Characterizing Winter Wheat Germplasm for Fusarium Head Blight Resistance Under Accelerated Growth Conditions

Fusarium head blight (FHB) is one of the economically important diseases of wheat as it causes severe yield loss and reduces grain quality. In winter wheat, due to its vernalization requirement, it takes an exceptionally long time for plants to reach the heading stage, thereby prolonging the time it takes for characterizing germplasm for FHB resistance. Therefore, in this work, we developed a protocol to evaluate winter wheat germplasm for FHB resistance under accelerated growth conditions. The protocol reduces the time required for plants to begin heading while avoiding any visible symptoms of stress on plants. The protocol was tested on 432 genotypes obtained from a breeding program and a genebank. The mean area under disease progress curve for FHB was 225.13 in the breeding set and 195.53 in the genebank set, indicating that the germplasm from the genebank set had higher resistance to FHB. In total, 10 quantitative trait loci (QTL) for FHB severity were identified by association mapping. Of these, nine QTL were identified in the combined set comprising both genebank and breeding sets, while two QTL each were identified in the breeding set and genebank set, respectively, when analyzed separately. Some QTLs overlapped between the three datasets. The results reveal that the protocol for FHB evaluation integrating accelerated growth conditions is an efficient approach for FHB resistance breeding in winter wheat and can be even applied to spring wheat after minor modifications.

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Alien chromatin but not Fhb7 confers Fusarium head blight resistance in wheat breeding

10.1101/2021.02.03.429547 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Xianrui Guo ◽

Qinghua Shi ◽

Jing Yuan ◽

Mian Wang ◽

Jing Wang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Fusarium Head Blight Resistance ◽

Resistance Breeding ◽

Wheat Breeding ◽

Glutathione S Transferase ◽

Head Blight ◽

Fhb Resistance ◽

Translocation Lines ◽

High Level ◽

Thinopyrum Elongatum

AbstractFusarium head blight (FHB), caused by Fusarium species, seriously threaten global wheat production. Three wheat-Th.elongatum FHB resistant translocation lines have been developed and used for breeding. Transcriptomic analysis identified a derivative glutathione S-transferase transcript T26102, which was homologous to Fhb7 and induced dramatically by Fusarium graminearum. Homologs of Fhb7 were detected in several genera in Triticeae, including Thinopyrum, Elymus, Leymus, Pseudoroegeria and Roegeria. Several wheat-Thinopyrum translocation lines carrying Fhb7 remain susceptible to FHB, and transgenic plants overexpressing the T26102 on different backgrounds did not improve the FHB resistance. Taken as a whole, we show the application of the chromatin derived from diploid Thinopyrum elongatum successfully conferring wheat with high level FHB resistance independent of the Fhb7.One Sentence SummaryThinopyrum elongatum chromatin from 7EL was successfully applied to wheat FHB resistance breeding, but the resistant gene other than the reported Fhb7 remained unknown.

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Dissecting the Contribution of Environmental Influences, Plant Phenology, and Disease Resistance to Improving Genomic Predictions for Fusarium Head Blight Resistance in Wheat

Agronomy ◽

10.3390/agronomy10122008 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (12) ◽

pp. 2008

Author(s):

Jose Moreno-Amores ◽

Sebastian Michel ◽

Franziska Löschenberger ◽

Hermann Buerstmayr

Keyword(s):

Linear Regression ◽

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Genomic Selection ◽

Linear Regression Analysis ◽

Fusarium Head Blight Resistance ◽

Resistance Breeding ◽

Multiple Linear Regression Analysis ◽

Head Blight ◽

Severity Scores ◽

Fhb Resistance

Environmental factors like temperature and humidity are presumed to greatly influence Fusarium head blight FHB infections in wheat. Anther retention AR, on the other hand, is a morphologically neutral trait that shares a common genetic basis with FHB resistance. In this study, our aims were to: (i) Evaluate two types of corrections of FHB severity scores, namely method-1 via linear regression on flowering time (FT), and method-2 via a best-subset multiple linear regression analysis comprising FT plus accumulated thermal time variables; and (ii) assess the performance of multi-trait genomic selection (MT.GS) models for FHB severity assisted by AR. The forward prediction scenarios where GS models were trained with data from the previous years revealed average prediction accuracies (PA) of 0.28, 0.33, and 0.36 for FHB severity scores that were uncorrected or corrected by method-1 and method-2, respectively. FHB severity scores free from the influences of both environment and phenology seemed to be the most efficient trait to be predicted across different seasons. Average PA increments up to 1.9-fold were furthermore obtained for the MT.GS models, evidencing the feasibility of using AR as an assisting trait to improve the genomic selection of FHB resistance breeding lines.

