Gliadins are seed storage proteins which are characterized by high intervarietal polymorphism and can be used as genetic markers. As a result of our work, a considerably extended catalogue of allelic variants of gliadin component blocks was compiled for durum wheat; 74 allelic variants for four gliadin-coding loci were identified for the first time. The extended catalogue includes a total of 131 allelic variants: 16 for locus Gli-A1(d), 19 for locus Gli-B1(d), 41 for locus Gli-A2(d), and 55 for locus Gli-B2(d). The electrophoretic pattern of the standard cultivar and a diagram are provided for every block identified. The number of alleles per family is quite small for loci Gli-A1(d) and Gli-B1(d) of durum wheat, as contrasted to loci Gli-A2(d) and Gli-B2(d) that are characterized by large families including many alleles. The presence of large block families determines a higher diversity of durum wheat for loci Gli-A2(d) and Gli-B2(d) as compared to Gli-A1(d) and Gli-B1(d). The catalogue of allelic variants of gliadin component blocks can be used by seed farmers to identify durum wheat cultivars and evaluate their purity; by breeders, to obtain homogenous cultivars and control the initial stages of selection; by gene bank experts, to preserve native varieties and the original biotypic composition of cultivars.
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