Resistance to septoria nodorum blotch in the Aegilops tauschii accession RL5271 is controlled by a single gene

Septoria nodorum blotch is the most important leaf disease of wheat in Western Australia. A potentially useful source of resistance has been identified in an accession of Aegilops tauschii. To study the genetics of resistance of this source a cross was made between the resistant Ae. tauschii accession, RL5271, and a susceptible accession, CPI110889. The resistant parent took significantly longer to develop symptoms, developed significantly fewer lesions and expressed significantly lower levels of disease than the susceptible parent. The F1 mean response for disease severity indicated there was no complete dominance. The F3 families were classified using three approaches. In the first approach the individual F3 plant response was used to classify the F3 families. In the second approach the F3 family means and standard errors were used to classify the F3 families. In the final approach Best Linear Unbiased Predictors of disease score and standard error for each F3 family derived from a REML analysis were used to classify the F3 families. The genotypic ratios generated by each of the approaches suggested that resistance is controlled by a single gene. The effectiveness of the resistance and its simple genetic control in the Ae. tauschii, accession RL5271 may be a useful resistance source for use in a bread wheat breeding program. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The use of wheat/goatgrass introgression lines for the detection of gene(s) determining resistance to septoria tritici blotch (Mycosphaerella graminicola)

At the IPK Gatersleben a series of 85 bread wheat (T. aestivum)/goatgrass (Aegilops tauschii) introgression lines was developed recently. Based on the knowledge that chromosome 7D of this particular Ae. tauschii is a donor of resistance to septoria tritici blotch (Mycosphaerella graminicola), a sub-set of thirteen chromosome 7D introgression lines was investigated along with the susceptible recipient variety ‘Chinese Spring’ (CS) and the resistant donor line ‘CS (Syn 7D)’. The material was inoculated with two Argentinian isolates of the pathogen (IPO 92067 and IPO 93014) at both the seedlings (two leaf) and adult (tillering) stages at two locations over 2 years (2003, 2004). The resistance was effective against both isolates and at both developmental stages, and the resistance locus maps to the centromeric region of chromosome arm 7DS. On the basis of its relationship with the microsatellite marker Xgwm44, it is likely that the gene involved is Stb5. Stb5 is therefore apparently effective against M. graminicola isolates originating from both Europe and South America.     

Wheat pre-breeding using wild progenitors

To facilitate the use of wheat wild relatives in conventional breedingprograms, a wheat pre-breeding activity started at ICARDA in 1994/1995season. Preliminary results of gene introgression from wild diploidprogenitors, Triticum urartu, T. baeoticum, Aegilops speltoides andAe. tauschii and tetraploid T. dicoccoides are described. Crosseswith wild diploid Triticum spp. yielded high variation in plant andspike morphology. Synthetic hexaploids were produced from crosses of alocal durum wheat landrace `Haurani' with two Ae. tauschiiaccessions. Both Ae. tauschii accessions carry hybrid necrosis allelesthat gave necrotic plant phenotypes in crosses with some bread wheats.Backcross progenies with agronomical desirable traits, i.e. high spikeproductivity, short plant stature, earliness, drought tolerance and highproductive tillering, were identified in crosses of durum wheat with wild Triticum spp. and in a cross of one of the hexaploid synthetics with alocally adapted bread wheat cv. `Cham 6'. Resistance to yellow rust wasfound in durum wheat crosses with the three wild Triticum spp. andAe. speltoides and leaf rust resistance was identified in crosses withT. baeoticum and Ae. speltoides. The results show that wheatimmediate progenitors may be a valuable and readily accessible source ofnew genetic diversity for wheat improvement.     

Assessment of genetic diversity in synthetic hexaploid wheats and their Triticum dicoccum and Aegilops tauschii parents using AFLPs and agronomic traits

