporotrichioides , and activity of the pool of antioxidant enzymes involved were evaluated. In addition, the presence of microorganisms in the frass extract with possible plant growth promoting and/or protection activity, was searched. Results Seed priming determined enhanced wheat growth performance and, in the meantime, a control of the development of disease symptoms, allowing a reduction of damping-off of almost 40% when frass extract and T22 were used together. This was accompanied by an increased antioxidant activity in seedlings derived from primed seeds, enabling them to face stresses in a proper way. In addition, in order to address which component of frass extract was responsible for these effects, Paenibacillus polymyxa was isolated from frass extract, and tested for its antifungal activity in vitro, resulting effective against F. sporotrichioides and also the phytopathogenic fungi Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici and Botrytis cinerea . Conclusions This finding demonstrated that seed priming with frass extract, together with T. afroharzianum T22, could be used as an effective and environmentally friendly strategy to promote wheat growth and, at the same time, effectively control the development of F. sporotrichioides disease. The insights gathered from this research, confirmed the ability of frass to be used in priming technique, opening the door to promising solutions to harness the potential of sustainable agricultural practices and green technologies circular economy-based.

Water deficit is a key factor influencing the yield and quality of crops. In the present study, the photosynthetic responses by means of chlorophyll fluorescence of chloroplasts, thylakoid membrane proteins, and antioxidant components were analyzed in wheat ( Triticum durum Desf.) plants differing in their tolerance to drought. Two durum winter wheat varieties, Barakatli 95 (drought tolerant) and Garagylchyg 2 (drought sensitive) were grown under field well-watered and drought conditions. It was found that contents of the PS I core (CPI) with Mr of 123 kD and apoprotein P700 with Mr of 63 kD were relatively higher in Barakatli 95 variety under drought stress compared with the control plants. Synthesis of α - and β -subunits of CF 1 ATP-synthase complex with Mr of 55 and 53.5 kD also slightly increased in the tolerant Barakatli 95 and decreased in the drought sensitive variety Garagylchyg 2. A decrease in the intensity of 30 kD band and a significant increase were found in the content of the 25–16 kD region in Garagylchyg 2 variety. The synthesis of 60 kD and content of low molecular mass polypeptides (21.5 and 12 kD) were increased in the tolerant genotype Barakatli 95. The intensity of peaks at 687, 695, and 742 nm considerably increases in the fluorescence spectra (77 K) of chloroplasts isolated from the sensitive variety Garagylchyg 2, and there is a stimulation of the ratio of fluorescence band intensity F687/F740. At the same time, higher level of glycine betaine was found in the drought tolerant variety compared with the control one throughout the different periods of growth.

Genomics applications in durum (Triticum durum Desf.) wheat have the potential to boost exploitation of genetic resources and to advance understanding of the genetics of important complex traits (e.g. resilience to environmental and biotic stresses). A dense and accurate consensus map specific for T. durum will greatly facilitate genetic mapping, functional genomics and marker-assisted improvement. Here, we reported the construction of a consensus framework map of durum wheat using the genotypic data from 14 mapping populations of tetraploid wheat. In this study, high quality genotypic data from six core recombinant inbred populations were used to obtain a consensus framework map of 598 simple sequence repeats (SSR) and Diversity Array Technology(R) (DArT) anchor markers (common across populations). Interpolation of unique markers from 14 maps allowed us to position a total of 2,575 markers in a consensus map of 2,463 cM. The T. durum A and B genomes were covered in their near totality based on the reference SSR hexaploid wheat map. The consensus locus order compared to those of the single component maps showed good correspondence, (average Spearman' rank correlation r value of 0.96). Differences in marker order and local recombination rate were observed between the durum and hexaploid wheat consensus maps. The consensus map was used to carry out a whole-genome search for genetic differentiation signatures and association to heading date in a panel of 183 accessions adapted to the Mediterranean areas. Strong molecular differentiations among sub-populations were mapped to 87 chromosome regions. The consensus map presented here was used as a reference for genetic diversity and mapping analyses in T. durum, providing nearly complete genome coverage and even marker density. The consensus map also provides the basis for high-density single nucleotide polymorphic (SNP) marker implementation in durum wheat.

