Possibilities and barriers in fibre-targeted breeding: Characterisation of arabinoxylans in wheat varieties and their breeding lines

Arabinoxylans (AXs) are one of the major dietary fibre components in wheat. These non-starch polysaccharides have several beneficial health effects and they also have an impact on the technological properties of wheat-based products. It is therefore desirable to breed new varieties with higher amount and different quality arabinoxylans. We have only limited information on the variability of AXs in different wheat species and varieties, and their changes during targeted breeding processes. Wholemeal and white flour fractions of wheat varieties and special breeding lines were studied for three years in order to explore the effects of targeted breeding on AX content and quality. The results show that breeding lines with better AX parameters could be achieved in a traditional way. But these parameters and changes are largely dependent not only on genetic but also on environmental factors. Total arabinoxylan is mostly influenced by harvest year, while water extractable arabinoxylan is depending on genetics and harvest year to a similar extent. Our results can contribute to the more efficient selection and development of new wheat breeding lines and their uses in the processing industry to develop new types of food products.