Production of a monoclonal antibody specific for high molecular weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GS) in wheat and its antigenic determinant

Wheat high molecular weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GS) 1Bx14 and 1By15 isolated by preparative SDS-PAGE are used as antigen to immunize BALB/c mice. Subcutaneous inoculation of the antigen is performed. The intra-peritoneal injection is completed 3 days before fusion with myeloma cell (SP2/0) via PEG-1500. The fusion cells are selected by indirect enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent assay (ELISA). Positive hybrid cells are further verified three times by limit dilution of the culture cells. A hybridoma cell line is successfully obtained. The monoclonal antibody belongs to lgG1 subclass. In immunoblotting, the antibody binds to all HMW-GS of T. aestivum cultivars, but does not bind to other storage proteins in seeds of wheat. This result is consisting with the high homology in amino acid sequences among the HMW glutenin subunits in wheat. The antibody also binds to HMW-GS storage proteins in Aegilops squarrosa and T. durum (durum wheat). Furthermore, it also binds to HMW storage proteins in Secale cereale (rye), Hordeum vulgare (barley). However, it never binds seed storage proteins in other cereals such as maize, oat, rice, foxtail millet, sorghum etc. The antigen determinant recognized by the antibody has been located within hexapeptide [PGQGQQ] or / and nonapeptide [GYYPTSPQQ] in the central repetitive region of HMW-GS.     

Production of a monoclonal antibody specific for high molecular weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GS) in wheat and its antigenic determinant

Wheat high molecular weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GS) 1Bx14 and 1By15 isolated by preparative SDS-PAGE are used as antigen to immunize BALB/c mice. Subcutaneous inoculation of the antigen is performed. The intra-peritoneal injection is completed 3 days before fusion with myeloma cell (SP2/0) via PEG-1500. The fusion cells are selected by indirect enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent assay (ELISA). Positive hybrid cells are further verified three times by limit dilution of the culture cells. A hybridoma cell line is successfully obtained. The monoclonal antibody belongs to IgG1 subclass. In immunoblotting, the antibody binds to all HMW-GS of T.aestivum cultivars, but does not bind to other storage proteins in seeds of wheat. This result is consisting with the high homology in amino acid sequences among the HMW glutenin subunits in wheat. The antibody also binds to HMW-GS storage proteins in Aegilops squarrosa and T. durum (durum wheat). Furthermore, it also binds to HMW storage proteins in Secale cereale (rye),Hordeum vulgare (barley). However, it never binds seed storage proteins in other cereals such as maize, oat, rice, foxtail millet, sorghum etc. The antigen determinant recognized by the antibody has been located within hexapeptide [PGQGQQ] or / and nonapeptide [GYYPTSPQQ] in the central repetitive region of HMW-GS.     

ChAy/Bx, a novel chimeric high-molecular-weight glutenin subunit gene apparently created by homoeologous recombination in Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccoides

High-molecular-weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GSs) are of considerable interest, because they play a crucial role in determining dough viscoelastic properties and end-use quality of wheat flour. In this paper, ChAy/Bx, a novel chimeric HMW-GS gene from Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccoides (AABB, 2n = 4x = 28) accession D129, was isolated and characterized. Sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) analysis revealed that the electrophoretic mobility of the glutenin subunit encoded by ChAy/Bx was slightly faster than that of 1Dy12. The complete ORF of ChAy/Bx contained 1671 bp encoding a deduced polypeptide of 555 amino acid residues (or 534 amino acid residues for the mature protein), making it the smallest HMW-GS gene known from Triticum species. Sequence analysis showed that ChAy/Bx was neither a conventional x-type nor a conventional y-type subunit gene, but a novel chimeric gene. Its first 1305 nt sequence was highly homologous with the corresponding sequence of 1Ay type genes, while its final 366 nt sequence was highly homologous with the corresponding sequence of 1Bx type genes. The mature ChAy/Bx protein consisted of the N-terminus of 1Ay type subunit (the first 414 amino acid residues) and the C-terminus of 1Bx type subunit (the final 120 amino acid residues). Secondary structure prediction showed that ChAy/Bx contained some domains of 1Ay subunit and some domains of 1Bx subunit. The special structure of this HMW glutenin chimera ChAy/Bx subunit might have unique effects on the end-use quality of wheat flour. Here we propose that homoeologous recombination might be a novel pathway for allelic variation or molecular evolution of HMW-GSs.     