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Genetic trends in Fusarium head blight resistance due to 20 years of winter wheat breeding and cooperative testing in the Northern US.

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-04-21-0891-sr ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Rupesh Gaire ◽

Clay Sneller ◽

Gina Brown-Guedira ◽

David A. Van Sanford ◽

Mohsen Mohammadi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Winter Wheat ◽

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Mixed Model ◽

Fusarium Head Blight Resistance ◽

Wheat Breeding ◽

Vital Role ◽

Head Blight ◽

Genetic Progress ◽

Fhb Resistance ◽

Genetic Trends

Fusarium head blight (FHB) is a devastating disease of wheat and barley. In the US, a significant long-term investment in breeding FHB resistant cultivars began after the 1990s. However, to this date, no study has been performed to understand and monitor the rate of genetic progress in FHB resistance as a result of this investment. Using 20 years of data (1998 to 2018) from the Northern Uniform (NU) and Preliminarily Northern Uniform (PNU) winter wheat scab nurseries which consisted of 1068 genotypes originating from 9 different institutions, we studied the genetic trends in FHB resistance within the northern soft red winter wheat growing region using mixed model analyses. For the FHB resistance traits incidence, severity, Fusarium damaged kernels (FDK), and deoxynivalenol content, the rate of genetic gain in disease resistance was estimated to be 0.30 ± 0.1, 0.60 ± 0.09, 0.37 ± 0.11 points per year, and 0.11 ± 0.05 ppm per year, respectively. Among the five FHB resistance QTL assayed for test entries from 2012 to 2018, the frequencies of favorable alleles from Fhb 2DL Wuhan1 W14, Fhb Ernie 3Bc, and Fhb 5A Ning7840 was close to zero across the years. The frequency of the favorable at Fhb1 and Fhb 5A Ernie ranged from 0.08 to 0.33 and 0.06 to 0.20 respectively across years, and there was no trend in changes in allele frequencies over years. Overall, this study showed that substantial genetic progress has been made towards improving resistance to FHB. It is apparent that the current investment in public wheat breeding for FHB resistance is achieving results and will continue to play a vital role in reducing FHB levels in growers’ fields.

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Diallel analysis of Fusarium head blight resistance in genetically diverse winter wheat germplasm

Euphytica ◽

10.1007/s10681-010-0195-y ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 175 (3) ◽

pp. 409-421 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Z. A. Abate ◽

A. L. McKendry

Keyword(s):

Winter Wheat ◽

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Fusarium Head Blight Resistance ◽

Diallel Analysis ◽

Blight Resistance ◽

Head Blight ◽

Wheat Germplasm

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Introgression breeding - Effects and side effects of marker-based introduction of two non-adapted QTL for Fusarium head blight resistance into elite wheat

Plant Breeding and Seed Science ◽

10.2478/v10129-011-0041-y ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 63 (1) ◽

pp. 129-136

Author(s):

T. Miedaner ◽

C. von der Ohe ◽

V. Korzun ◽

E. Ebmeyer

Keyword(s):

Side Effects ◽

Winter Wheat ◽

Grain Yield ◽

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Fusarium Head Blight Resistance ◽

