QTL Mapping for Wheat Flour Color with Additive, Epistatic, and QTL×Environmental Interaction Effects

To investigate genetic factors affecting wheat flour color traits, a linkage map was constructed using a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population derived from Jing 771×Pm 97034. Main, epistatic and QTL×environment (QE) interaction effects of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling wheat flour color were studied by the mixed linear modeling of data collected from wheat RIL plants under three different environmental conditions. 13 QTLs with additive effects and 55 pairs of QTLs with epistatic effects were detected for wheat flour color traits. The additive-additive interactions (AA) involved all of the wheat chromosomes except 3D. Epistasis accounted for more of the observed phenotypic variation than did the main effect QTLs (M-QTLs). Our results suggested that dual-locus interactions are widespread in the wheat genome and play a critical role in determining wheat flour color characteristics. In this study, 3 QTLs were identified to have QE interaction effects, one of them showing significant QE interaction in E2 environment.