Cell Membrane Stability in Relation to Drought Tolerance in Wheat Genotypes

Genotyptc differences in wheat were observed in cell membrane with respect to injury caused by osmotic shock created with 40 per cent polyethylene glycol-6000. In general, genotypes with high cell membrane injury also registered much reduction in leaf water potential and osmotic potential. Cell membrane injury measured at 25 days after germination was found to be related with genotypic performance under drought conditions in field. Cell membrane stability measurements of normal plants, even at a very early stage of growth, is reported as criteria for selecting drought tolerant wheat genotypes.     

干旱胁迫下‘宛麦632’的抗旱性分析

为了探究小麦新品种‘宛麦632’的抗旱性，以‘周麦18’为对照试验材料，采用PEG模拟干旱和田间自然干旱的方法测定抗旱指标。无干旱胁迫条件下，‘宛麦632’与‘周麦18’的各项抗旱指标均无显著差异，其产量分别为7052 kg/hm²和6916 kg/hm²。干旱胁迫条件下，在萌发期，‘宛麦632’的发芽率、发芽势分别较‘周麦18’高44.23%、106.25%；在苗期，‘宛麦632’的苗高、根长、茎叶鲜重和根鲜重分别较‘周麦18’高62.90%、55.32%、83.33%和60.00%；在成株期，‘宛麦632’的株高、最高分蘖、有效穗、穗粒数、千粒重和产量分别较‘周麦18’高2.99%、1.94%、1.44%、14.71%、10.61%和6.80%。除有效穗外，其他性状差异均达显著水平。此外，‘宛麦632’和‘周麦18’的综合抗旱指数分别为0.901、0.582。据此认为，在干旱胁迫条件下，‘宛麦632’生长受抑制程度小，其各项抗旱指标均优于‘周麦18’；‘宛麦632’具有较好的抗旱性，在干旱环境下有产量优势。     

Tolerance of Drought and Temperature Stress in Relation to Increased Antioxidant Enzyme Activity in Wheat

An experiment was conducted with three wheat genotypes differing in their sensitivity to moisture and/or temperature stress to study the relationship of the chloroplast antioxidant system to stress tolerance. Both moisture stress and temperature stress increased glutathione reductase and peroxidase and decreased membrane stab-iltty, chlorophyll content and chlorophyll stability index in all genotypes. Under moisture stress. DL 153–2 showed the highest membrane stabihty index, chlorophyll content, chlorophyll stability index, glutathione reductase activity and peroxidase activity. However, under elevated temperature conditions, HD 2285, and to a lesser extent DL 153–2, showed higher membrane stability, chlorophyll content and chlorophyll stability index and activities of glutathione reductase and peroxi-dase. Raj 3077, which is sensitive to both drought and temperature stress, showed the lowest membrane stability, chlorophyll content and chlorophyll stability index and glutathione reductase and perosidase activity under elevated temperature as well as drought conditions. Thus, it can be concluded that tolerance of the genotype to moisture and/or temperature stress is closely associated with its antioxidant enzyme system.     

Use of Canopy Temperature Measurements as a Screening Tool for Drought Tolerance in Spring Wheat

Remotely sensed infrared canopy temperatures provide an efficient method for rapid, non-destructive monitoring of whole-plant response to water stress. Field studies were conducted in 1992 and 1993 to evaluate the potential for using canopy temperatures to screen for drought tolerance in wheat. In both years, 12 spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) genotypes were grown under two irrigation levels (well-watered and moisture-stressed) imposed between tillering and anthesis with a line-source sprinkler irrigation system. Canopy temperature measurements were taken in well-watered and moisture-stressed plots between 1330 and 1430 h (MDT) on five clear days in 1992 and seven clear days in 1993 during the late vegetative and early reproductive growth periods following closure of the plant canopy. Genotypes exhibited differences in mean canopy temperatures across the two irrigation levels and two years. Klasic consistently had the highest canopy temperature under moisture-stressed conditions, while Bannock and Pondera had the lowest. Bannock, Yecora Rojo and Klasic had the warmest canopies under well-watered conditions, while Vandal, Amidon and Rick had the coolest. Plot-to-plot variation in canopy temperature under water stress conditions was evident for differences in grain yield. Significant correlations between canopy temperature and yield under moisture-stress conditions and drought susceptibility index values indicated the potential for screening wheat genotypes for drought response.     

