2.1. Materials
In 2010, a cross was made between Keumkang, a popular Korean wheat cultivar with normal amylose content, and Shinmichal 1, a waxy wheat cultivar created from Alchan//Kanto107/BaiHuo, resulting in a total of 127 F1 plants. These F1 plants were then bred using the single seed descent method, and the resulting generations were rapidly advanced from F2 to F6 within three years. In the F5 generation, 12 waxy wheat lines were chosen by screening allelic variations at the Wx loci. Amylose content was measured in the F11 generation, leading to the identification of Gunji-3, which had lower amylose content compared to Shinmichal 1. In 2016, a replicated experiment was conducted at the experimental farm of Chonbuk National University (Jeonju, Korea) using Shinmichal 1, Keumkang, and Gunji-3, each planted in triplicate. The experimental plots were arranged in three rows, each 4 m long and spaced 25 cm apart. Prior to sowing, fertilizer was applied in the ratio of 5:7:5 kg/10a for nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, respectively, and the plot was harvested in 2017. Additionally, rigorous measures were implemented to control weeds, insects, and diseases throughout the experiment. The evaluation of flour and starch characteristics was conducted by obtaining a sufficient quantity of grain from three plots and drying the harvested grain under conditions of 22°C temperature and 14% humidity before the evaluation.
2.3. Cloning of Wx-B1 and genome walking
Amplification of the
Wx-B1 coding region was performed on previously extracted gDNA using the method of Guzman and Alvarez [
19]. For the design of primers, the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium Chinese Spring (IWGSC CS) RefSeq v2.1 and Triticum aestivum gene for starch synthase (GBSSI), complete cds (AB019623.1) sequences registered at NCBI were used, and cloning were performed in six parts (
Table 1). A 20 μl PCR reaction mixture was prepared containing 4 μl of Taq 5X Master Mix (New England Biolabs) which included 1.5 mM MgCl
2, 0.2 mM dNTP each, and 25 units/ml Taq polymerase. Also 50 ng of gDNA and 100 pmol each of the forward and reverse primers were used, and the remaining volume was nuclease free water. PCR cycling parameters and primer sequences are shown in
Table 1. Aliquots of the PCR products were separated and visualized by electrophoresis on 1% agarose gels.
Compared to DNA 100 bp plus ladder (SmartGene, Korea) by electrophoresis, PCR products with significant length were purified and sequenced by Macrogen Sequencing service (Macrogen, Korea). After that, overlapping sequences were removed and aligned with
Wx-B1a by Geneious software [
20]. Furthermore, the sequence was analyzed by BLASTN [
21] on the IWGSC CS RefSeq v2.1 assembly.
2.4. Characterization of a novel waxy mutant
The wheat grains were processed using an experimental mill from Bühler, in accordance with the AACC International Approved Method 26-31.01 [
22]. Flour yield was determined by calculating the ratio of break and reduction flours to the total weight of the grains fed into the mill. To analyze the particle size distribution of the flour, the LS13320 multi-wavelength laser particle size analyzer (Beckman Coulter, Inc., Brea, CA, USA) was used, following the guidelines of Approved Method 55-40.01. Flour color was measured using an 11-mm measurement aperture colorimeter (CM-2002, Minolta Camera, Osaka, Japan), and the whiteness index was calculated in accordance with the method described by Nguimbou et al (2013) [
23]. Moisture, ash, and protein content of the samples were determined in accordance with the protocols described in AACC International Approved Methods 44-15.02, 08-01.01, and 46-30.01, respectively [
22]. The amylose content, damaged starch content, and total starch content were measured using enzymatic assay kits (MegaZyme Pty., Ltd., NSW, Australia), following the methods outlined by Gibson et al. [
24,
25] and McCleary et al. [
26], respectively. The content of arabinoxylan was determined following the method described by Douglas [
27]. The SDS-sedimentation test was conducted in accordance with the guidelines of the approved method 56-60.01 [
22]. The mixing time, mixing tolerance, and optimum water absorption of wheat flour were determined using a 10 g mixograph (National Mfg. Co., Lincoln, NE, USA) following the approved method 54-40.02 [
22].
To fractionate starch, 100 g (db) of flour was processed using the method outlined by Czuchajowska and Pomeranz [
28]. The particle size of starch was measured using a laser diffraction particle size analyzer (Model LS13320, Beckman Coulter, Inc., Brea, CA, USA) with starch dispersed in 99.5% 2-propanol, following the manufacturer's instructions. The particle size distribution was determined by measuring the cumulative volume of starch granules in 0.1 µm intervals ranging from 0 to 40 µm. The microstructure of the starch was observed using a scanning electron microscope (SEM, SN-3000, Hitachi, Tokyo, Japan) following the procedure described by Kasemsuwan et al [
29]. The cold water retention capacity of starch was determined using the method described by Sollars [
30]. The swelling volume and power were measured using the methods of Yamamori et al [
31] and Sasaki and Matsuki [
32], respectively.
