ABERDEEN, IDAHO, US — Scientists at the University of Idaho discovered a naturally occurring genetic mutation in wheat that is associated with a 5% to 10% yield increase.

Led by wheat breeder Jianli Chen, researchers at the university’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences have screened germplasm, including a panel of spring wheat varieties developed by breeders in the Pacific Northwest, for the mutation associated with plant flowering and increased yield. They confirmed the mutation in several high-yielding lines, including UI Gold, a hard white spring wheat variety Chen’s program released in 2022, and several new experimental lines.

“Because we found this gene mutation and developed molecular markers, we can screen lines for it,” Chen said. “I think this marker will be implemented by a lot of breeding programs.”

The mutation is a nucleotide deletion, meaning a small piece of DNA is missing. Researchers found the deletion was associated with later flowering and more spikelets — the clusters of flowers that develop into grain along a wheat head. Those traits can contribute to greater yield.

Chen and her team have isolated a locus — or a specific position on a chromosome where a gene or genetic marker is located — associated with the beneficial deletion.

A five-year, $15 million grant from the US Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA-NIFA) funded the research. Led by the University of California, Davis, the project brought together researchers from 22 institutions across the country. Chen’s program received spending authority for $537,644 and built upon progress made during two prior collaborative USDA-NIFA grants.

Chen’s program uses genomic selection, a breeding method that uses thousands to millions of DNA markers spread across a plant’s complete set of genetic material to predict which wheat lines are most likely to have desirable traits.

As part of the most recent USDA-NIFA grant, Chen and her team also validated a faster, less expensive method of screening wheat lines for yield and traits associated with it.

“Instead of waiting several years to measure grain yield in field trials, wheat breeders can use a genomic-selection model to predict which lines are most likely to be high-yielding,” Chen said.

The traditional approach to yield-related genomic selection compares wheat lines with a platform of 90,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). An SNP is a variation at a single position in a DNA sequence among individuals.

“Once SNP associations are found with traits, it’s easier to find the genes,” Chen said.

Chen and her team confirmed that a platform with just 4,000 SNPs was as effective as the larger platform at predicting yield and related traits. The streamlined approach has saved Chen’s program $60 per sample in testing costs.

Chen plans to test the 4,000 SNP platform for other traits, such as drought tolerance and baking quality.

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Susan Reidy is senior editor with World Grain and editor of the Grain & Milling Annual. She has 21 years of experience covering the grain handling and milling industries, the past 17 years with Sosland Publishing Company. She received a bachelor’s of journalism degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Connect with Susan Reidy on LinkedIn or via email.