Agronomic and Physiological Study of Cold and Flooding Tolerance of Spelt (Triticum spelta L.) and Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Flooding of soil occurs all over the world in areas of crop production. The resulting lack of available oxygen in the soil can hinder the establishment of field crops such as wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) and thus lead to a decrease in yield. The current study compares the tolerance of spelt ( Triticum spelta L.) and wheat to wet and cold stress during germination and early growth. Two specific traits seem to be related to the superior early flooding tolerance of spelt: (1) fast growth of the coleoptile, which reaches the soil surface rapidly, thus reducing the time span of hypoxia sensitivity, independent of temperatures between 10 and 20 °C; (2) the improved physiological adaptation for coleoptile growth under hypoxia is probably due to lower oxygen consumption between germination and emergence. Because of this high level of flooding tolerance, spelt would also be a good source for breeding for stress tolerance in wheat. These findings will help to detect quantitative trait loci (QTL) for characters such as growth rate, flooding tolerance and oxygen consumption in future studies. A marker-assisted introgression of spelt into wheat is necessary to avoid combination with undesirable agronomic traits of spelt.     

Investigations on Heat Tolerance of Spring Wheat Varieties of Different Origin Under Growth Chamber Conditions

Winter wheat has replaced spring wheat to a large extent under the climatic conditions of Western and Central Europe. But spring wheat genotypes are still important under the warm climate in large parts of Africa and Central America, since spring wheat needs no vernalization. To reach optimal yield, genotypes must be well adapted to heat stress. In this study 11 spring wheat varieties of Egypt, Sudan, CIMMYT and Germany were exposed to high temperatures at ear emergence and beginning of anthesis. There were reductions in kernel yield and kernel number of the main ear for all genotypes, but the differences in reduction were remarkable. The German variety 'Naxos' was best adapted. Some varieties showed an increased number of florets per spikelet under heat treatment, but this does not prohibit a reduction in kernel number per spikelet.     

Indices of Drought Tolerance in Wheat Genotypes at Early Stages of Plant Growth

Thirty diverse genotypes of bread wheat were evaluated for seed vigour index, germination percentage, root length, shoot length, root‐to‐shoot length ratio, coleoptile length and osmotic membrane stability under laboratory conditions. Considerable variation was observed for all the characters. Discrimination among the genotypes on the basis of mean values was better under normal than under moisture stress conditions, indicating suppression of variability under moisture stress conditions. Comparison of mean performance under normal and osmotic stress conditions indicated that the seed vigour index was the most sensitive trait, followed by shoot length, germination percentage and root length. The root‐to‐shoot length ratio, however, increased under osmotic stress. The magnitude of genetic components of variance and heritability were, in general, lower under osmotic stress than under normal conditions. All the characters except germination percentage, shoot length and coleoptile length showed considerable genetic variability. Heritability in the broad sense was also moderate to high for all the characters under both environments. Due to high heritability and genetic advance great benefit from selection can be expected for the osmotic membrane stability of leaf segments and root‐to‐shoot length ratio. Moderate progress can be expected from root length and seed vigour index. Correlation studies indicated that the osmotic membrane stability of the leaf segment was the most important trait, followed by root‐to‐shoot ratio and root length on the basis of their relationships with other traits.     

Biomass Yield — A Topical Issue in Modern Wheat Breeding Programmes

Plot experiments were made involving seven winter wheat varieties to study growth rate and biomass yield in relation to grain yield and yield stability. The results obtained with ‘Apollo’ show that it is possible to boost grain yield and obtain simultaneously an adequate yield stability by increasing the biomass potential until anthesis and maintaining high growth rates in the grain-filling period. Higher grain yields were likewise reached by merely increasing the growth rate after anthesis at an equal or lower biomass potential at anthesis, but yield stability was lower then.     

