Physicochemical and rheological properties of the derivatives of Ningmai 9 wheat and their relationship with sugar-snap cookie diameter

Abstract

In recent years, the annual demand for soft wheat in China has exceeded six million metric tons. The development of soft wheat is an important objective in the Yangtze River Basin winter wheat region in China. Ningmai 9 is a soft wheat cultivar widely used as a parent in the soft red winter wheat breeding program. However, the physicochemical and rheological properties of Ningmai 9 and its derivatives remain unknown. In this study, Ningmai 9 and its thirty-one derivatives were grown in Nanjing in Jiangsu Province in two successive cropping seasons from 2015 to 2017. The kernel samples were analyzed for milling quality, solvent retention capacity (SRC), alveograph parameters, and sugar-snap cookie diameter. The flour protein content was not significantly associated with any other quality trait. P, L, P/L (the ratio of tenacity to extensibility), alveograph deformation work (W), and four types of SRC were significantly correlated with sugar-snap cookie diameter. Compared to Ningmai 9, seven wheat genotypes had relatively better cookie quality and lower SRC and P values. A multiple regression model with water SRC (WSRC) as a variable explained 72.5% of the total variation in cookie diameter. These results suggest that decreasing SRC and gluten strength is the key to improving soft wheat breeding programs.