Two hundred and sixty-five Chinese wheat cultivars were sown at Anyang, Henan province, in 2005-2006 to evaluate genetic variation in major mineral elements in the grain. They displayed a wide variation for all elements investigated, ranging from 28.0 to 65.4 mg kg-1 for Fe and 21.4 to 58.2 mg kg-1 for Zn. Cultivars Jimai 26, Henong 326, and Jingdong 8 displayed high Fe and Zn concentrations, for which Jingdong 8 was the most promising for increasing Fe and Zn. Thirty-seven cultivars grown at Anyang over two seasons were used to determine phenolic acids, and the fractions of free and bound types were analyzed using HPLC with measurements of individual phenolic acids in each fraction. Most of the parameters were significantly infl uenced by cultivars, seasons, and their interactions, with cultivars being predominant. The average concentration of bound phenolics was 661 μg g-1 of dm (dry matt er), making up 97.5% of the total phenolic acids, with ferulic acid accounting for 70.7% of it. Free phenolics made up only 2.5%, with syringic acid accounting for 44.7% of that. Bound phenolics predominated. Cultivars Liangxing 66 and Zhongmai 895 were stable with high values in phenolic acids across seasons, indicating they could be used as parents in breeding for health benefi cial phenolic acid content.

English

Lucia Segura

CIMMYT Staff Publications Collection