Two quality-associated HMW glutenin subunits in a somatic hybrid line between <Emphasis Type="Italic">Triticum aestivum</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Agropyron elongatum</Emphasis>

High-molecular-weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GSs) from hybrid line II-12 between wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and Agropyron elongatum (Host) Nivski were characterized with SDS-PAGE. Out of these HMW-GSs, two subunits, h1Bx and h1By, had mobilities similar to the subunits 1Bx13 and 1By16 from common wheat 4072, which was used as control. Polyclonal antibodies (pAbs) of h1Bx and h1By were prepared, and Western blotting showed that the pAbs had strong affinities for h1Bx and h1By, separately. The specificity of h1Bx-pAb was further checked; it preferentially recognized subunits h1Bx and 1Bx13. HMW-GS gene coding sequences were amplified by genomic polymerase chain reaction from hybrid II-12. Two of the five amplicons, marked II2a and II31b, were sequenced. Their coding sequences are clustered to Glu-1Bx7 and Glu-1By9 of common wheat. Three discrepant regions in deduced amino acid sequences of II2a and 31b repeated one time more than Glu-1Bx7 and Glu-1By9. N-terminal sequences of h1Bx and h1By were determined, which were identical to the published sequences of 1Bx13 and 1By16 and in agreement with that deduced from II2a and II31b, respectively. These results indicated that the two novel genes separated from the hybrid wheat derived from the allelic variation of 1Bx7 and 1By9 of the parent wheat. There is an additional cysteine residue positioned at 271st amino acid of the mature peptide of II2a, which may be related to the high quality of the flour.     

Isolation and molecular characterization of high molecular weight glutenin subunit genes 1Bx13 and 1By16 from hexaploid wheat

The high molecular weight glutenin subunit （HMW-GS） pair 1Bx13＋1By16 are recognized to positively correlate with bread-making quality; however, their molecular data remain unknown. In order to reveal the mechanism by which 1By16 and 1Bx13 creates high quality, their open reading frames （ORFs） were amplified from common wheat Atlas66 and Jimai 20 using primers that were designed based on published sequences of HMW glutenin genes. The ORF of 1By16 was 2220bp, deduced into 738 amino acid residues with seven cysteines including 59 hexapeptides and 22 nanopeptides motifs. The ORF of 1Bx13 was 2385bp, deduced into 795 amino acid residues with four cysteines including 68 hexapeptides, 25 nanopeptides and six tripepUdes motifs. We found that 1By16 was the largest y-type HMW glutenin gene described to date in common wheat. The 1By16 had 36 amino acid residues inserted in the central repetitive domain compared with 1By15. Expression in bacteria and western-blot tests confirmed that the sequence cloned was the ORF of HMW-GS 1By16, and that 1Bx13 was one of the largest 1Bx genes that have been described so far in common wheat, exhibiting a hexapeptide （PGQGQQ） insertion in the end of central repetitive domain compared with 1Bx7. A phylogenetic tree based on the deduced full-length amino acid sequence alignment of the published HMW-GS genes showed that the 1By16 was clustered with Glu-1B-2, and that the 1Bx13 was clustered with Glu-1B-1 alleles.     

Molecular characterization of high molecular weight glutenin subunit allele 1Bx23 in common wheat introduced from hexaploid triticale

High molecular weight glutenin subunit (HMW-GS) 1Bx23, an x-type subset encoded by Glu-B1p, which is only distributed in Triticum turgidum, was successfully transferred from hexaploid triticale to common wheat line SY95-71. Sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) shows that subunit 1Bx23 has a faster mobility than subunit 1Bx7 and 1Bx20, but slower than 1Bx17. Primers designed from the conserved regions in wheat HMW-GS gene promoter and coding sequences were used to amplify the genomic DNA of SY95-71. Total nucleotide sequences of 3426 bp including an open reading frame of 2385 bp and upstream sequence of 1038 bp were obtained. Compared with the reported gene sequences of Glu-B1-1 alleles, including 1Bx7, 1Bx14, 1Bx20 and 1Bx17, the promoter region of the 1Bx23 was displayed close to 1Bx7 and 1Bx17. The deduced amino acid sequence of coding region of 1Bx23 exhibited 34, 30, 20 and 22 amino acid substitutions from that of 1Bx14, 1Bx20, 1Bx7 and 1Bx17, respectively. A phylogenetic tree based on the nucleotide sequence alignment of the Glu-1Bx alleles shows that the 1Bx23 are apparently clustered with 1Bx7 and 1Bx17, and more ancient than 1Bx14 and 1Bx20, suggesting that the evolution speeds are different among Glu-1Bx genes. Additionally, the potential use of wheat line SY95-71 to further screen the quality contribution of unique subunit 1Bx23 is also discussed.     

