Allelic variation for the low-molecular-weight glutenin subunits (LMW-GS) is a major determinant of differences in dough viscoelastic properties observed between culfivars of both bread wheat and durum.Technical difficulties in allelic identification due to the complexity of the protein profile produced by each cultivar and the use of different nomenclature systems in different laboratories has historically interfered with information exchange between research groups, a situation exacerbated by the vast number of possible profiles found in different cultivars due to the multiallelic nature of the principal loci encoding LMW-GSs (Glu-A3, Glu-B3 and Glu-D3).These various difficulties prompted research workers at CAAS, CIMMYT, INRA, NARO and UNCPBA to form an international collaborative group aimed at unifying criteria across laboratories and comparing four different methods of allelic identification (SDS-PAGE, 2-DE, MALDI-TOF-MS and PCR).The current contribution summarizes progress to date made by this group in studies on bread wheat, seeks to address remaining challenges and places the findings in the context of the wheat gene catalog.We also propose the formation of a wider international group aimed at facilitating the resolution of the remaining problems in the field.
NARO, WARC, Fukuyama, Japan Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Cereal Research Center,Winnipeg, Canada USDA Agricultural Research Service, Western Regional Research Center, Albany, USA South Australian Research and Development Institute, Adelaide, and Long Reach Plant Breeders, Lonsda Tamworth Agricultural Institute, Calala, NSW 2340, Australia Unidad de Genética,ETSIA, Madrid, Spain CIISAS, CICPBA-BIOLAB AZUL, Facultad de Agronomía, Azul,UNCPBA, Argentina CONICET INBA-INBIOTEC INRA UMR1095 GDEC-UBP, Clermont-Ferrand,France CIMMYT, El Batan, Mexico CRESCAA, Facultad de Agronomla, Azul, UNCPBA, Argentina Western Australia Department of Agriculture and Food, State Agriculture Biotechnology Center, Murdoc