Variation of the genomic proportion of the recurrent parent in BC1 and its relation to yield performance in sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) breeding for low-input conditions

In order to define the variation of the genomic proportion of the recurrent parent [G(RP)] and its relation to yield, G(RP) of individual BC₁ plants of two sorghum populations composed of a high‐yielding cultivar as recurrent parent (RP) and a donor with superior drought resistance or grain quality, respectively, was estimated using AFLPs and SSRs. G(RP) in BC₁ ranged from 0.53 to 0.95 and averaged to 0.76 in the population (NP4453 × ‘SV‐2’) × ‘SV‐2’. G(RP) varied between 0.60 and 0.86 and averaged to 0.74 in the BC₁ of (ICV‐219 × ‘SV‐2’) × ‘SV‐2’. Results show that plants with a G(RP) equivalent to BC₂ (0.875) or BC₃ (0.938), respectively, can be selected from BC₁. Yield performance of BC₁S₁ families was tested in field trials carried out in South Africa. The correlation between yield and G(RP) in BC₁ was low. Selection according to G(RP) did not result in an effective preselection for yield.     

低酚陆地棉育种亲本配合力的研究

选择８个现代低酚陆地棉育种亲本（包括４个高酚棉和４个低酚棉品种），按４×４不完全双列杂交设计，对１６个组合的Ｆ×进行了双列分析。结果表明，在所研究的１０个性状中，子棉产量、皮棉产量和纤维整齐度主要受非加性基因控制，单铃重、衣分、比强度、２．５％跨长和麦克隆值则主要由加性基因控制，衣指由加性和非加性基因共同控制，而子指受环境的影响较大；在大多数性状上，高酚棉亲本的加性遗传方差比低酚棉亲本贡献大，而在２．５％跨长和麦克隆值２个性状上，低酚棉亲本的加性遗传方差起着更重要的作用；中７８８６是综合性状比较理想的亲本材料，冀合２２５是较好的高产亲本，冀无２５２和中无１５１是较好的优质低酚棉亲本。综合一般配合力和特殊配合力分析结果，组合中７８８６×冀无２５２可具较好的育种潜力。     

含有玉米远缘种质的自交系配合力分析及应用评价

按P1×P2不完全双列杂交设计,用NCⅡ分析方法,对6个含有玉米远缘种质自交系9个性状的配合力及其群体遗传参数进行研究。结果表明:郑311、郑314和郑388的一般配合力高,可直接利用;而郑312、郑315和郑389综合性状较差,需改良后利用;郑312×BT1和郑314×齐319具有较强的杂种优势,有一定的增产潜力。在玉米育种工作中,对株高等8个性状宜早代选择,而对轴粗应进行晚代选择。     

陆地棉芽黄品系和常规品种间杂种优势利用研究

以５个芽黄品系和６个常规品种进行不完全双列杂交，测定３０个组合在主要农艺性状上的杂种优势和配合力。试验结果表明，陆地棉芽黄品系和常规品种杂交，Ｆ１具有明显的杂种优势。比较各性状竞争优势的相对大小可知，子、皮棉产量的优势最大，分别达１０．５７％和１０．７８％，果枝数、果节数、铃数和早熟性次之，纤维品质性状的优势较小。其中１０个组合Ｆ１皮棉产量的竞争优势率超过１５％杂种棉审定的增产阈值，尤以（ｎｖ３２×苏棉３号）、（ｖ１６ｖ１７×鲁棉１１号）这两个组合最突出。不同组合杂种一代间的性状变异主要受基因型控制，１６个性状同时具有显著或极显著的亲本一般配合力和组合特殊配合力差异，芽黄品系和常规品种间杂种优势的利用潜力较大。     

杂交粳稻几个数量性状的配合力分析

利用6个粳型不育系和6个恢复系，采用不完全双列杂交法配制了36个杂交组合，对其8个数量性状的一般配合力及亲本间组合的特殊配合力效应进行了分析。结果表明，株高、穗长、穗总粒数、穗实粒数、稳秕粒数、千粒重这几个性状受亲本一般配合力的影响，单株粒重受特殊配合力的影响，单株稳数的一般配合力和特殊配合力作用相近。其中不育系552A的穗总粒数、稳实粒数、单株粒重等一般配合力的相对效应值较大，恢复系FR796、2002FR24的穗总粒数、穗实粒数、单株粒重的一般配合力的相对效应值较大。     

高粱9个性状的配合力分析

通过对（３×４）和（４×５）的广义遗传力分析，初步可以看出，杂交种生育期、株高、茎高主要由亲本的加性基因所控制；千粒重、穗粒数、穗粒重、角质主要由亲本基因的显性效应和基因互作效应所控制；穗长和穗柄长的遗传控制中，加性效应和非加性效应近于相等。这种情况也为狭义遗传力的估值所证实。因而，运用上述材料与具有特殊性状优良的品系组成群体，进行轮回选择，能够选育出更有价值的材料来。     

