Analysis of morphological traits and regulatory mechanism of a semi-dwarf, albino, and blue grain wheat line.

Unlabelled: The plant height and leaf color are important traits in crops since they contribute to the production of grains and biomass. Progress has been made in mapping the genes that regulate plant height and leaf color in wheat ( L.) and other crops. Wheat line DW-B (dwarfing, white leaves, and blue grains) with semi-dwarfing and albinism at the tillering stage and re-greening at the jointing stage was created using Lango and Indian Blue Grain. Transcriptomic analyses of the three wheat lines at the early jointing stages indicated that the genes of gibberellin (GA) signaling pathway and chlorophyll (Chl) biosynthesis were expressed differently in DW-B and its parents. Furthermore, the response to GA and Chl contents differed between DW-B and its parents. The dwarfing and albinism in DW-B were owing to defects in the GA signaling pathway and abnormal chloroplast development. This study can improve understanding of the regulation of plant height and leaf color.

Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11032-023-01379-z.