小麦高分子量谷蛋白亚基Glu-B1位点沉默基因的克隆与序列分析

二粒小麦（Triticum turgidum L．var．dicoccoides）具有极其丰富的遗传多样性,是栽培小麦品种改良的巨大基因库。在高分子量谷蛋白基因的组成上,它具有许多栽培小麦不存在的变异类型,在Glu—B1位点上的变异更大。我们利用种子贮藏蛋白的SDS—PAGE方法从原产于伊朗的二粒小麦材料PI94640中观察到缺失Glu—B1区的高分子量谷蛋白亚基。利用Glu-1Bx基因保守序列设计PCR引物,对该材料的总DNA扩增,获得了X型亚基编码基因（Glu-1Bxm）的全序列,其全长为3442bp含1070bp的启动子区。序列比较发现,Glu-1Bxm在启动子区序列与Glu—1Bx7的最为相似。而在基因编码区,我们发现Glu—1Bxm仅编码212个氨基酸,由于开放阅读框中起始密码子后第637位核苷酸发生了点突变,即编码谷酰胺的CAA突变为终止密码TAA,可能直接导致了该高分子量谷蛋白亚基的失活,这是我们在小麦Glu—B1位点基因沉默分子证据的首次报道。将Glu—1Bxm全序列与Glu—B1位点其他等位基因进行了系统树分析,发现Glu—1Bxm是较为古老的类型。本文还对该特异高分子量谷蛋白亚基变异类型对品质遗传改良研究的意义进行了讨论。     

水稻谷蛋白GluA-2基因在小麦胚乳中的表达(英文)

水稻(Oryza sativa L.)谷蛋白(Glutelin)约占水稻储藏蛋白总量的80％,谷蛋白赖氨酸含量较高并易于被人体消化吸收。为了提高小麦(Triticum aestivum L. )的营养品质,将水稻谷蛋白GluA-2基因的cDNA序列导入小麦栽培品种Bobwhite(T. aestivum cv. Bobwhite)。共轰击了600个小麦幼胚,经PCR和Southern杂交鉴定,共获得4棵转GluA-2基因小麦;SDS-PAGE分析表明,GluA-2基因在3棵转基因植株及其后代中表达,在1棵转基因植株中未表达,但其内源的高分子量麦谷蛋白亚基Bx7和By9含量显著降低,并且可遗传至T_代。     

高分子量麦谷蛋白１４和１５亚基的纯化、Ｎ—末端序列及部分生化特性研究

用ＳＤＳ－ＰＡＧＥ制备电泳技术结合一种新的凝胶中蛋白质显色方法,对普通小麦（Triticum aestivum)小偃六号的高分子量麦谷蛋白１４和１５亚基进行了有效的分离纯化,将其转印于ＰＶＤＦ膜上测定了Ｎ－端的氨基酸顺序,通过比较了发现它们与已知序列的其他的高分子是麦谷蛋白亚基高度同源。用两种双向电泳技术确定了它们的等电点（ＰＩ）属于碱性范围。     

水稻谷蛋白GluA-2基因在小麦胚乳中的表达

水稻(Oryza sativa L.)谷蛋白(Glutelin)约占水稻储藏蛋白总量的80%,谷蛋白赖氨酸含量较高并易于被人体消化吸收.为了提高小麦(Triticum aestivum L.)的营养品质,将水稻谷蛋白GluA-2基因的cDNA序列导人小麦栽培品种Bobwhite(T. aestivum cv.Bobwhite).共轰击了600个小麦幼胚,经PCR和Southern杂交鉴定,共获得4棵转GluA-2基因小麦;SDS-PAGE分析表明,GluA-2基因在3棵转基因植株及其后代中表达,在1棵转基因植株中未表达,但其内源的高分子量麦谷蛋白亚基Bx7和By9含量显著降低,并且可遗传至T1代.     

