For the Award of

Quantitative Trait Loci (QTLs) for polyphenol oxidase and xanthophyll have a significant impact on variation in wheat flour for noodle colour and colour stability. QTLs from two Australian wheat cultivars, Sunco and Tasman, have been backcrossed into two Chinese wheat varieties, Chuanmai 22 and Mianyang 11, to assess marker predictability for these important traits in significantly different genetic backgrounds. The concept of Marker-Assisted-Selection (MAS) is being trialled in this study as a proposed method for wheat improvement. In this approach molecular markers are used in conjunction with backcross breeding methods to introgress specific characters into elite breeding materials, with the goal of improving the quality attributes of wheat for the Asian noodle market. After three single seed descent generations, the backcross populations generated allow four QTLs to be investigated. These include two for polyphenol oxidase (chromosome 2A and 2D) and two for xanthophyll (chromosome 3B and 7A)