biostudies-literatureUnknown12(1)Mokhtari NSynthetic hexaploid wheat-derived lines (SHW-DL) offers new hope for breeders to restore genes lost during the evolutionary bottleneck. The study of adaptability, variation, and the possibility of selection in SHW-DL for drought tolerance is poorly understood in arid environments. The potential of 184 SHW-DL and their variation for agro-morphological traits were assessed under normal and water stress conditions for 2 years. The mean values of grain yield (YLD) varied from 683.9 g/m² (water stress) to 992.1 g/m² (normal conditions). Grain yield decreased by 64 and 71% under water stress in the two growing seasons. High genotypic variation was found for measured traits and drought tolerance. Heritability ranged from 19 (harvest index) to 47% (spike length), whereas graiScientific reports20482https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC9705419biostudies-literaturePotentials of synthetic hexaploid wheats to improve drought tolerance.PMC9705419Majidi MMMirlohi AMokhtari NfalsePotentials of synthetic hexaploid wheats to improve drought tolerance.Synthetic hexaploid wheat-derived lines (SHW-DL) offers new hope for breeders to restore genes lost during the evolutionary bottleneck. The study of adaptability, variation, and the possibility of selection in SHW-DL for drought tolerance is poorly understood in arid environments. The potential of 184 SHW-DL and their variation for agro-morphological traits were assessed under normal and water stress conditions for 2 years. The mean values of grain yield (YLD) varied from 683.9 g/m² (water stress) to 992.1 g/m² (normal conditions). Grain yield decreased by 64 and 71% under water stress in the two growing seasons. High genotypic variation was found for measured traits and drought tolerance. Heritability ranged from 19 (harvest index) to 47% (spike length), whereas grai2022-01-01T00:00:00Z2022 Nov2025-04-25T20:55:23.571Z2025-04-06T08:33:26.304ZS-EPMC97054193644338210.1038/s41598-022-24678-5