根施甜菜碱对水分胁迫下小麦幼苗水分状况和抗氧化能力的改善作用

研究了外源根施甜菜碱对抗旱性不同的两个冬小麦品种幼苗抗旱性的影响。结果表明，水分胁迫会诱导小麦幼苗体内甜菜碱的积累，外源甜菜碱能提高体内甜菜碱含量，改善水分胁迫下两小麦品种的水分状况，提高其水势，膨压和相对含水量，这可能是通过提高小麦幼苗体内一些有机渗透调节物质（如可溶性糖和脯氨酸）含量进而增强其渗     

An Economic Investigation of Early-Generation Quality Testing in a Wheat Breeding Program

Public plant breeders, in seeking the most efficient means of achieving their objectives, face decisions on the appropriate breeding strategy and program structure to use. This paper reports an analysis comparing the changes in costs and benefits from the introduction of recent technology enabling testing for flour and dough properties to be carried out on small samples in the early-generations of a wheat breeding program in Australia. The average costs of a suite of early-generation tests are higher than the equivalent (unreplicated) yield testing. The analysis presented confirms that the introduction of early-generation quality testing leads to a faster rate of expected progress in quality, but a slower rate of progress in yield. The estimated market value of an increase in yield is greater than that for quality, based on current market information. Thus, the result of incorporating early-generation quality testing is higher costs and lower expected returns, so that there is a loss of community welfare from using early-generation quality testing if the resultant cultivar is released from each program. However, the probability of the higher-quality cultivar being released for commercial cultivation is greater, so that recognition of the probability of release means that there may be net gains from the use of early-generation quality testing.     

Effects of Root Water Uptake Efficiency on Soil Water Utilization in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) under Severe Drought Environments

Improving wheat production in drought‐prone areas is the key to meet the increasing global demand. The importance of root traits, especially, the structural traits such as root volume and rooting depth, has been well recognized to confer drought tolerance in wheat. However, generation of knowledge on root water uptake efficiency and its application in drought adaptation breeding had lagged behind. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the relevance of the root water uptake efficiency to biomass production under acute soil water deficit in six wheat genotypes. Pot experiments were conducted under polythene rainout shelters at Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan, in 2010 and 2011. Under drought that was measured as smaller critical fraction of transpirable soil water (FTSW), the root systems with less reduction water uptake efficiency were found to postpone the relative transpiration decline. This study also showed the existence of substantial genotypic variation on the root water uptake efficiency among the wheat genotypes. The expression of hydrophobic root morphology under drought environments, however, did not explain the results obtained on the relative root water uptake efficiency, indicating other regulative mechanisms in operation for the regulation of transverse water flow in the roots. These findings provide new understanding of drought adaptation in wheat through variations in the root water uptake efficiency.     

Independent and Combined Effects of Soil Warming and Drought Stress During Anthesis on Seed Set and Grain Yield in Two Spring Wheat Varieties

Increase in soil temperature together with decrease in soil moisture during anthesis of spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L) crops is predicted to occur more frequently in a future climate in Denmark. The objective of this study was to investigate the responses of two Danish spring wheat varieties (Trappe and Alora) to soil warming (H), drought (D) and both (HD) during anthesis. The plants were grown in pots in a climate‐controlled glasshouse. In H, the soil temperature was increased by 3 °C compared with the control (C). In both D and HD treatments, the plants were drought‐stressed by withholding irrigation until all of the transpirable soil water had been depleted in the pots. Results showed that, particularly under D treatment, Alora depleted soil water faster than Trappe. In both varieties, flag leaf relative water content (RWC) was significantly lowered, while spikelet abscisic acid (ABA) concentration was significantly increased by D and HD treatments. Compared with the C plants, D and HD treatments significantly reduced ear number, ear to tiller ratio, shoot biomass, grain yield, harvest index and seed set but hardly affected tiller number and 1000‐kernel weight, whereas H treatment alone only decreased shoot biomass and reduced seed set. When analysed across the varieties and the treatments, it was found that the reduction in seed set was closely correlated with the increase in spikelet ABA concentration, indicating that D and HD treatments induced greater spikelet ABA concentrations might have caused seed abortion. It was concluded that the grain yield reduction under D and HD treatments during anthesis in spring wheat is ascribed mainly to a lowered seed set and wheat varieties (i.e. Alora) with more dramatic increase in spikelet ABA concentration are more susceptible to D and HD treatment.     

Effect of Post-Anthesis Water Stress on Accumulation of Dry Matter, Carbon and Nitrogen and Their Partitioning in Wheat Varieties Differing in Drought Tolerance

In four wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars of tall (C306 and Narmada) and dwarf (HD2329 and Kundan) type, post-anthesis water stress affected the dry matter accumulation in plant parts with respect to main shoot controls. HD2329 among the dwarf types and Narmada 112 among the tall types were more adversely affected by stress, with greater reductions in their biomass and grain yield. Of the tolerant types, C306 (tall) showed a marginal reduction while Kundan (dwarf) had no reduction in these parameters as a result of stress. The results also indicated a varietal response to carbon and nitrogen accumulation and their partitioning in the main shoot when subjected to post-anthesis stress. In the susceptible dwarf cultivar HD2329, and in the susceptible tall cultivar Narmada 112, carbon and nitrogen contents were reduced in the grains of stressed main shoots. Of the tolerant cultivars, the dwarf type Kundan was not affected by stress, while the tall type C306 registered an increase in carbon content and its partitioning to grain.     

