Proteomics unravels new candidate genes of Dasypyrum villosum for improving wheat quality

Wheat is one of the most widely grown and important food crops in the world, providing approximately 20% of the food energy and protein produced for human consumption. The progress of wheat breeding is seriously restricted by the narrow genetic basis of common wheat germplasms. Dasypyrum villosum, a wild grass species that is commonly used in wheat improvement, has many excellent traits such as disease resistance, drought resistance, cold resistance, strong tillering ability, and processing quality. In this study, we compared and analyzed the cultivated wheat variety Chinese Spring (CS) and D. villosum using comparative proteomics. A total of 883 different abundant proteins (DAPs) were identified. Some of these different abundant proteins are associated with defense and stress, such as the Gα subunit, zinc finger protein family, PR1, HSP family, LEA protein, and serpin family. And a total of 24 different abundant proteins are gluten proteins. There are also 24 different abundant proteins associated with starch and sucrose metabolism. These results will provide potential candidate genes and a foundation for further research on resistance and quality for wheat genetics and breeding.