Detection of soft wheat in semolina and durum wheat bread by analysis of DNA microsatellites

The aim of this work was to evaluate the possibility to apply the analysis of DNA microsatellites to set up a method of detection of soft wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in semolina and durum wheat bread (prepared from Triticum turgidum L. var. durum). The obtained results enabled to select an efficient D-genome-specific repetitive DNA sequence to detect common wheat in semolina and breads by qualitative PCR with a threshold of 3 and 5%, respectively, lowered to 2.5% by real-time PCR. This is of major importance for checking during production some typical products recently awarded with the European Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) mark such as Altamura bread, which should not contain soft wheat flour. The feasibility of quantification of common wheat adulteration in semolina using real-time PCR was also demonstrated.