Synthetic hexaploid wheats are of interest to wheat breeding programs, especially for introducing new genes that confer resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses. A group of 54 synthetic hexaploid wheats derived from crosses between emmer wheat(Triticum dicoccum, source of the A and B genomes) and goat grass (Aegilops tauschii, D genome donor) were investigated for genetic diversity. Using the AFLP technique, dendrograms revealed clear grouping according to geographical origin for the T. dicoccum parents but no clear groups for the Ae. tauschii parents. The geographical clustering of the T. dicoccum parents was also reflected in the dendrogram of their derived synthetic hexaploids. Diversity of the T. dicoccum parents and their derived synthetic hexaploids was further evaluated by measuring 18morphological and agronomic traits on the plants. Clustering based on morphological and agronomic data also reflected geographical origin. However, comparison of genetic distances obtained from AFLP and agronomic data showed no correlation between the two diversity measurements. Nevertheless, similarities among major clusters with the two systems could be identified. Based on percentage of polymorphic markers, the synthetic hexaploids had a considerably higher level of AFLP diversity (39%) than normally observed in cultivated hexaploid wheat (12–21%). This suggests that synthetic hexaploid wheats can be used to introduce new genetic diversity into the bread wheat gene pool. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Resistance to stripe rust in Triticum turgidum,T. tauschii and their synthetic hexaploids

Resistance to stripe rust (caused by Puccinia striiformis Westend.) of 34 Triticum turgidum L. var.durum, 278 T. tauschii, and 267 synthetic hexaploid wheats (T. turgidum x T. tauschii) was evaluated at the seedling stage in the greenhouse and at the adult-plant stage at two field locations. Mexican pathotype 14E14 was used in all studies. Seedling resistance, expressed as low infection type, was present in all three species. One hundred and twenty-eight (46%) accessions of T. tauschii, 8 (23%) of T. turgidum and 31 (12%) of synthetic hexaploid wheats were highly resistant as seedlings. In the field tests, resistance was evaluated by estimating area under disease progress curve (AUDPC). Synthetic hexaploid wheats showed a wide range of variability for disease responses in both greenhouse and field tests, indicating the presence of a number of genes for resistance. In general, genotypes with seedling resistance were also found to be resistant as adult plants. Genotypes, which were susceptible or intermediate as seedlings but resistant as adult plants, were present in both T. turgidum and the synthetic hexaploids. Resistances from either T. turgidum or T. tauschii or both were identified in the synthetic hexaploids in this study. These new sources of resistance could be incorporated into cultivated hexaploid wheats to increase the existing gene pool of resistance to stripe rust.     

Transfer of rust resistance from Aegilops ovata into bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and molecular characterisation of resistant derivatives

An interspecific cross was made to transfer leaf rust and stripe rust resistance from an accession of Aegilops ovata (UUMM) to susceptible Triticum aestivum (AABBDD) cv. WL711. The F₁was backcrossed to the recurrent wheat parent, and after two to three backcrosses and selfing, rust resistant progenies were selected. The C-banding study in a uniformly leaf rust and stripe rust resistant derivative showed a substitution of the 5M chromosome of Ae. ovata for 5D of wheat. Analysis of rust resistant derivatives with mapped wheat microsatellite makers confirmed the substitution of 5M for 5D. Some of these derivatives also possessed one or more of the three alien translocations involving 1BL, 2AL and 5BS wheat chromosomes which could not be detected through C-banding. A translocation involving 5DSof wheat and the substituted chromosome 5M of Ae. ovata was also observed in one of the derivatives. Susceptibility of this derivative to leaf rust showed that the leaf rust resistance gene(s) is/are located on short arm of 5M chromosome of Ae. ovata. Though the Ae. ovatasegment translocated to 1BL and 2AL did not seem to possess any rust resistance gene, the alien segment translocated to 5BS may also possess gene(s) for rust resistance. The study demonstrated the usefulness of microsatellite markers in characterisation of interspecific derivatives. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Genetic analysis of resistance to <Emphasis Type="Italic">soil-borne wheat mosaic virus</Emphasis> derived from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Aegilops tauschii</Emphasis>

Genetic Analysis of Resistance to Soil-Borne Wheat Mosaic Virus Derived from Aegilops tauschii. Euphytica. Soil-Borne Wheat Mosaic Virus (SBWMV), vectored by the soil inhabiting organism Polymyxa graminis, causes damage to wheat (Triticum aestivum) yields in most of the wheat growing regions of the world. In localized fields, the entire crop may be lost to the virus. Although many winter wheat cultivars contain resistance to SBWMV, the inheritance of resistance is poorly understood. A linkage analysis of a segregating recombinant inbred line population from the cross KS96WGRC40 × Wichita identified a gene of major effect conferring resistance to SBWMV in the germplasm KS96WGRC40. The SBWMV resistance gene within KS96WGRC40 was derived from accession TA2397 of Aegilops taushcii and is located on the long arm of chromosome 5D, flanked by microsatellite markers Xcfd10 and Xbarc144. The relationship of this locus with a previously identified QTL for SBWMV resistance and the Sbm1 gene conferring resistance to soil-borne cereal mosaic virus is not known, but suggests that a gene on 5DL conferring resistance to both viruses may be present in T. aestivum, as well as the D-genome donor Ae. tauschii.     