Comprehensive Identification and Bread-Making Quality Evaluation of Common Wheat Somatic Variation Line AS208 on Glutenin Composition

High molecular weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GSs) are important seed storage proteins in wheat (Triticum aestivum) that determine wheat dough elasticity and processing quality. Clarification of the defined effectiveness of HMW-GSs is very important to breeding efforts aimed at improving wheat quality. To date, there have no report on the expression silencing and quality effects of 1Bx20 and 1By20 at the Glu-B1 locus in wheat. A wheat somatic variation line, AS208, in which both 1Bx20 and 1By20 at Glu-B1 locus were silenced, was developed recently in our laboratory. Evaluation of agronomic traits and seed storage proteins by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) indicated that AS208 was highly similar to its parental cultivar Lunxuan987 (LX987), with the exception that the composition and expression of HMW-GSs was altered. The 1Bx20 and 1By20 in AS208 were further identified to be missing by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and quantitative real-time RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) assays. Based on the PCR results for HMW-GS genes and their promoters in AS208 compared with LX987, 1Bx20 and 1By20 were speculated to be deleted in AS208 during in vitro culture. Quality analysis of this line with Mixograph, Farinograph, and Extensograph instruments, as well as analysis of bread-making quality traits, demonstrated that the lack of the genes encoding 1Bx20 and 1By20 caused various negative effects on dough processing and bread-making quality traits, including falling number, dough stability time, mixing tolerance index, crude protein values, wet gluten content, bread size, and internal cell structure. AS208 can potentially be used in the functional dissection of other HMW-GSs as a plant material with desirable genetic background, and in biscuit making industry as a high-quality weak gluten wheat source.     

Dissemination of the highly expressed Bx7 glutenin subunit (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Glu-B1al</Emphasis> allele) in wheat as revealed by novel PCR markers and RP-HPLC

Increased expression of the high molecular weight glutenin subunit (HMW-GS) Bx7 is associated with improved dough strength of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) flour. Several cultivars and landraces of widely different genetic backgrounds from around the world have now been found to contain this so-called over-expressing allelic form of the Bx7 subunit encoded by Glu-B1al. Using three methods of identification, SDS-PAGE, RP-HPLC and PCR marker analysis, as well as pedigree information, we have traced the distribution and source of this allele from a Uruguayan landrace, Americano 44D, in the mid-nineteenth century. Results are supported by knowledge of the movement of wheat lines with migrants. All cultivars possessing the Glu-B1al allele can be identified by the following attributes: (1) the elution of the By sub-unit peak before the Dx sub-unit peak by RP-HPLC, (2) high expression levels of Bx7 (>39% Mol% Bx), (3) a 43 bp insertion in the matrix-attachment region (MAR) upstream of the gene promoter relative to Bx7 and an 18 bp nucleotide duplication in the coding region of the gene. Evidence is presented indicating that these 18 and 43 bp sequence insertions are not causal for the high expression levels of Bx7 as they were also found to be present in a small number of hexaploid species, including Chinese Spring, and species expressing Glu-B1ak and Glu-B1a alleles. In addition, these sequence inserts were found in different isolates of the tetraploid wheat, T. turgidum, indicating that these insertion/deletion events occurred prior to hexaploidization.     

