Association Analysis of Soft Wheat Quality Traits in Eastern US Soft Winter Wheat.

Soft wheat quality is highly heritable, is controlled by multiple loci and has been mapped in a number of bi-parental crosses.  We extended the mapping information on soft wheat quality by using association analysis between genetic markers and quality phenotyping in 192 soft winter wheat cultivars from the eastern US.  Quality samples were obtained from 2007 production environments in Ohio, Indiana, New York and Virginia.  Samples were milled at the USDA-ARS Soft Wheat Quality Laboratory and flour evaluated using solvent retention capacity test (AACC Method 56-11) and sugar snap cookie method (AACC Method 10-52).   Gluten strength was measured by lactic acid SRC.  Preliminary analysis using PCR assays for high molecular weight glutenins and the 1B/1R translocation found good correspondence between bi-parental cross mapping and association analysis for the effect of these loci on gluten strength.   A complete analysis of the 2007 data will be presented at the meeting including association with DArT analysis and a panel of micro-satellite genetic markers.