Diallel analysis of sweetpotatoes for resistance to sweetpotato virus disease

Sweetpotato virus disease (SPVD) is due to the dual infection and synergistic interaction of Sweetpotato feathery mottle potyvirus (SPFMV) and Sweetpotato chlorotic stunt crinivirus(SPCSV), and causes up to 98% yield loss in sweetpotato in East Africa. This study was conducted to determine the inheritance of resistance to SPVD in sweetpotato and to estimate the nature of genetic variance. Ten parental clones varying in reaction to SPVD were crossed in a half diallel mating design to generate 45 full-sib families. The families were graft-inoculated with SPCSV and SPFMV to induce SPVD and evaluated for resistance in a randomized complete block design at two sites in Namulonge, Uganda during 1998–2000. In serological assays for SPFMV and SPCSV,resistance to symptom development and recovery from initial systemic SPVD symptoms, characterised resistant genotypes. Genetic component analysis showed significant effects for both general combining ability (GCA) and specific combining ability (SCA) for resistance to SPVD. GCA to SCA variance component ratios were large (0.51–0.87), hence GCA effects were more important than SCA effects. Resistant parents exhibited high GCA indicating that additive gene effects were predominant in the inheritance of resistance to SPVD and recovery. Narrow-sense heritability (31–41%) and broad-sense heritability (73–98%) were moderate to high, indicating that rapid genetic gains for SPVD resistance could be accomplished by mass selection breeding techniques. Two genotypes, New Kawogo and Sowola, had high negative GCA effects and had several families in specific crosses,which exhibited rapid recovery from SPVD,and are promising parents for enhancement of SPVD resistance and recovery. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Winter × spring wheat hybridization - a promising avenue for yield enhancement

Introgression of the winter gene pool into spring wheat is being considered as one of the strategies to break through the yield plateau. However, little information is available on the combining ability of these two important but distinct groups of wheats in Indian conditions. Therefore, the present study was undertaken to determine the combining ability and gene action of yield and yield attributes in winter × spring wheat crosses. Seventy F₁ progenies developed by 14 winter and five spring wheat lines using a line × tester design were evaluated, along with their parents, for yield and yield attributes in a randomized complete block design under field conditions. The mean squares for all the characters studied showed highly significant differences. The mean squares due to female × male interactions were significant for all the characters studied except for grains per ear and grain weight per ear. Additive genetic effects were found to play a key role in controlling the expression of days to heading, plant height and spikelets per ear.‘MV 19’ and ‘Stepniak’/‘Karvuna’ among winter and ‘PBW 65’ among spring wheats were good general combiners for most of the yield attributes studied. The estimates for specific combining ability effects suggested that, although general combining ability (GCA) effects of most winter wheats are either average or poor, their combination can give desirable genotypes with spring wheat parents possessing a high GCA.     

Inheritance of plant elongation ability at seedling stage in rice

Summary In a comparison of methods to study inheritance of plant elongation ability, 15-, 20-, 25-, 30-, and 35-day-old F₂ populations of a cross between Baisbish (floating variety) and IR42 (nonelongating semidwarf modern variety) of rice, (Oryza sativa L.) were subjected to 65 cm water depth for 7 days. Frequency distribution of plant height before and after submergence was obtained. Bimodal curves in 15-, 20- and 25-day-old populations gave good fits to 9:7 elongating: nonelongating plants, suggesting that elongation was due to two dominant complementary genes. Segregation in the 30-day-old population was not clear-cut. A seedling age of 20 days was subsequently chosen for further studies.Two F₂'s involving floating rice and a nonelongating semidwarf; four F₂'s involving floating rice and an elongating semidwarf; and two F₂'s involving elongating and nonelongating semidwarf parents were studied with 20-day-old seedlings in the same way. Floating rice combinations with nonelongating semidwarf parents as well as with elongating semidwarf parents segregated into 9:7 elongating: nonelongating ratio. It is possible that because elongating and nonelongating dwarf parents did not differ much in elongation ability at seedling age, their combination with floating rice parents provided similar segregation. The F₂ distributions for height in elongating and nonelongating dwarf cross combinations were continuous with one peak.Genetic constitution of parents proposed are Sd1 Sd1 El El for floating parents, sd1 sd1 El El for semidwarf elongating, and sd1 sd1 el el for dwarf nonelongating.     

Breeding components for mixture performance

Summary The problems posed by breeding components for use in binary mixtures are discussed. Breeding and selection strategies designed to overcome some of these problems are outlined.