Chromosomal Assignment of Three Enzyme Coding Loci (Icd1, Nad-Mdh1 and Aco1) Using Primary Trisomics in Beet (Beta vulgaris L.)

Resistance to Septoria nodorum was investigated in seedlings of an amphiploid generated from Triticum dicoccum Shübl. and Aegilops squarrosa Tausch, and in a series of substitution lines of single chromosomes from this synthetic hexaploid into Triticum aestivum cv. ‘Chinese Spring’ in three tests to determine the chromosomal location of resistance. From the Ae. squarrosa parent (D genome), chromosome 5D was found to confer a high level of resistance, reducing lesion cover to near that of the amphiploid in the three tests. Chromosomes 3D, and to a lesser extent, 7D were also found to confer significant resistance to the amphiploid. Three chromosomes, 2A, 3B and 5A, from the T. dicoccum parent (AB genomes) also conferred resistance but to a lesser extent than 7D. Two chromosomes, 2B and 2D, caused a significant decrease in resistance. ‘Chinese Spring’ may thus carry genes for resistance to S. nodorum on these chromosomes which are absent in the synthetic hexaploid.     

Allelic variation of the HMW glutenin subunits in Aegilops tauschii accessions detected by sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS-PAGE), acid polyacrylamide gel (A-PAGE) and capillary electrophoresis

Variability of high molecular weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GS) was studied in198 accessions of Ae. Tauschii (2n=2x=14, DD) by sodium dodecyl sulphate(SDS-PAGE) and acid polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (A-PAGE) and capillary electrophoresis (CE). A high allelic variation of HMW-GS, including some novel x- and y-type subunits and variable subunit combinations were observed. One accession(TD159) showed a x-type null form. The results by A-PAGE analysis revealed that the subunits Dx5 ^t and Dy10 ^t encoded by Glu-D ^t 1 locus in Ae. tauschii were different in relative mobilities in comparison with the subunits Dx5 and Dy10 found in bread wheats, whereas they had the same mobilities, respectively, when separated by SDS-PAGE. The higher resolution of Ae. tauschii HMW-GS separated by CE method showed two clear peaks in accordance with x- and y-type subunits, respectively,except the accession TD151 which possessed only subunit Dy12.1^*t. The electro elution time of the x-type and y-type subunits were about 13–14 and 7–8minutes, respectively. Characterization of wheat HMW-GS was facilitated by using CE which provides high resolution and increases the speed of analysis in conjunction with the traditional gel electrophoretic methods. A total of 42HMW-GS alleles were identified, among which were several alleles not presently detected in bread wheats. Hence Ae. tauschii is potentially a valuable genetic resource for quality improvement of bread wheat. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Development of diversity array technology (DArT) markers for assessment of population structure and diversity in Aegilops tauschii

Aegilops tauschii Coss. is the D-genome donor to hexaploid bread wheat (Triticum aestivum) and is the most promising wild species as a genetic resource for wheat breeding. To study the population structure and diversity of 81 Ae. tauschii accessions collected from various regions of its geographical distribution, the genomic representation of these lines were used to develop a diversity array technology (DArT) marker array. This Ae. tauschii array and a previously developed DArT wheat array were used to scan the genomes of the 81 accessions. Out of 7500 markers (5500 wheat and 2000 Ae. tauschii), 4449 were polymorphic (3776 wheat and 673 Ae. tauschii). Phylogenetic and population structure studies revealed that the accessions could be divided into three groups. The two Ae. tauschii subspecies could also be separately clustered, suggesting that the current taxonomy might be valid. DArT markers are effective to detect very small polymorphisms. The information obtained about Ae. tauschii in the current study could be useful for wheat breeding. In addition, the new DArT array from this Ae. tauschii population is expected to be an effective tool for hexaploid wheat studies.     