Identification and characterization of high-molecular-weight glutenin genes in Polish triticale cultivars by PCR-based DNA markers

Molecular markers were used to identify the allele/gene composition of complex loci Glu-A1 and Glu-B1 of high-molecular-weight (HMW) glutenin subunits in triticale cultivars. Forty-six Polish cultivars of both winter and spring triticale were analysed with 7 PCR-based markers. Amplified DNA fragments of HMW glutenin Glu-1 genes were separated by agarose slab-gel electrophoresis. Differences between all 3 alleles at the locus Glu-A1 [Glu-A1a (encoding Ax1), 1b (Ax2*), and 1c (AxNull)], 4 alleles at Glu-B1-1 [Glu-B1-1a (Bx7), 1b (Bx7*), 1d (Bx6), 1ac (Bx6.8)], and 5 alleles at Glu-B1-2 [Glu-B1-2a (By8), 2b (By9), 2o (By8*), 2s (By18*), and 2z (By20*)] were revealed. In total, 16 allele combinations were observed. Molecular markers are particularly helpful in distinguishing the wheat Glu-A1a and Glu-A1b alleles from the rye Glu-R1a and Glu-R1b alleles in triticale genotypes, respectively, as well as subunits Bx7 from Bx7* and By8 from By8*, which could not be distinguished by SDS-PAGE. Novel glutenin subunits By18* and By20* (unique to triticale) were identified. HMW glutenin subunit combinations of Polish triticale cultivars, earlier identified by SDS-PAGE analyses, were verified by PCR-based DNA markers. Rapid identification of wheat Glu-1 alleles by molecular markers can be an efficient alternative to the standard separation procedure for early selection of useful triticale genotypes with good bread-making quality.     

Proteomic analysis of aneuploid lines in the homeologous group 1 of the hexaploid wheat cultivar Courtot

Three monosomic lines (MSLs) and three nullisomic lines (NSLs) of the homeologous group 1 and one euploid line of the bread wheat Triticum aestivum cultivar Courtot were used in a proteomic approach to investigate the effects of zero, one or two doses of chromosomes 1A, 1B and 1D on the amount of endosperm proteins. Polypeptides whose amounts changed significantly between each aneuploid line and the euploid line were identified using image analyses of two-dimensional gel electrophoresis patterns resulting from specific endosperm protein extractions. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry and electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry were also used for protein identification. Removing one chromosome or a chromosome pair allowed varying responses to be observed for the remaining endosperm protein genes. Compensation phenomena for the high molecular weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GS) were detected only in the MSLs. Subunits Bx7, By8 and Dy12 were the only HMW-GS overexpressed (from 152-737%) when chromosomes 1A or 1B or 1D were at hemizygous state. Thirteen new protein spots were detected only in the NSL1D, and seven were identified as HMW-GS analogs. These seven new spots may result from the expression of inactive genes. The HMW-GS were of significantly higher volume in MSLs, whereas the low molecular weight glutenin subunits and the gamma-gliadins were of lower volume in aneuploid lines. Most of the down-regulated proteins in the MSLs were storage proteins encoded at loci located on another chromosome pair. Complex regulations between chromosomes and loci of the homeologous groups 1 and 6 in bread wheat are discussed.     

Structure,variation and expression analysis of glutenin gene promoters from Triticum aestivum cultivar Chinese Spring shows the distal region of promoter 1Bx7 is key regulatory sequence

In this study, ten glutenin gene promoters were isolated from model wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Chinese Spring) using a genomic PCR strategy with gene-specific primers. Six belonged to high-molecular-weight glutenin subunit (HMW-GS) gene promoters, and four to low-molecular-weight glutenin subunit (LMW-GS). Sequence lengths varied from 1361 to 2554 bp. We show that the glutenin gene promoter motifs are conserved in diverse sequences in this study, with HMW-GS and LMW-GS gene promoters characterized by distinct conserved motif combinations. Our findings show that HMW-GS promoters contain more functional motifs in the distal region of the glutenin gene promoter (> − 700 bp) compared with LMW-GS. The y-type HMW-GS gene promoters possess unique motifs including RY repeat and as-2 box compared to the x-type. We also identified important motifs in the distal region of HMW-GS gene promoters including the 5′-UTR Py-rich stretch motif and the as-2 box motif. We found that cis-acting elements in the distal region of promoter 1Bx7 enhanced the expression of HMW-GS gene 1Bx7. Taken together, these data support efforts in designing molecular breeding strategies aiming to improve wheat quality. Our results offer insight into the regulatory mechanisms of glutenin gene expression.     

Identification of novel high molecular weight glutenin subunit mutants in bread wheat (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Triticum aestivum</Emphasis> L.)

Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a staple food crop eaten in different ways like pan and other food products. High molecular weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GS) are major determinants of the different wheat end-use qualities. Ethyl-methanesulfonate (EMS) mutagenized populations in plants can be used for the discovery of valuable mutants for basic research and breeding purposes. In this study, we report the identification of 27 HMW-GS M₃ mutants based on SDS-PAGE patterns from an EMS mutagenized population of the cultivar Baguette Premium 11. Nine mutations were detected in Ax2*, five in Bx7, four in By8, six in Dx5 and three in Dy10 subunit. Two Ax2* null mutants were characterized at molecular level finding in both cases premature stop codons associated. EMS would tend to generate more premature stop codons in glutenins genes than in others because these have a high frequency of glutamine codons. This type of mutation generates null alleles, therefore they are easily detectable by a low cost protocol like SDS-PAGE. The potential use of knock-out (null alleles) and SDS-PAGE size altered mutants for HMW-GS in wheat quality and nutrition is discussed.     

Transformation of wheat with the HMW-GS 1Bx14 gene without markers

High molecular weight (HMW) glutenin polypeptides are critical contributors to the visco/elastic properties responsible for the processing characteristics and utilizations of wheat flour. In order to improve bread making quality of flour and produce transgenic plants free of selectable markers, a linear DNA construct consisting of a minimal expression cassette with the HMW-GS 1Bx14 gene was transformed into wheat cultivar Mianyang 19 by microprojectile bombardment. The transformants were selected by PCR instead of herbicidal markers. Seven transgenic plants were identified from a total of 1219 transformants, yielding a transformation frequency of 0.28%. An SDS-PAGE analysis confirmed that the 1Bx14 gene was expressed in three T1 seeds of the transgenic plants. Our results demonstrated that it is feasible to obtain marker-free transformants using the linear-expression-cassette-transformation approach coupled with PCR selection.     

Immunochemical Assay for Quality and Immunological Homology of Storage Proteins in Different Closely Related Genera and Species of Wheat

An immunochemical assay using polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies of high-molecular-weight glutenin subunit (HMW-GS) in Triticum aestivum L. was carried out to determine the quality of wheat and to investigate the immunological homology of the storage proteins in cereal endosperms in different closely related wheat genera and species. The results showed that correlation between the antigen-antibody reaction and the wheat quality varied with the type of antibodies used and the quality. The correlation coeffecient was slightly higher when the polyclonal antibodies were used than monoclonal antibodies were used. The correlation coeffecient was high between the antibody binding and the protein content, and wet/dry gluten coment, with Zeleny sedimentation value, while that between antibody binding and bread characters was lower. The highest correlation coeffecient between the polyclonal antibody binding and the protein content in grains, wet and dry gluten contents, bread volume and bread ratio volume was 0. 762 0, 0. 894 2, 0. 887 3, 0.610 3, 0.459 8 and 0.474 4 respectively, while the highest correlation coeffecient between the monoclonal antibody binding and the above parameters was 0. 783 7, 0. 774 5, 0.782 2, 0. 684 1, 0. 687 3 and 0. 598 2 respectively. The immunological homologies between I-IMW-GS 1Dyl0 in common wheat and endosperm storage protein in wheat grains of different genera and species were noticed. The cross-reac-tion among Triticum aestivum L., Secale cereale, T. spelta L., Aegilops squearrosa L. and T. Turgidtan L. was stronger than that among other cereals.     

Transformation of wheat with the HMW-GS <Emphasis Type="Italic">1Bx14</Emphasis> gene without markers

High molecular weight (HMW) glutenin polypeptides are critical contributors to the visco/elastic properties responsible for the processing characteristics and utilizations of wheat flour. In order to improve bread making quality of flour and produce transgenic plants free of selectable markers, a linear DNA construct consisting of a minimal expression cassette with the HMW-GS 1Bx14 gene was transformed into wheat cultivar Mianyang19 by microprojectile bombardment. The transform ants were selected by PCR instead of herbicidal markers. Seven transgenic plants were identified from a total of 1219 transformants, yielding a transformation frequency of 0.28%. An SDS-PAGE analysis confirmed that the 1Bx14 gene was expressed in three T1 seeds of the transgenic plants. Our results demonstrated that it is feasible to obtain marker-free trans-formants using the linear-expression-cassette-transformation approach coupled with PCR selection.