From Grain to Genome: Investigating Arsenic Levels in Triticum turgidum ssp durum Desf. Using GWAS

Producing safe and high-quality food is increasingly important, and developing durum wheat varieties with low toxicity is crucial to meeting this demand. Durum wheat breeders can achieve this goal by developing new varieties that are either more resistant to arsenic uptake or better adapted to grow in areas with high arsenic levels. High levels of arsenic can pose serious health hazards, which makes it critical to evaluate the arsenic levels. Therefore, this study evaluated the arsenic levels in diverse durum wheat genotypes, including Turkish-released cultivars and local landraces. The results showed that all genotypes had significantly low and non-toxic levels of arsenic, with an average concentration of 5.24 μg/kg. These concentrations were much lower than the minimum reported in numerous published research studies and well below the risky international standard limits for durum wheat grain (0.1 mg/kg). The study also identified two significant marker-trait associations linked to arsenic contents located on chromosomes 4A and 7B, which explained 11-17% of the phenotypic variation. These findings provide valuable insights into the arsenic levels in durum wheat genotypes and highlight the need for ongoing monitoring to ensure safe and healthy food for consumers. By conducting collaborative genome-wide association studies and employing marker-assisted selection, durum wheat breeders can accelerate the creation of new varieties that have reduced arsenic levels by identifying alleles linked to arsenic content. This study emphasizes the importance of developing low-toxicity durum wheat varieties to ensure the safety and quality of our food supply. The findings can inform breeding programs to develop such varieties and contribute to sustainable agriculture. While the study’s methodology was robust, further research is necessary to confirm and validate the genetic factors contributing to variation in arsenic content among different durum wheat genotypes.