Cytological and Microsatellite Mapping of the Gene for Brittle Rachis in a Triticum Aestivum-Aegilops Tauschii Introgression Line

Summary Aegilops tauschii (Coss.) Schmal. (2n = 2x = 14, DD), a wild relative of wheat has been considered to be a valuable source of variation for improvement of cultivated wheats. However, undesirable genes can be incorporated into the cultivated varieties from wild relatives. The spontaneous spike shattering caused by the brittle rachis character is of adaptive value in wild grass species, but not in cultivated varieties. The rachis of R-61, which was derived from the cross of T. aestivum cv. Bet Hashita with an accession of Ae. tauschii, was brittle. Using telosomic stocks, the brittle rachis gene Br ⁶¹ (tentatively designated) of B-61 was located on the short arm of chromosome 3D and the distance of Br ⁶¹ to the centromere was 31.9 cM. The distance of Br ⁶¹ from the centromeric marker Xgdm72 was 25.3 cM on the short arm of chromosome 3D. The location of Br ⁶¹ was similar to Br ₁ whose location was determined by telosomic mapping and microsatellite mapping. Discrepancy of disarticulation type was found between R-61 and Aegilops tauschii suggesting that the recombination around the regions of Br ₁ locus and Br ^t locus created the wedge type disarticulation of R-61.     

Utilisation of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Aegilops</Emphasis> (goatgrass) species to widen the genetic diversity of cultivated wheat

Wild Aegilops species related to cultivated wheat (Triticum spp.) possess numerous genes of agronomic interest and can be valuable sources of resistance to diseases, pests and extreme environmental factors. These genes can be incorporated into the wheat genome via intergeneric crossing, following, where necessary, the development of chromosome addition and substitution lines from the resulting hybrids. The transfer of a single segment from an alien chromosome can be achieved by translocations. The Aegilops (goatgrass) species, which are the most closely related to wheat, exhibit great genetic diversity, the exploitation of which has been the subject of experimentation for more than a century. The present paper gives a survey of the results achieved to date in the field of wheat–Aegilops hybridisation and gene transfer. The Aegilops genus consists of 11 diploid, 10 tetraploid and 2 hexaploid species. Of these 23 Aegilops species, most of the diploids (Ae. umbellulata Zhuk., Ae. mutica Boiss., Ae. bicornis (Forssk.) Jaub. & Spach, Ae. searsii Feldman & Kislev ex Hammer, Ae. caudata L., Ae. sharonensis Eig, Ae. speltoides Tausch, Ae. longissima Schweinf. & Muschl.) and several polyploids (Ae. ventricosa Tausch, Ae. peregrina (Hack. In J. Fraser) Marie & Weiller, Ae. geniculata Roth, Ae. kotschyi Boiss., Ae. biuncialis L.) have been used to develop wheat–Aegilops addition lines. Wheat–Aegilops substitution lines were developed using several species, including Ae. umbellulata, Ae. caudata, Ae. tauschii, Ae. speltoides, Ae. sharonensis, Ae. longissima and Ae. geniculata. Translocations carrying genes responsible for useful agronomic traits were developed with Ae. umbellulata, Ae. comosa, Ae. ventricosa, Ae. longissima, Ae. speltoides and Ae. geniculata. A large number of genes were transferred from Aegilops species to cultivated wheat, including those for resistance to leaf rust, stem rust, yellow rust and powdery mildew, and various pests (cereal cyst nematode, root knot nematode, Hessian fly, greenbug). Many molecular markers are linked to these resistance genes. The development of new molecular markers is also underway. There are still many untapped genetic resources in Aegilops species that could be used as resistance sources for plant breeding.     

Ph I-induced transfer of leaf and stripe rust-resistance genes from Aegilops triuncialis and Ae. geniculata to bread wheat

