Abstract
Molybdenum (Mo) is an essential micronutrient for almost all organisms. Wheat, a major staple crop worldwide, is one of the main dietary sources of Mo. However, the genetic basis for the variation of Mo content in wheat grains remains largely unknown. Here, a genome-wide association study (GWAS) was performed on the Mo concentration in the grains of 207 wheat accessions to dissect the genetic basis of Mo accumulation in wheat grains. As a result, 77 SNPs were found to be significantly associated with Mo concentration in wheat grains, among which 52 were detected in at least two sets of data and distributed on chromosome 2A, 7B, and 7D. Moreover, 48 out of the 52 common SNPs were distributed in the 726,761,412–728,132,521 bp genomic region of chromosome 2A. Three putative candidate genes, including molybdate transporter 1;2 (TraesCS2A02G496200), molybdate transporter 1;1 (TraesCS2A02G496700), and molybdopterin biosynthesis protein CNX1 (TraesCS2A02G497200), were identified in this region. These findings provide new insights into the genetic basis for Mo accumulation in wheat grains and important information for further functional characterization and breeding to improve wheat grain quality.
Highlights
As a critical component of enzymes that catalyze key reactions in nitrogen, carbon, and sulfur metabolism, molybdenum (Mo) is an essential micronutrient required for the growth and development of plants and animals (Arnon and Stout, 1939; Turnlund, 2002; Mendel and Bittner, 2006)
Continuous and extensive variations in grain Mo concentration were observed among different accessions in the 2 years
Our results showed that grain Mo concentration (GMoC) had great variations among the 207 wheat accessions, ranging from
Summary
As a critical component of enzymes that catalyze key reactions in nitrogen, carbon, and sulfur metabolism, molybdenum (Mo) is an essential micronutrient required for the growth and development of plants and animals (Arnon and Stout, 1939; Turnlund, 2002; Mendel and Bittner, 2006). Higher plants and animals absorb or take in Mo as oxyanion molybdate, which becomes biologically active by binding to pterin to form Mo cofactor (Moco; Mendel and Bittner, 2006; Mendel, 2013). Thereafter, Moco participates in the synthesis of molybdatedependent enzymes (Molybdoenzymes), including nitrate reductase, sulfite oxidase, xanthine oxidoreductase/dehydrogenase, aldehyde oxidase, and mitochondrial amidoxime reducing component (Hille et al, 2011; Bittner, 2014). Mo deficiency frequently occurs in plants when grown in acidic soils with low Mo bioavailability. Moco deficiency (MoCD) will lead to metabolic defects in molybdoenzymes, giving rise to the accumulation of sulfite, taurine, S-sulfocysteine, and thiosulfate. A molybdenum compound, tetrathiomolybdate, has been clinically used to treat the Wilson’s disease, a genetic disorder of copper metabolism (Brewer et al, 2009)
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