* Correspondence: rajeev.varshney@murdoch.edu.au

Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is one of the most widely cultivated and consumed crops worldwide. Wheat production must increase significantly to meet the food demands of the rapidly growing population. The Australian wheat industry, which exports 65–75% of its production to over 50 countries, must enhance productivity to remain competitive internationally.

Modern genomics approaches, such as pangenomics, can assist in identifying and cataloguing superior haplotypes for traits that enhance crop productivity. Wheat genome analysis is challenging due to its hexaploid nature and large genome size (approximately 16 Gb). Despite these challenges, the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (IWGSC) has delivered genome assemblies for 10 wheat varieties, using NRGene technology.

Recent advances and reduced costs in genome sequencing technologies have popularised long-read sequencing for de novo genome assemblies. Consequently, research groups internationally, including those in Canada, the USA, the UK, China, Germany, France, and Saudi Arabia, are developing pangenomes for their wheat varieties. In collaboration with key industry stakeholders, we selected 10 representative Australian wheat varieties to generate PacBio’s HiFi reads and Hi-C sequencing data.

This data will be processed to develop chromosome-length assemblies, which will be aligned against the publicly available reference genome. The identified variations will be integrated to create a comprehensive graph-based pangenome. This pangenome will provide an exhaustive overview of genetic variation within the species, capturing both common and rare alleles.

These detailed genetic insights will enable the effective mining and utilisation of functional genetic diversity, facilitating the development of improved wheat varieties tailored to specific market needs and environmental conditions.