The pasting properties of starch were analyzed using a Micro Visco-Amylo-Graph (manufactured by Brabender OHG, Straben, Germany) following standard procedures. For this analysis, 10.0g (db) of starch was suspended in a 0.1% AgNO3 solution (100ml). The suspension was then heated from 30 to 95°C at a rate of 7.5°C/min, followed by an additional five minutes of heating at 95°C. Subsequently, it was cooled at a rate of 5.0°C/min to 50°C. The sample was maintained at 50°C while being stirred at 110 rpm for two minutes. The viscosity of the starch sample was measured in Brabender units, and the values for holding strength, peak viscosity, and final viscosity were determined. The breakdown value was calculated by subtracting the holding strength from the widely used peak viscosity and final viscosity values. After determining the pasting properties of the starch using the Micro Visco-Amylo-Graph, the starch gel was prepared and stored in a container with a diameter of 60mm and a height of 20 mm at 4°C for 24 hours. The gel consistency of the starch gel was measured using a TA-XT2 Texture Analyzer (manufactured by Stable Micro Systems, Cambridge, UK) through compression testing. This involved placing the compressed starch gel on a flat metal plate and measuring it with a flat plastic plunger with a diameter of 20mm while applying a 25% compression at a speed of 1.0mm/s.
500 mg (db) of starch was equilibrated in a 90% humidity chamber for 16 hours. Diffractograms were obtained by scanning from 5° 2
θ to 50° 2
θ at a scanning speed of 8°/min and a scanning step of 0.03°. X-ray diffractometry (XRD) was utilized to determine the relative degree of crystallinity of the starch. The analysis was conducted using X’pert powder (PANalytical Inc., Westborough, MA, USA). The degree of crystallinity (%) of the starch was quantitatively estimated from the crystalline and amorphous regions on the diffractograms, following the method described by Hayakawa et al [
33].
The thermal properties of the starch samples were analyzed using a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) from Pyris1 Perkin-Elmer Co., located in Waltham, MA, USA. Temperature and enthalpy calibration were performed using an indium standard. To prepare the samples, accurately weighed 10 mg (db) of starch was mixed with 20 µl of distilled water in a stainless-steel capsule. The capsule was sealed and allowed to equilibrate at 24°C for 24 hours before conducting the DSC analysis. The sample temperature was gradually increased from 20 to 180°C at a rate of 10°C per minute, with an inert material (aluminum oxide) and water (in a 1:2 ratio) used as a reference in a separate capsule. The onset temperature (To) and peak temperature (Tp) of each endotherm were determined using Pyris Manager data processing software. The transition enthalpy (ΔH) was calculated by determining the peak area and expressed in Joules per gram (J/g) of dry matter.
For the preparation of white salted noodles, we utilized the optimal water absorption for noodle dough as established in a previous study [
34]. A commercially available wheat flour suitable for noodle production, which required 34% water absorption to achieve consistent, non-sticky, and smooth dough, was used as a reference to compare with other types of flour in determining the optimal water absorption for noodle production. A pin mixer (National Mfg. Co., USA) was used to mix 100 g of flour with a specific amount of sodium chloride solution for 4 minutes at a head speed of 86 rpm. The flour had a moisture content of 14% (wet basis). To prepare noodles with varying levels of water absorption, we adjusted the concentration of the sodium chloride solution to achieve a consistent 2.0% sodium chloride content in the noodle dough. Crumbly dough was processed using the rollers of a noodle machine (Ohtake Noodle Machine Mfg. Co., Japan) set at a 3-mm gap and operating at 65 rpm to create a dough sheet. The dough sheet was folded and passed through the sheeting rollers multiple times. Specifically, the folding and sheeting process was repeated twice, followed by a 1-hour resting period for the dough sheet. Subsequently, the dough sheet was passed through the sheeting rollers 3 times, with the gap progressively reduced to 2.40 mm, 1.85 mm, and 1.30 mm, respectively. Following the final sheeting step, the thickness of the dough sheet was promptly measured using a Peacock Dial Thickness Gauge G (Ozaki Mfg. Co., Japan), a micrometer-based device that enables accurate thickness measurements. To evaluate the color of the dough sheet, it was cut into portions of 5 × 10 cm. Color measurements were performed using a colorimeter (CM-2002, Minolta Camera, Osaka, Japan) equipped with an 11-mm measurement aperture. The whiteness index of noodle dough sheet was calculated according to Nguimbou et al [
23]. The dough sheet was fed through cutting rolls with a number 12 blade, resulting in the production of noodle strands with a cross-sectional dimension of 3 × 2 mm and a length of approximately 30 cm.
Twenty grams of fresh noodles were cooked in 500 mL of boiling distilled water for 18 minutes and then rinsed with cold water. Two replicates of the cooked noodles were analyzed using Texture Profile Analysis (TPA) within 5 minutes of cooking. TPA was performed using a TA-XT2 Texture Analyzer (Stable Micro Systems, UK). Five strands of cooked noodles were arranged in parallel on a flat metal plate and subjected to two crosswise compressions, each to 70% of their original height. A 3.175-mm metal blade was used for the compression test, which was conducted at a crosshead speed of 1.0 mm/sec. Springiness, hardness, and cohesiveness were determined from the force-time curves obtained through TPA, following the method described by Park et al [
35].