The detection of allelic variants at the recessive vrn loci of winter wheat

Substitution lines with reciprocal substitutions of chromosomes containing recessive alleles of the homoeologous group 5 chromosomeVrn genes between varieties of winter wheat with high vernalisation requirement (‘Mironovskaya 808’) and low vernalisation requirements (‘Bezostaya 1’) have been created. On this basis the genetic determination of vernalisation requirement was established. Substitution lines Mironovskaya 808 (Bezostaya 1 5A), Mironovskaya 808 (Bezostaya 1 5B), Mironovskaya 808 (Bezostaya 1 5D) and reciprocal substitution lines Bezostaya 1 (Mironovskaya 808 5A), Bezostaya 1 (Mironovskaya 808 5B) and Bezostaya 1 (Mironovskaya 808 5D) were grown under different durations of vernalisation (3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 weeks) and their response was evaluated. Photoperiodic sensitivity of the original parental genotypes was also determined. Reciprocal substitution lines of the same chromosome that carries the same vrn allele responded differently to vernalisation deficit. Differences have been shown between all group 5 reciprocal substitutions. Lines carrying chromosomes 5A and 5D of Mironovskaya 808 had a high vernalisation requirement whereas lines carrying chromosome 5B of Bezostaya 1 (vrn2^B) had a low vernalisation requirement. The reciprocal lines had a reverse requirement. This explains the different vernalisation requirements of the original varieties: Mironovskaya 808 with a high vernalisation requirement carries two alleles (vrn1^M and vrn3^M) in its genotype that increase the vernalisation requirement, whereas Bezostaya 1 with a lower requirement for vernalisation contains only one such allele (vrn2^B). By combination of the alleles in the lines with the substitution of chromosome 5B carrying vrn2 allele that in both original genotypes work inversely to the other alleles, transgressive genotypes have been formed: genotype vrn1^M vrn2^B vrn3^M determines a higher vernalisation requirement than original variety Mironovskaya 808, and genotype vrn1^B vrn2^M vrn3^B determines a lower vernalisation requirement than the original Bezostaya 1. An incomplete vernalisation requirement prolonged the time to heading, with exponential dependence on the vernalisation deficit, or prevented heading altogether. The original varieties further differed in photoperiodic sensitivity (Mironovskaya 808 sensitive, Bezostaya 1 less sensitive) that also influenced the background of substitution lines. The impact of the background on the heading time showed itself by about one week difference between Mironovskaya 808 and Bezostaya 1 grown under 8 weeks vernalisation and normal photoperiod. The difference between the lines with Mironovskaya 808 background and the lines with Bezostaya 1 background was approximately the same and was not significantly changed in different vernalisation variants of the lines. This difference may be caused by different photoperiodic sensitivity of the original varieties, but also by other genes, such as genes of earliness per se. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.