Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41840474›Full record

ArticleBMC genomics2026

Dissecting the population structure, diversity and genetic architecture of rust resistance in wild emmer wheat (Triticum turgidum subsp. dicoccoides).

Laxman Adhikari, Pablo D Olivera, John Raupp, Hanan Sela, Assaf Distelfeld, Marco Maccaferri, Matteo Bozzoli, Elisabetta Mazzucotelli, Andrea Brandolini, Roberto Tuberosa and 4 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC genomics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Laxman AdhikariPlant Science Program, Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, 23955, Saudi Arabia.
Pablo D OliveraDepartment of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, 55108, USA.
John RauppWheat Genetics Resource Center, Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 66502, USA.
Hanan SelaDepartment of Evolutionary and Environmental Biology, University of Haifa, Haifa, 3498838, Israel.
Assaf DistelfeldDepartment of Evolutionary and Environmental Biology, University of Haifa, Haifa, 3498838, Israel.
Marco MaccaferriDepartment of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Matteo BozzoliDepartment of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Elisabetta MazzucotelliCouncil for Agricultural Research and Economics-Research Centre for Genomics and Bioinformatics, Fiorenzuola d'Arda, Italy.
Andrea BrandoliniCouncil for Agricultural Research and Economics-Centre for Animal Production and Aquaculture (CREA-ZA), Viale Piacenza 29, Lodi, 26900, Italy.
Roberto TuberosaDepartment of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Hakan ÖzkanDepartment of Field Crops, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Çukurova, Adana, 01250, Turkey.
Brande B H WulffPlant Science Program, Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, 23955, Saudi Arabia. brande.wulff@kaust.edu.sa.
Brian J SteffensonDepartment of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, 55108, USA. bsteffen@umn.edu.
Jesse PolandPlant Science Program, Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, 23955, Saudi Arabia. jesse.poland@kaust.edu.sa.

Funding

National Institute of Food and Agriculture 2020-67013-30871
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundWild emmer wheat (Triticum turgidum subsp. dicoccoides, WEW) was one of the first crops domesticated in the Neolithic revolution that shifted humanity to agrarian societies. Understanding its population genomics has both evolutionary significance and direct relevance to wheat improvement. Leveraging whole-genome sequencing (WGS) data from 291 accessions (~ 9.5x coverage), we identified 3.4 million high-quality SNPs for population genomics, evolutionary analysis, and genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of seedling-stage resistance to five races each of the stem, leaf, and stripe rust pathogens.

resultsPhylogenetic, principal component, and population structure analyses revealed three distinct WEW subgroups: the Northern Population (NP), Southern Levant (SL), and a highly differentiated judaicum subgroup consisting of accessions near the Sea of Galilee. Diversity and pairwise FST analyses highlighted varying divergence among these subpopulations. The SL accessions exhibited higher resistance to all races of the three rust pathogens compared to the judaicum and NP. The SL accessions also exhibited the highest frequency of resistance to all rust pathogens, whereas NP lacked stem rust resistance but retained resistance to some leaf and stripe rust races. GWAS identified 27, 26, and 41 significant loci associated with stem, leaf, and stripe rust resistance, respectively, most of which were novel. A major resistance hotspot was identified on chromosome 1BS (~ 50–100 Mb), associated with multiple races of different rust pathogens, suggesting the presence of shared or tightly linked resistance factors in the region. The most significant loci explained up to 73% of the phenotypic variation, with some conferring race-specific and others multi-race resistance. Notably, several accessions exhibited broad-spectrum resistance, including lines resistant to all stripe rust races, others resistant to multiple leaf and stem rust races, and a subset combining resistance to multiple rust species, representing valuable germplasm for breeding durable resistance.

conclusionsThis study provides a comprehensive genomic and phenotypic characterization of WEW, uncovering its population structure and identifying valuable genetic resources for rust resistance. The identified loci and resistant accessions offer key opportunities for the targeted introgression of novel resistance genes into cultivated wheat, contributing to durable and sustainable global wheat production.

Indexed as

Disease ResistanceGenetic VariationPlant DiseasesTriticumBasidiomycotaGenome-Wide Association StudyPhylogenyPolymorphism, Single NucleotidePucciniaWhole Genome SequencingGWASLeaf rustPopulation structureStem rustStripe rustTriticum turgidum subsp. dicoccoidesWhole-genome sequencingWild emmer subgroup judaicumWild Emmer Wheat

Identifiers

PMID41840474
PMCPMC13003665

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.