20个烟草品种干旱胁迫下发芽和苗期生理特性及耐旱性评价

试验对干旱胁迫下20个烟草品种发芽和苗期生理生化特性变化进行了分析,并对其耐旱性进行了鉴定。在正常供水和15%PEG-6000模拟干旱条件下测定了种子发芽特性及幼苗生长、生理生化等指标,将各性状在正常供水与干旱胁迫下测定值的比值作为耐旱性评价指标。相关性分析表明,相对发芽指数、相对活力指数、相对幼苗鲜重和相对幼苗干重之间显著相关,是较好的耐旱性评价指标。通过聚类分析,将20个品种分为耐旱型、中等耐旱型和干旱敏感型3类,聚类结果与相关性分析结果一致。研究结果将为烟草抗旱性机理研究和育种以及烟草区域化种植提供理论依据。     

转SbPIP1基因小麦植株的获得及发芽期耐盐性鉴定

为了培育耐盐小麦新材料,利用基因枪转化法将海蓬子(Salicornia bigelovii Torr.)水通道蛋白(plasma membrane intrinsicprotein,SbPIP1)基因导入到小麦品种宁麦13和扬麦158中。对两个品种的各2500枚幼胚进行轰击,分别获得抗Basta再生植株237株和108株(筛选标记基因为Bar基因),经PCR鉴定阳性转基因植株分别为30株和7株。用130mg/L Basta除草剂对T1代幼苗进行喷施鉴定,发现T1代幼苗的Basta抗性出现了分离。遗传分析发现76.19%的株系表现为1对基因遗传的3:1分离,为单拷贝的基因导入。发芽期耐盐性分析发现81.22%的转基因株系的盐害指数低于受体宁麦13的盐害指数,耐盐性强于受体宁麦13。这些转基因材料将进一步用于小麦的耐盐分子育种研究。     

Relationship between Grain Yield and Remotely-Sensed Data in Wheat Breeding Experiments

Data from aerial infrared photographs have recently been proposed as a complementary analytical tool for evaluating genotype performance in breeders' trials. Our objective was to establish the relationships between spring wheat grain yield and remotely-sensed data in a variety experiment. Large genotype differences (P ≤ 0.05) in grain yield, red, and near infrared reflectance values occurred. Significant (P ≤ 0.05) regressions between grain yield and remoteley-sensed data were observed for two dates of flight, but these functions varied between dates of flight. A normalized difference vegetative index, as an estimate of crop productivity, indicated that spring wheats with the highest grain yields may show correspondingly high dry matter production. However, low r² values for the remotely-sensed values suggest that much of the variability is not explained by these models. Future research must develop more accurate methods of remotely-sensed analysis, including standardizing the images, identifying the correct time with respect to stage of crop development for infrared photographs, incorporating crop harvest index data into the models, and adjusting for identified spatial variation.     

Effects of Zinc Deficiency and Drought on Grain Yield of Field-grown Wheat Cultivars in Central Anatolia

Drought stress and zinc (Zn) deficiency are serious abiotic stress factors limiting crop production in Turkey, especially in Central Anatolia. In this study, the effects of Zn deficiency and drought stress on grain yield of 20 wheat cultivars (16 bread wheat, Triticum aestivum; four durum wheat, Triticum durum cultivars) were investigated over 2 years under rainfed and irrigated conditions in Central Anatolia where drought and Zn deficiency cause substantial yield reductions. Plants were treated with (+Zn: 23 kg Zn ha⁻¹, as ZnSO₄·7H₂O) and without (−Zn) Zn under rainfed and irrigated conditions. Both Zn deficiency and rainfed treatments resulted in substantial decreases in grain yield. Significant differences were determined between both bread wheat and durum wheat cultivars in terms of drought stress tolerance. Considering drought sensitivity indices over 2 years, the bread wheat cultivars Yayla‐305, Gerek‐79, Dagdas‐94 and Bolal‐2973 were found to be more drought‐tolerant than the other cultivars under both −Zn and +Zn treatments. Especially the durum wheat cultivars Cakmak 79 and Selcuklu 97 showed much greater drought susceptibility under Zn deficiency, and irrigation alone was not sufficient to obtain satisfying grain yield without Zn application. The results indicate that sensitivity to Zn deficiency stress became more pronounced when plants were drought‐stressed. The effect of irrigation on grain yield was maximized when Zn was adequately supplied, leading to the suggestion that efficient water use in Central Anatolia seems to be highly dependent on the Zn nutritional status of plants.     