The prediction accuracies of genomic selection depend on several factors, including the genetic architecture of target traits, the number of traits considered at a given time, and the statistical models. Here, we assessed the potential of single-trait (ST) and multi-trait (MT) genomic prediction models for durum wheat on yield and quality traits using a breeding panel (BP) of 170 varieties and advanced breeding lines, and a doubled-haploid (DH) population of 154 lines. The two populations were genotyped with the Infinium iSelect 90K SNP assay and phenotyped for various traits. Six ST-GS models (RR-BLUP, G-BLUP, BayesA, BayesB, Bayesian LASSO, and RKHS) and three MT prediction approaches (MT-BayesA, MT-Matrix, and MT-SI approaches which use economic selection index as a trait value) were applied for predicting yield, protein content, gluten index, and alveograph measures. The ST prediction accuracies ranged from 0.5 to 0.8 for the various traits and models and revealed comparable prediction accuracies for most of the traits in both populations, except BayesA and BayesB, which better predicted gluten index, tenacity, and strength in the DH population. The MT-GS models were more accurate than the ST-GS models only for grain yield in the BP. Using BP as a training set to predict the DH population resulted in poor predictions. Overall, all the six ST-GS models appear to be applicable for GS of yield and gluten strength traits in durum wheat, but we recommend the simple computational models RR-BLUP or G-BLUP for predicating single trait and MT-SI for predicting yield and protein simultaneously.

The formation of apoplastic barriers is important for controlling the uptake of water and ions by plants, thereby influencing plant growth. However, the effects of plant growth-promoting bacteria on the formation of apoplastic barriers, and the relationship between these effects and the ability of bacteria to influence the content of hormones in plants, have not been sufficiently studied. The content of cytokinins, auxins and potassium, characteristics of water relations, deposition of lignin and suberin and the formation of Casparian bands in the root endodermis of durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) plants were evaluated after the introduction of the cytokinin-producing bacterium Bacillus subtilis IB-22 or the auxin-producing bacterium Pseudomonas mandelii IB-Ki14 into their rhizosphere. The experiments were carried out in laboratory conditions in pots with agrochernozem at an optimal level of illumination and watering. Both strains increased shoot biomass, leaf area and chlorophyll content in leaves. Bacteria enhanced the formation of apoplastic barriers, which were most pronounced when plants were treated with P. mandelii IB-Ki14. At the same time, P. mandelii IB-Ki14 caused no decrease in the hydraulic conductivity, while inoculation with B. subtilis IB-22, increased hydraulic conductivity. Cell wall lignification reduced the potassium content in the roots, but did not affect its content in the shoots of plants inoculated with P. mandelii IB-Ki14. Inoculation with B. subtilis IB-22 did not change the potassium content in the roots, but increased it in the shoots.

The majority of cultivated wheat varieties have glaucous spikes, leaves and leaf sheaths, and the non-glaucous phenotype is rare in modern varieties. The glaucousness/non-glaucousness phenotype is not selectively neutral. It was expected that wild wheat may be the source of the allele to control non-glaucousness. We developed near-isogenic lines of durum wheat ‘LD222’ for glaucousness inhibitor loci Iw1, Iw3 and Iw4 derived from wild relatives. The Iw1 locus was derived from ‘MG4343’, an accession of Triticum dicoccoides (Körn. ex Asch. et Graebn.) Schweinf. (2n = 4x = 28, BBA u A u genome), and Triticum aestivum L. s. str. (2n = 6x = 42, BBA u A u DD genome) ‘Shamrock’. The Iw3 locus in chromosome arm 1BS is unique in tissue specificity of wax regulation in the spikes. The Iw3 locus was introduced from the lines that originated from crosses with T. dicoccoides and Aegilops speltoides Tausch (2n = 2x = 14, SS genome) for two near-isogenic lines. The allelic variation for A-genome non-glaucous gene has not been recorded in polyploid wheat. The Iw4 m allele for non-glaucousness was introduced from the wild einkorn, Triticum boeoticum Boiss. (2n = 2x = 14, A m A m genome).

Durum wheat is the most important cereal in the Mediterranean regions, where drought negatively affects grain yield. Therefore, our objective was to perform a multi-omics and integration analysis in conjunction with physiological trials to improve our understanding of drought tolerance mechanisms of durum wheat. Genome-wide association study (GWAS) for yield components was performed on a panel of 225 elite durum wheat genotypes evaluated in eight sites under irrigated and rainfed conditions. Based on physiological parameters (net photosynthesis, intracellular CO2 content, transpiration and stomatal conductance) and grain yield, contrasting genotypes (susceptible and tolerant) to drought were identified. A transcriptomic (RNA-seq), metabolomic and integration analyses were performed to identify genes and metabolites associated with tolerance in durum wheat. Nine marker-trait associations were detected across 8 environments, and they were grouped into three QTL clusters (QTL_2A_TGW/GPS.1, QTL_2A_TGW/GPS.2, and QTL_2B_TGW/GPS.1), explaining between 5.15% and 14.29% of the phenotypic variation. One drought tolerant (QUC 3678-2016) and one susceptible (BRESCIA) genotype were identified based on physiological parameters. RNA-seq analysis showed that the genes regulated were mainly enriched in processes such as response to salicylic acid, plant organ senescence, synthesis of secondary metabolites, and immune response. Metabolic analysis showed that drought increased the contents of amino acids, sugars, and organic acids. The integration analysis identified 30 genes and six metabolites in the root and 30 genes and 10 metabolites in leaves as the primary variables in the drought-tolerant genotype, in which L-Proline was an important metabolite that allowed differentiating those two contrasting genotypes. A WRKY transcription factor was also positioned on the stable QTL QTN_2A_TGW/GPS.1 associated with the GENE-1342_238 SNP marker. These results open an opportunity to use new biomarkers in durum wheat breeding programs to develop resilient and high-yielding cultivars and ensure food security under water deficit conditions.

