Use of Student's t statistic as a phenotype of relative consumption preference of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) grain

Whole-grain wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) products provide essential nutrients to humans, but bran attributes may hinder consumption. Differences in grain attributes including flavor/aroma can be identified using the house mouse (Mus musculus L.) as a model system. A potential application of this model system is to identify genes or quantitative trait loci (QTLs) conferring consumption-related traits using genetic mapping. These analyses require a quantitative phenotype to test marker-trait associations. Two-choice feeding trials are common in consumption studies, but do not provide an independent, quantitative phenotype. The objective of this study was to examine the use of 'check' varieties against which to compare sample varieties to generate Student's t values for use as phenotypic values. Two checks, which had previously been identified as “Yummy” and “yucky” (Y, y) were compared against each sample variety. The resulting t values provided an independent quantitative phenotype of the sample varieties.