Stripe rust reactions of Australasian wheats

Summary Seedling and field reactions to four European races of stripe rust were determined for 254 wheat cultivars, mostly from Australia and New Zealand. Numerical analyses of the data employed a divisive classification procedure with termal reallocation to form 10 groups which were then further classified, ordinated and diagnosed by several procedures. The groups formed ranged from one comprising four wheats with low seedling reactions to all four rust strains and mean field rust of only 1.0%, to one comprising 105 wheats with high seedling reactions and mean field rust of 64.7%. Groups of cultivars with intermediate levels of rust resistance were classified both on relative level of overall rust and on differential reactions to rust strains. One group of 13 cultivars had moderately high seedling reactions but averaged only 1.5% rust in the field.Seedling response to gibberellic acid (GA) was also measured and diagnosed as an external attribute, along with grain type and region of origin. Principal co-ordinate analysis revealed that greater resistance to stripe rust was associated with the insensitivity to GA typical of semidwarf wheats and with an origin in northern Australia, where semidwarf wheats have been most used in the breeding program. In terms of numerical analysis of disease data in plant breeding programs, the study highlighted the advantages of using divisive classification with terminal reallocation of group members.     

Breeding of white-grained wheats for Japan

The possibility of breeding white-grained wheats tolerant to pre-harvest sprouting under Japanese humid weather conditions is discussed. New genetic dormancy sources, such as, AUS1408, 8019R1 and RyuuMai7, were evaluated for seed dormancy in different weather conditions. Some white-grained dormant wheats showed a strong dormancy similar to that of red-grained dormant wheats in a greenhouse trial, in the field their dormancy expression was much less than the red wheats. Three populations involving crosses with these new sources for winter wheat breeding were examined under repeated selection for seed dormancy. Some dormant white-grained lines, as judged under glasshouse conditions, were developed. Again the level of dormancy in these lines was not sufficient compared to red dormant varieties in field trial. In order to develop truly superior dormant white-grained materials, one population involving crosses with two dormant varieties, AUS1408 and 8019R1, was examined under repeated selection. From these materials we succeeded in breeding lines that had not only a good dormancy but also showed adaptation to Japanese weather conditions, including earliness, scab resistance and good seed appearance. However again the dormancy of these lines in field trial was not sufficient compared to that of red wheats and there was not a clear difference for seed dormancy between breeding lines and their parents. We conclude therefore that more work involving the use of new genetic sources or new breeding techniques, will be necessary for breeding advanced lines that maintain a sufficient tolerance to PHS in humid Japanese weather condition. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Breeding long coleoptile, reduced height wheats

Semidwarf wheats have the potential to produce high yields when sown and managed under optimal conditions. However, farm yields often fall below this potential because of poor seedling establishment and low early vigour associated with gibberellic acid (GA)-insensitive reducing-height ( Rht) genes contained in these wheats. Australian and overseas wheats containing major and minor Rht genes sensitive to GA were intercrossed to develop three populations. Seedlings sensitive to GA and therefore lacking Rht-B1b ( Rht1) and Rht-D1b ( Rht2) plant height genes were selected for further study. GA- sensitive F4-derived lines were sown in field and glasshouse environments to determine plant height, and then sown at four temperatures to determine coleoptile length. Genetic variation in plant height and coleoptile length was large and significant ( P<0.01) among lines within each population with a number of lines identified as producing plant heights as short as current semidwarf varieties. Transgressive segregation for coleoptile length produced progenies with coleoptiles significantly ( P < 0.05) longer than the longest coleoptile parent in each population. Genotype × temperature interactions for coleoptile length were small thereby resulting in high line-mean heritabilities (h2 = 85–89) for this character. Larger plant-to-plant variation reduced single-plant estimates of heritability for plant height (h2 = 29–31) but heritability was increased (h2 = 68–78) with replication within and over environments. High narrow-sense heritabilities indicate that phenotypic selection should produce modest genetic gain for both characters. Variation in coleoptile length was poorly related to differences in plant height (r2 = 0.00 to 0.04 ns) while selection differentials for plant height were not associated with any change in coleoptile length of the selected groups. When considered together, height and coleoptile length appeared to be largely under independent genetic control among GA-sensitive wheats. These results suggest that GA-sensitive Rht genes could be used to select shorter height, longer-coleoptile wheats with improved establishment and seedling vigour. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The variability and breeding value of Armenian wheats

Summary Eight Triticum species are found in Armenia and due to their great diversity they can be divided into a number of subspecies and botanical varieties. This also holds true for agricultural properties such as yield, growth habit, winter hardiness, straw strength and resistance to fungal diseases.Several collection numbers are of value for breeding purposes.     