Leaf and stripe rusts are severe foliar diseases of bread wheat. Recently, chromosomes 5M^g from the related species Aegilops geniculata that confers resistance to both leaf and stripe rust and 5U^t from Ae. triuncialis conferring resistance to leaf rust have been transferred to bread wheat in the form of disomic DS5M^g(5D) and DS5U^t(5A) chromosome substitution lines. The objective of this study was to shorten the alien segments in these lines using Ph ^I-mediated, induced homoeologous recombination. Putativerecombinants were evaluated for their rust resistance, and by genomic in situ hybridization and microsatellite analyses. One agronomically useful wheat-Ae. geniculata recombinant resistant to leaf and stripe rust was identified that had only a small terminal segment of the 5M^gL arm transferred to the long arm of an unidentified wheat chromosome. This germplasm can be used directly in breeding programs. Only one leaf rust-resistant wheat-Ae. triuncialis recombinant, which consists of most of the complete 5U^t chromosome with a small terminal segment derived from 5AS, was identified. This germplasm will need further chromosome engineering before it can be used in wheat improvement. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Genetic analysis of the Aegilops longissima 3S chromosome carrying the Pm13 resistance gene

The distal region of the short arm of chromosome 3S from Aegilopslongissima, which carries the powdery mildew resistance gene Pm13, was introgressed into common wheat. Due to suppression of recombination between this region and corresponding wheat homoeologous segments, a possible strategy to construct a genetic map around the Pm13 gene was based on crosses between a wheat addition line carrying the Ae.longissima 3S chromosome and the corresponding 3S addition lines of Ae.searsii and Ae. variabilis. The efficiency of this strategy was evaluated by scoring recombination frequencies inprogenies derived from these crosses. Recombination between 3S chromosomes fromAe. searsii and Ae. longissimawas very low, whereas 26.5% recombinant alien chromosomes were obtained from the cross involving the Ae. variabilisand Ae. longissima 3S addition lines. These data were used to construct a3S chromosome map that resulted largely colinear to the consensus map of the homoeologous group 3 of wheat. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Applicability of Aegilops tauschii drought tolerance traits to breeding of hexaploid wheat

Few genes are available to develop drought-tolerant bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars. One way to enhance bread wheat’s genetic diversity would be to take advantage of the diversity of wild species by creating synthetic hexaploid wheat (SW) with the genomic constitution of bread wheat. In this study, we compared the expression of traits encoded at different ploidy levels and evaluated the applicability of Aegilops tauschii drought-related traits using 33 Ae. tauschii accessions along with their corresponding SW lines under well-watered and drought conditions. We found wide variation in Ae. tauschii, and even wider variation in the SW lines. Some SW lines were more drought-tolerant than the standard cultivar Cham 6. Aegilops tauschii from some regions gave better performing SW lines. The traits of Ae. tauschii were not significantly correlated with their corresponding SW lines, indicating that the traits expressed in wild diploid relatives of wheat may not predict the traits that will be expressed in SW lines derived from them. We suggest that, regardless of the adaptability and performance of the Ae. tauschii under drought, production of SW could probably result in genotypes with enhanced trait expression due to gene interactions, and that the traits of the synthetic should be evaluated in hexaploid level.     

Comparison of TAF46 and Zhong 5 resistances to barley yellow dwarf virus from Thinopyrum intermedium in wheat

Barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV) is one of the most important plant viruses in the world. Two sources of resistance to BYDV derived from Thinopyrum intermedium were compared in wheat backgrounds. A source of resistance was confirmed in the partial amphiploid TAF46, the group 7 addition line L1, and translocation TC14. The other source of resistance derives from the partial amphiploid Zhong 5 and is present in the group 2 addition line Z6. Six ditelosomic addition lines have been derived from Z6. The resistance of genotypes derived from Zhong 5 is more effective at reducing virus multiplication throughout plant growth than that of genotypes derived from TAF46. The translocation line TC14, derived from TAF46 showed 30% plants escaping virus infection whereas all plants derived from Zhong 5 were infected. This suggests that the two sources of resistance are associated with differing mechanisms of resistance. Methods to better understand the genetic control and the mechanisms of these two resistances are suggested. The pyramiding of different sources of resistance to construct durable resistance is discussed. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Mapping the <Emphasis Type="Italic">compactum</Emphasis> locus in wheat (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Triticum aestivum</Emphasis> L.) and its relationship to other spike morphology genes of the Triticeae

