Kushnir, U., School of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Melbourne, Parkville, 3052, Victoria, Australia
Halloran, G.M., School of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Melbourne, Parkville, 3052, Victoria, Australia

Wheat pentaploids were produced by hybridizing a high kernel weight (1000 grain wt=56 g), high protein (25.4%) line of wild tetraploid wheat (Triticum turgidum dicoccoides) as male parent, with the three hexaploids (T. aestivum) - normal Chinese Spring and its two homoeologous pairing mutants, ph1b and ph2. The pentaploids were crossed as female parents to the two commercial hexaploid cultivars Warigal and Barkaee and 42-chromosome stable plants selected from the F1 of the pentaploid x hexaploid crosses. Mean protein content of certain F3 lines from all six pentaploid x hexaploid crosses was significantly higher than Chinese Spring and the respective commercial hexaploid parent (p<0.005) indicating high protein had been transferred from the tetraploid to the hexaploid level. Kernel weight amongst certain F3 lines of the three pentaploids x Barkaee was significantly (p<0.0005) higher than either Chinese Spring or Barkaee, indicating the transfer also of high kernel weight from the tetraploid to the hexaploid level. However kernel weight was not significantly increased over Warigal in any F3 lines of its crosses with the three pentaploids. High levels of homoeologous chromosome pairing in the ph-mutant pentaploids, plus evidence for significant modification of the composition of high-molecular weight (HMW) glutenin subunits of grain protein in certain F3 derivatives of the ph-mutant pentaploid x hexaploid, crosses indicates that the ph-mutant-derived lines may possess novel (intergenome) genetic recombination, at least for high protein, and possibly kernel weight. © 1984 Veenman B. V., Wageningen.