Polymorphism of waxy proteins in Iberian hexaploid wheats

A collection of 130 cultivars of bread wheat, 332 landraces of bread wheat and 144 spelt wheats was analysed for waxy proteins in the grain. The electrophoretic patterns showed very low polymorphism and most of the hexaploid wheats had the Wx-Ala, Wx-D1a and Wx-B1 alleles of ‘Chinese Spring’. Two alleles were detected at Wx-A1 (Wx-A1a, and Wx-A1b (null)), the latter was present in only 5.1% of the bread wheat landraces and 7.6% ofthe spelt wheats. No allelic variation was found at the Wx-D1 locus and all the hexaploid wheats had the Wx-D1a allele. Wx-B1 was the most polymorphic locus, with three alleles detected: Wx-B1a, Wx-B1b (null) and Wx-Blc coding for a Wx-B1 protein with a slightly different mobility from Wx-B1a. The null Wx-B1b allele was found in 10.8% of the bread wheat cultivars, 21.4% of the bread wheat landraces and 12.5% of the spelt wheats. Among the 604 hexaploid wheats analysed, only two bread wheat landraces (0.6%) and two spelt wheats (1.4%) had the null allele at both Wx-A1 and Wx-B1 loci.     

Comparative osmotic adjustments in barley and tetraploid wheats

Five barley (Hordeum rulgare L.), five durum wheat (Triticum turgidum concar. durum L.) and one wild emmer wheat (Triticum turgidum conrar dicoccoides) genotypes from different origins and differing for drought tolerance and potential yield, were studied for their osmotic adjustment capacity at the same stage and under similar water stress conditions. Differences for water status parameters between barley and tetraploid wheat genotypes were noted and discussed. The lowest osmotic adjustment capacities were noted in drought susceptible varieties, while a high capacity was found in genotypes exhibiting a high yield stability across contrasting environments. Relative water content, leaf osmotic potential and accumulation of soluble sugars were found to be highly related with osmotic adjustment: they could be used as criteria for a rapid evaluation of osmotic adjustment in segregating populations.     

Polymorphism of waxy proteins in Spanish durum wheats

A collection of 547 durum wheats (103 cultivars and 444 landraces) from Spain was analysed for waxy protein composition. The electrophoretic patterns showed low polymorphism. At the Wx‐A1 locus, 99.8% of the wheats had the Wx‐Ala allele and only one had the null Wx‐Alb allele. The Wx‐Bl locus was more polymorphic and four different alleles were detected: Wx‐Bla (41.3%), Wx‐Blc (42.6%), a new allele, not detected before in bread wheat and named Wx‐Blf (16.0%), and the null Wx‐Blb allele, found for the first time in one durum wheat. Eleven durum wheats with different allelic composition at the Wx‐l loci were analysed for amylose content. Wheats with the Wx‐Bla allele had a lower amylose content than those with Wx‐Blc or Wx‐Blf. The lowest amylase content was found in the only durum wheat having the null Wx‐Blb allele.     

Sources of resistance to Pyrenophora tritici-repentis in bread wheats

Summary No complete resistance to Pyrenophora tritici-repentis has been located in more than 1400 bread wheats examined. Incomplete resistance, however, occurs at different levels in many spring and winter types and data are presented for the strongest sources of resistance detected. In particular, there is a high frequency of Brazilian spring wheats with appreciable levels of resistance to this pathogen. Recent international nurseries from CIMMYT, Mexico, also contain numerous potentially valuable sources of resistance and these wheats may be shorter and higher yielding in Australia than the Brazilian wheats. The resistances in many Brazilian cultivars may be largely common because the cultivars are often strongly interrelated. Some of the Brazilian wheats resistant to P. tritici-repentis are also resistant to one or more of the septoria diseases and/or possess tolerance to aluminium toxicity.     

Gibberellic acid insensitive dwarfing genes in Southern European wheats

Summary Commercial wheat varieties from nine European countries were surveyed for the presence of Norin 10 GA insensitive dwarfing genes. The spread of such genes was shown to be limited to areas where they would not be subjected to high temperatures at a critical growth stage. A new weaker source of GA insensitivity, the variety Saitama 27 was detected and shown to occur in varieties from six of the nine countries surveyed.     

Waxy proteins in diploid, tetraploid and hexaploid wheats

Electrophoretic analyses of waxy proteins, encoded by genes present at the Wx‐1 loci, present in several cultivars and accessions of hexaploid wheat, Triticum aestivum, have permitted the detection of null alleles at the Wx‐B1 and Wx‐D1 loci. Polymorphism at the Wx‐A1 and Wx‐B1 loci was also investigated in several accessions of tetraploid wheats, Triticum durum, Triticum dicoccoides and Triticum timopheevi, and in diploid species, Triticum urartu, Triticum boeoticum and Triticum monococcum. One null allele at the Wx‐A1 locus and three polymorphic alleles at Wx‐B1 locus were detected in T. durum; a new allele at one of the two waxy loci was identified in the tetraploid wheat T. timopheevi; no polymorphism was detected in diploid species. Polymerase chain reaction techniques made possible the detection of further polymorphism existing at the Wx‐1 loci and the reason for the lack of expression of the null genotypes to be investigated. The null forms detected at each locus have been used to produce complete sets of partial and total waxy lines in durum and bread wheat.     