Field trials were conducted (2022–2023) in a randomized complete block design to evaluate the combined use of a microbial biostimulant, P-K Stim, which contains phosphate and potassium solubilizing bacteria (109 Colony Forming Units mL−1), various fertilization rates, and herbicide use on weed growth and the productivity of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.), oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.), and durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.). The following treatment list was the same on all trial fields: (1) 100% basal fertilization (100N), (2) 20% basal fertilization and application of microbial biostimulant P-K Stim (20N + PK), (3) 100% basal fertilization and post-emergence herbicide treatment (100N + H), (4) 20% basal fertilization together with the application of P-K Stim and a post-emergence herbicide treatment (20N + PK + H), and (5) 50% basal fertilization together with the application of P-K Stim and a post-emergence herbicide treatment (50N + PK + H). The combined use of fertilization, biostimulants, and herbicides significantly affected crop yield, its components and weed biomass (p ≤ 0.05). The concentrations for potassium and phosphorus were higher in the 20N + PK + H and 50N + PK + H treatments for all crops compared to other treatments. Nutrient concentrations were remarkably high across all crops, closely approximating the values of the recommended nitrogen fertilization. Crop yield and its components were positively influenced by the 20N + PK + H and 50N + PK + H treatments. Weed biomass was significantly lower in these plots compared to other treatments.

The toxicity of high concentrations of sodium chloride creates significant difficulties in realizing the productivity potential of wheat. The development of effective test systems for the identification and selection of resistant genotypes is an urgent task given the global increase in soil salinity in agricultural land. To identify the characteristics of the plant’s reaction to the toxic effect of sodium chloride, wheat genotypes with different resistance to ionic toxicity (the Orenburgskaya 10 and Orenburgskaya 22 varieties) were used. In model experiments, we used fluorescence, light-optical and electron microscopy to characterize the structural and functional features of the cells of the roots of wheat seedlings, and cytological markers suitable for creating a test system for the early diagnosis of the sensitivity of wheat genotypes to sodium chloride were established. The response of the plants to the effects of sodium chloride was assessed by changes in biometric data, respiration rate, peculiarities in the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and mitochondrial staining, and the quantitative assessment of coleoptile cell viability as putative sensitivity markers. In the sodium chloride-sensitive genotype (Orenburgskaya 10), toxic effects resulted in oxidative damage in the root cells, while in the resistant genotype (Orenburgskaya 22), oxidative damage to the cells was minimal. A high level of expression of mitochondrial superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) was found in the roots of the Orenburgskaya 22 variety. The identification and functional analysis of cytological and molecular markers provide the basis for further studies of the resistance of wheat to sodium chloride stress.

Durum wheat is a worldwide staple crop cultivated mainly in the Mediterranean basin. Progress in durum wheat breeding requires the exploitation of genetic variation among the gene pool enclosed in landraces, old cultivars and modern cultivars. The aim of this study was to provide a more comprehensive view of the genetic architecture evolution among 123 durum wheat accessions (41 landraces, 41 old cultivars and 41 modern cultivars), grown in replicated randomized complete block in two areas, Metaponto (Basilicata) and Foggia (Apulia), using the Illumina iSelect 15K wheat SNP array and 33 plant and kernel traits including the International Union for the Protection of new Varieties of Plants (UPOV) descriptors. Through DAPC and Bayesian population structure five groups were identified according to type of material data and reflecting the genetic basis and breeding strategies involved in their development. Phenotypic and genotypic coefficient of variation were low for kernel width (6.43%) and for grain protein content (1.03%). Highly significant differences between environments, genotypes and GEI (Genotype x Environment Interaction) were detected by mixed ANOVAs for agro-morphological-quality traits. Number of kernels per spike (h 2 = 0.02) and grain protein content (h 2 = 0.03) were not a heritability character and highly influenced by the environment. Nested ANOVAs revealed highly significant differences between DAPC clusters within environments for all traits except kernel roundness. Ten UPOV traits showed significant diversity for their frequencies in the two environments. By PCAmix multivariate analysis, plant height, heading time, spike length, weight of kernels per spike, thousand kernel weight, and the seed related traits had heavy weight on the differentiation of the groups, while UPOV traits discriminated moderately or to a little extent. The data collected in this study provide useful resources to facilitate management and use of wheat genetic diversity that has been lost due to selection in the last decades.