Winter durum wheat combines the benefits of autumn sowing with high grain quality but remains poorly adapted to temperate regions due to low frost tolerance. To elucidate the genetic basis of winter hardiness and support breeding for improved cold adaptation, a segregating multi-family F₂ panel (n = 270) was developed from crosses among frost-tolerant and frost-susceptible lines. GWAS identified four loci significantly associated with winter survival on chromosomes 1B, 5A, 5B, and 7B, collectively explaining 7.6–21.5% of phenotypic variance. These loci jointly improved model performance (ΔMcFadden R² = 0.230, p-value = 4.76 × 10⁻¹⁷) without evidence of epistasis, indicating additive inheritance. Predicted survival increased nearly linearly with the number of favorable alleles, highlighting the potential for pyramiding through marker-assisted or genomic selection. Three significant SNPs were converted to KASP assays, providing validated molecular tools for breeding applications. Overall, the study broadens understanding of frost-tolerance genetics in winter durum wheat beyond canonical Fr regions and delivers practical markers for improving winter hardiness in breeding programs targeting continental climates.

Отбор молекулярных маркеров для генетической паспортизации Triticum aestivum

В настоящее время многие научно-исследовательские лаборатории прибегают к различным методам редактирования хозяйственно-ценных генов, а основными методами проверки достоверности прохождения редактирования остаются секвенирование по Сэнгеру и NGS. Метод капиллярного электрофореза так же может быть использован для оценки прохождения редактирования, обнаружения делеций и инсерций размером в один и более нуклеотид, благодаря точности определения размеров амплифицированных фрагментов. Currently, many research laboratories resort to various methods of editing economically valuable genes, and Sanger sequencing and NGS remain the main methods for verifying the validity of editing. The method of capillary electrophoresis can also be used to assess the passage of editing, detect deletions and insertions of one or more nucleotides, due to the accuracy of determining the size of amplified fragments.

High-throughput genomic technologies are enabling the identification of thousands or even millions of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). SNP markers are frequently used to analyze crop varieties, with the marker data summarized in a common VCF file. At present, it is difficult to identify the minimal SNP set, the smallest sets that can distinguish between all crop varieties listed in a VCF file, due to the absence of available ready-to-use tools capable of such characterization. Here, we describe the development of the ready-to-use open-source tool MDSearch (Minimal Discriminatory SNP Set Search) based on the identification of the MDS (minimal discriminatory set) of SNPs using random walking staring from the maximal discriminatory set. MDSearch can be used for disploid as well as poliploid species and both phased and unphased VCF files. MDSearch has been validated using a publicly available dataset of barley SNPs obtained by genotyping-by-sequencing. As a result, we have successfully identified a discriminating set of 19 SNP markers capable of distinguishing all 254 barley varieties included in our study. We expect that this program will prove useful to genomics researchers to support a variety of certifications.