Analysis of genetic profiles of winter wheats from Russia

With the aid of GRIS, the wheat genetic resources database, the retrospective analysis of winter wheat breeding programs in the ex-USSR during its existence, and modern Russia, was conducted. The dynamics of genetic diversity of released cultivars was studied. A significant tendency to reduce the use of local materials was discovered, although a stable set of original ancestors has prevailed over the last 40 years. The modern cultivar genes pool has increased as a result of the utilisation of North American semidwarf varieties. Breeding programs at different breeding centres are distinguished by varying levels of genetic diversity. The need to discover new sources of disease resistance and environmental adaptation are problems that remain. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

松乳菇的菌丝培养及人工栽培研究

实验以3株贵州市采集的松乳菇菌种和西南大学储存的一株松乳菇菌种为材料,利用PDA培养基培养活化的母种,马丁氏培养基筛选最优碳源、氮源以及pH,通过观察菌丝密度、菌丝颜色形态、菌丝过滤干燥称重等方法确定最优条件,对比各组别中松乳菇菌丝生长状况确定最优菌种。将菌丝置于不同栽培种配方中培养,确定最佳的栽培种配方。试验表明：Ld1为最优菌种,能够产生大量菌丝,PDA培养基能较好的培养、保存菌种。最优条件为葡萄糖作碳源,KNO3作氮源,pH 6,且以松木屑、麦麸、棉籽壳按照一定的配比做栽培种能使松乳菇菌丝生长发育得最好。     

RL4137 contributes preharvest sprouting resistance to Canadian wheats

Preharvest sprouting (PHS) in spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) causes significant economic losses due to a reduction in grain functionality, grain yield and viability of seed for planting. Genetic resistance to PHS reduces these losses. Development of PHS resistant cultivars is complicated by the effects of genotype, environment, kernel diseases and spike morphological factors. RL4137 has consistently exhibited high levels of resistance to PHS over years and environments. The mean PHS scores of Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) wheat cultivars with RL4137 in their ancestry are lower than that of CWRS wheat cultivars without. RL4137 has two mechanisms for PHS resistance, one associated with kernel color and the other not associated with kernel color. RL4137 was the source of PHS resistance in white wheats HY361, AC Vista, Snowbird, Kanata, and Snowstar, all of which had significantly lower PHS scores than the white-seeded check, Genesis. Known DNA markers relating to PHS were used to compare haplotypes with and without RL4137 in the ancestry. Coefficients of parentage also demonstrated the relationship. Because cultivars that have RL4137 in their ancestry were grown on about 77% of the spring wheat area for 2003–2007, RL4137 continues to contribute to protecting market grade from preharvest sprouting.     

基于信息熵理论的模糊综合评价方法及其在棉花区试中的应用

为提高对区域试验参试品种评价的科学性和合理性,采用模糊数学和信息熵理论,提出了作物品种模糊熵权综合评价方法。该法利用作物品种区试的综合性状指标,建立相应的评价指标矩阵,然后借助信息论中的熵权理论,利用各评价指标的变异程度计算权重,实现品种的综合评价。最后结合棉花区试资料,介绍了该法的应用,验证了其可行性和有效性。     

High molecular weight glutenin subunit composition of Chinese bread wheats

Summary The endosperm storage proteins of 205 Chinese bread wheat cultivars and advanced lines were fractionated by SDS-PAGE to determine their high molecular weight (HMW) glutenin subunit composition. Seventeen alleles were identified: three at Glu-A1, eight at Glu-B1, and six at Glu-D1. The most common alleles were Null, 1, 7+8, 7+9, and 2+12. The results indicate that wheats from different regions differ in their frequencies of HMW glutenin subunits, however, none of the subunits could be related to specific environments. The glutenin quality scores of Chinese wheats ranged from 3 to 10, with an average of 6.7. Increasing quality scores have implications in improving steam-bread making quality for Chinese consumers. On the basis of HMW glutenin subunit composition, Chinese wheats are close to European wheats, especially Italian wheats because several Italian introductions are widely distributed in the pedigrees of Chinese wheat.     

