Toward a more healthful wheat crop: Zinc and cadmium in Great Plains hard winter wheat

Zinc and cadmium are taken up and transported by plants using the same mechanisms. Zinc is essential for human health, while cadmium is toxic. Increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations are expected to further depress wheat grain zinc concentration, while human activity is increasing soil cadmium concentration in some regions of the world. Breeding strategies to address this paired challenge to producing more healthful wheat are needed. The presentation will review research in Great Plains hard winter wheat germplasm focused on understanding the variation for grain zinc and cadmium, the implications for human nutrition, and potential for selection of improved wheat genotypes.