The spikes of club wheat are significantly more compact than spikes of common wheat due to the action of the dominant allele of the compactum (C) locus. Little is known about the location of C on chromosome 2D and the relationship between C and to other spike-compacting genes. Thus, a study was undertaken to place C on linkage maps and a chromosome deletion bin, and to assess its relatedness to the spike compacting genes zeocriton (Zeo) from barley and soft glume (Sog) from T. monococcum. Genetic mapping was based on recombinant inbred lines (RILs) from a cross between the cultivars Coda (club) and Brundage (common) and F₂ progeny from a cross between the club wheat Corrigin and a chromosome 2D substitution line [Chinese Spring (Ae. tauschii 2D)]. The C locus was flanked by Xwmc144 and Xwmc18 in the RIL population and it was completely linked to Xcfd116, Xgwm358 and Xcfd17 in the F₂ population. C could not be unambiguously placed to a chromosome bin because markers that were completely linked to C or flanked this locus were localized to chromosome bins on either side of the centromere (C-2DS1 and C-2DL3). Since C has been cytogenetically mapped to the long arm of chromosome 2D, we suspect C is located in bin C-2DL3. Comparative mapping suggested that C and Sog were present in homoeologous regions on chromosomes 2D and 2A^m, respectively. On the other hand, C and Zeo, on chromosome 2H, did not appear to be orthologous.     

Allozymes and growth habit of Aegilops tauschii: genetic control and linkage patterns

Aegilops tauschii line of spring type growth habit with theearliest heading among all the VIR world germplasm collection of thisspecies was crossed with three Ae. tauschii lines of winter type growthhabit with low, intermediate and the highest vernalization requirement. 12enzyme loci were involved in genetic analysis. The growth habit was foundto be encoded by single codominant major gene, Vrn-D2. Thefollowing linkages were found: Est5 – Nadhd2 in chromosome 3, Vrn-D2 – Aco2 – Cat2 and Pgm – Nadhd1 in chromosome 4, Est2 – Got2 in chromosome 6.     

Identification of Aegilops germplasm with multiple aphid resistance

The greenbug, Schizaphis graminum(Rondani), the Russian wheat aphid, Diuraphis noxia (Mordvilko), and the bird cherry oat aphid, Rhopalosiphum padi(L.), annually cause several million dollars worth of wheat production losses in Europe and the United States. In this study, Triticum and Aegilops accessions from the Czech Research Institute of Crop Production and the Kansas State University Wheat Genetic Resources Center were evaluated for resistance to these aphids. Accessions with aphid cross-resistance were examined for expression of the antibiosis, antixenosis, and tolerance categories of resistance. Aegilops neglecta accession 8052 exhibited antibiotic effects toward all three aphids in the form of reduced intrinsic rate of increase (r_m). The r_m of greenbug (biotype I) on Ae. neglecta 8052 was significantly lower than that of greenbugs on plants of the susceptible U. S. variety Thunder bird. The r_m of Russian wheat aphids was significantly lower on foliage of both Ae. neglecta 8052 and T. araraticum accession 168 compared to Thunderbird. The r_m values of bird cherry oat aphids fed both Ae. neglecta 8052 and T. araraticum 168 were also significantly lower than those fed the susceptible accession T. dicoccoides 62. Neither Ae. neglecta 8052 or T. araraticum 168 exhibited tolerance to either greenbug biotype I or Russian wheat aphid. Preliminary data suggest that T. araraticum 168 may also possess tolerance to bird cherry oat aphid. New genes from Ae. neglecta 8052 and T. araraticum 168 expressing aphid antibiosis can be used to develop multiple aphid resistant wheat in the U. S. and Central Europe. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Intergeneric hybrids and an amphiploid between Elymus canadensis and Psathyrostachys juncea

Summary Fifty four hybrid plants between Elymus canadensis and Psathyrostachys juncea were obtained by handpollination and embryo culture. The average cross compatibility between both species was 31.2 percent. One amphiploid plant was induced by colchicine treatment. The hybrid and amphiploid plants resembled P. juncea in appearance but showed a higher plant height and dry matter yield than the parents. The hybrids showed extremely low pollen stainability and were completely sterile. With the exception of one plant (2n=3x+1=22), all hybrid plants were allotriploids (SHN, 2n=3x=21). The amphiploid plant (SSHHNN, 2n=6x=42) showed 58.9% pollen stainability and 11.6% seed fertility.Mean chromosome associations of the hybrids and amphiploid at metaphase I were 0.02IV+0.06III+2.03II+16.91I and 0.07III+18.00II+5.85I, respectively. Lagging chromosomes, chromosome bridges, abnormal cytokinesis, and micronuclei were occasionally observed at the anaphase, telophase, or tetrad stage.