Characterization of Lablab purpureus Regarding Drought Tolerance,Trypsin Inhibitor Activity and Cyanogenic Potential for Selection in Breeding Programmes

Climate change is responsible for the decrease in rainfall in many regions. One consequence is a reduction in arable land for traditional crops. Therefore, we are looking for drought‐tolerant crops from many regions to replace sensitive crops currently in use. Lablab purpureus (L.) Sweet, which is grown mainly in Africa and South Asia, is considered to be drought tolerant. The species L. purpureus is a member of the Fabaceae family and has multiple functions, for example as food or forage. In this study, L. purpureus genotypes were compared to find the best genotypes adapted to the new climate conditions and with the highest benefits as food and fodder. The drought tolerance of four L. purpureus genotypes was examined. Classical growth parameters, infrared thermography and stomatal conductance were measured after induction of drought stress to monitor the impact of drought on plant growth and development. Significant differences among the genotypes were found in the tested growth stage. The ranking of the most drought‐tolerant genotype was method dependent. To find potentially usable genotypes, the trypsin inhibitor activity was determined and an analysis of the cyanogenic potential (HCNp) was performed. Both trypsin inhibitor activity and HCNp showed significant differences among the genotypes without showing a correlation to each other. In summary, we recommend as selection criteria of the best genotypes for future breeding programmes: (i) a combination of at least two, better three, independent methods for the determination of drought effects on L. purpureus and (ii) the chemical analysis of compounds which are important for the nutritional value.     

Identification of Physiological Traits Underlying Cultivar Differences in Drought Tolerance in Rice and Wheat

Rice is used as a model cereal to study drought response at the molecular level, with the goal of applying results to other cereals. To assess the relevance of results from rice to other species, the kinetics of drought development and plant response of tolerant and susceptible tropical rice ( Oryza sativa L.) and subtropical wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars were compared under vegetative and reproductive stage drought in pot experiments. Water was withheld during reproductive stage until plant available soil moisture content was 30 % of field capacity (FC) or leaf wilting was observed, and then reapplied. Rice reached 30 % FC 9 days after withholding water and wheat after 13 days. Before rewatering, both species reached leaf water potentials of −12 bars and similarly low transpiration rates. Stress reduced leaf relative water content, leaf elongation and membrane stability. When water stress was imposed during reproductive stage, pollen fertility was most affected in wheat, while panicle exsertion and anther dehiscence were severely affected in rice. When water stress was imposed during vegetative stage, wheat was less affected to vegetative stage drought than rice. The nature of differences between tolerant and susceptible cultivars was similar for the two species. However, the differential growth habitats and growth rate of plants needs to be considered in these kinds of experiments.     

Agronomic Performance of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) as Influenced by Moisture Stress at Various Growth Stages and Seeding Rate

A field experiment was conducted at Samaru, Nigeria during the 1981–82 dry season to determine the yield and growth responses of wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) to moisture stress imposed at various growth stages and to seeding rate. It was also to identify wheat growth stages that are most sensitive to soil moisture stress. Treatments tested include three seeding rates, namely, 75, 100 and 150 kg per ha, and seven drought treatments, effected by missing one or two consecutive irrigations at different growth stages.
Withholding irrigation at any growth stage prior to anthesis had detrimental effects on most of the growth characters and stress during crown root initiation (CRI) and jointing reduced most of the yield characters. Missing two consecutive irrigations at any given growth stage reduced grain yield more than did missing one irrigation; the greatest reductions in grain yield were 13 and 65% when one irrigation was missed at CRI and two consecutive irrigations were missed at jointing (the most sensitive growth stage) respectively. Moisture stress was also detrimental to number of grains, spike number, spike length, leaf area and number of tillers. A seeding rate of 100 kg per ha produced the best wheat performance in the present study.