Identification and Introgression of a Novel HMW-GS Gene from Aegilops tauschii

High molecular weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GSs) play a major role in determining the dough quality of wheat. As the D genome donor of hexaploid wheat, Aegilops tauschii is an important genetic resource for wheat quality breeding. In the present study, a novel HMW-GSs from Ae. tauschii was identified and designated as Glu-D(t)1. Multiple sequence alignment indicated that one cysteine was mutated into arginine in the y-type subunit. Site-directed mutagenesis technology was applied to verify the function of gene Glu-D(t)1. Three introgression lines (ILs), B9, B25, and B35 with the Glu-D1 loci substituted by Glu-D(t)1 were detected from the BC3F5 population derived from hexaploid wheat cultivar Jimai22 and Ae. tauschii Y215 through the direct hybridization approach. The dough quality and agronomic performance analysis were performed, which provide valuable resources for wheat genetic studies and breeding for distinctive end-use quality.