Endosperm peroxidase electrophoresis patterns to distinguish tetraploid from hexaploid wheats

Summary A simple method is proposed to distinguish hexaploid (Triticum aestivum L.) from tetraploid (Triticum turgidum L., durum wheat) cultivated wheats on the basis of peroxidase isozymes coded by genome D. It can also be used as a first step to detect possible contamination by tetraploid genotype mixtures. The peroxidase patterns of endosperm and of embryo plus scutellum found among 349 entries of a durum wheat world basis collection are shown.     

Quantitative trait loci influencing grain protein content in tetraploid wheats

Seed storage protein content of durum wheat (Triticum turgidum var. durum) has an important effect on nutritional value and pasta-making characteristics. The objective of this study was to determine by association with genetic markers the number, chromosomal location, and magnitude of effect of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling protein concentration in kernels. A set of 65 recombinant inbred lines (RIs) was developed by single seed descent from a cross between cultivated durum wheat cv. ‘Messapia’ (low protein content) and accession MG4343 of the wild tetraploid wheat var. dicoccoides (high protein content). This population was characterized for eight morphological, six storage protein, one isozyme and 124 RFLP loci. Field trials were conducted in one location in 1993 and two locations in 1994. QTLs were mapped by regression analysis on each marker locus for each location and for the average across environments. A total of six putative QTLs were located on chromosome arms 4BS, SAL, 6AS, 6BS and 7BS. The number and size of QTLs detected varied across environments. The marker with the highest r² value per QTL in each environment and across environments was chosen for a multiple linear regression analysis, which explained 49.2- 56.4% of the phenotypic variation for protein content. Only some of the markers were found to be negatively associated with plant grain yield and/or seed weight in one or two of the environments.     

Race non-specific resistance to rust diseases in CIMMYT spring wheats

Rust diseases continue to cause significant losses to wheat production worldwide. Although the life of effective race-specific resistance genes can be prolonged by using gene combinations, an alternative approach is to deploy varieties that posses adult plant resistance (APR) based on combinations of minor, slow rusting genes. When present alone, APR genes do not confer adequate resistance especially under high disease pressure; however, combinations of 4?C5 such genes usually result in ??near-immunity?? or a high level of resistance. Although high diversity for APR occurs for all three rusts in improved germplasm, relatively few genes are characterized in detail. Breeding for APR to leaf rust and stripe rust in CIMMYT spring wheats was initiated in the early 1970s by crossing slow rusting parents that lacked effective race-specific resistance genes to prevalent pathogen populations and selecting plants in segregating populations under high disease pressure in field nurseries. Consequently most of the wheat germplasm distributed worldwide now possesses near-immunity or adequate levels of resistance. Some semidwarf wheats such as Kingbird, Pavon 76, Kiritati and Parula show high levels of APR to stem rust race Ug99 and its derivatives based on the Sr2-complex, or a combination of Sr2 with other uncharacterized slow rusting genes. These parents are being utilized in our crossing program and a Mexico-Kenya shuttle breeding scheme is used for selecting resistance to Ug99. High frequencies of lines with near-immunity to moderate levels of resistance are now emerging from these activities. After further yield trials and quality assessments these lines will be distributed internationally through the CIMMYT nursery system.     

Genetic diversity within spelta and macha wheats based on RAPD analysis

Genetic diversity in a crop species is basic to improvement of the species and can be estimated at the molecular level. The objective of this study was to estimate genetic diversity within and between spelta and macha wheats. Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis was conducted on 69 spelta and 32 macha wheat accessions. The classification of spelta and macha accessions, based on Jaccard genetic similarity coefficients for RAPD markers, was consistent with their geographic origin. The results indicated that the germplasm of macha wheat was more diverse than that of spelta wheat. In the dendrogram of macha wheat, four spelta-like accessions grouped together, separate from the remaining macha accessions, suggesting that these accessions were misclassified. In addition, accessions with identical RAPD patterns were found, indicating that these accessions were probably duplicated. Thus RAPD analysis can be used to estimate genetic diversity and identify duplicate accessions in wheat germplasm collections. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Differential Nitrogen Uptake, Utilization and Biomass Accumulation by Some Sorghum Cultivars

Five cultivars of sorghum viz: PU-7, Sarokartuho, Bagdar, Redjanpur and Potobar 4–8 were studied for their growth, N uptake and utilization efficiency at 5 mM N in solution culture. These cultivars differed significantly in their dry matter accumulation and relative growth rate of shoot. Differences in shoot/root of the cultivars were also notable. Markedly different mean N intake rate among the sorghum cultivars was 108 μmol g⁻¹ root dry wt. hr⁻¹ in Bagdar and 53 μmol g⁻¹ root dry wt. hr⁻¹ in PU-7 and Redjanpur. Both relative accumulation rate of N and efficiency of biomass accumulation per unit N absorbed also differed appreciably among the cultivars.