Blight Resistance ◽

Recurrent Parent ◽

Head Blight ◽

Introgression Breeding ◽

Fhb Resistance

Introgression breeding - Effects and side effects of marker-based introduction of two non-adaptedQTLfor Fusarium head blight resistance into elite wheatFusarium head blight resistance (FHB) can be achieved by using improved adapted varieties as crossing partners or by a marker-assisted introgression of mapped QTL from non-adapted sources. In this long-term studyFhb1on chromosome 3BS andQfhs.ifa-5Alocated on chromosome 5A were introgressed into European elite spring and winter wheat to test effects on FHB resistance and side effects on agronomic performance andF. graminearumisolates and mixtures. The introgression of the QTLFhb1andQfhs.ifa-5Afrom the Sumai 3-descendant CM82036 could be performed in the shortest possible way by marker-assisted backcrossing. They were both validated in European elite wheat background. Effects on FHB resistance were, on average, only about half of the effect in the original mapping populations. In the best phenotypically and marker-selected BC0line of spring wheat FHB was reduced from 40 to 4.3% of disease symptoms by introgressing both QTL, in the best BC3line of winter wheat the reduction was 28 and 37% for the moderately resistant and highly susceptible recurrent parent, respectively. Introgression of both QTL simultaneously did not result in significantly higher FHB resistance than introgression of only one of both QTL. Small significant negative effects on grain yield were detected in the Anthus but not in the Opus BC3F2:5backcross population when both QTL were introgressed. Backcrossing with onlyQfhs.ifa-5Adid not reduce grain yield significantly. Differences in heading date, plant height and quality traits were in all cases small although often significant. Selection of lines with improved resistance level and similar high yield level like the recurrent parent was feasible. Stability of FHB resistance mediated by both QTL was stable across 22Fusariumisolates from Europe and Canada and six binary mixtures. Competition effects between isolates in mixtures were obvious but could not be attributed to the resistance of the host. In conclusion, marker-based backcrossing is a feasible option for introgressingFhb1orQfhs.ifa-5AQTL into the high-yielding, quality-oriented European wheat gene pool.

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Characterization of the Genetic Architecture for Fusarium Head Blight Resistance in Durum Wheat: The Complex Association of Resistance, Flowering Time, and Height Genes

Frontiers in Plant Science ◽

10.3389/fpls.2020.592064 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 ◽

Author(s):

Yuefeng Ruan ◽

Wentao Zhang ◽

Ron E. Knox ◽

Samia Berraies ◽

Heather L. Campbell ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Durum Wheat ◽

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Flowering Time ◽

Plant Height ◽

Genetic Resistance ◽

Fusarium Head Blight Resistance ◽

Resistance Breeding ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Head Blight ◽

Fhb Resistance

Durum wheat is an economically important crop for Canadian farmers. Fusarium head blight (FHB) is one of the most destructive diseases that threatens durum production in Canada. FHB reduces yield and end-use quality and most commonly contaminates the grain with the fungal mycotoxin deoxynivalenol, also known as DON. Serious outbreaks of FHB can occur in durum wheat in Canada, and combining genetic resistance with fungicide application is a cost effective approach to control this disease. However, there is limited variation for genetic resistance to FHB in elite Canadian durum cultivars. To explore and identify useful genetic FHB resistance variation for the improvement of Canadian durum wheat, we assembled an association mapping (AM) panel of diverse durum germplasms and performed genome wide association analysis (GWAS). Thirty-one quantitative trait loci (QTL) across all 14 chromosomes were significantly associated with FHB resistance. On 3BS, a stable QTL with a larger effect for resistance was located close to the centromere of 3BS. Three haplotypes of Fhb1 QTL were identified, with an emmer wheat haplotype contributing to disease susceptibility. The large number of QTL identified here can provide a rich resource to improve FHB resistance in commercially grown durum wheat. Among the 31 QTL most were associated with plant height and/or flower time. QTL 1A.1, 1A.2, 3B.2, 5A.1, 6A.1, 7A.3 were associated with FHB resistance and not associated or only weakly associated with flowering time nor plant height. These QTL have features that would make them good targets for FHB resistance breeding.

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Registration of Near-Isogenic Winter Wheat Germplasm Contrasting in Fhb1 for Fusarium Head Blight Resistance

Journal of Plant Registrations ◽

10.3198/jpr2013.05.0021crgs ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 106-108 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Amy Bernardo ◽

Guihua Bai ◽

Jianbin Yu ◽

Fred Kolb ◽

William Bockus ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Winter Wheat ◽

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Fusarium Head Blight Resistance ◽

Blight Resistance ◽

Head Blight ◽

Wheat Germplasm

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Masked mycotoxins: does breeding for enhanced Fusarium head blight resistance result in more deoxynivalenol-3-glucoside in new wheat varieties?

World Mycotoxin Journal ◽

10.3920/wmj2015.2029 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 9 (5) ◽

pp. 741-754 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

M. Lemmens ◽

B. Steiner ◽

M. Sulyok ◽

P. Nicholson ◽

A. Mesterhazy ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Animal Health ◽

Fusarium Head Blight Resistance ◽

Resistance Breeding ◽

Head Blight ◽

Concentration Data ◽

Relative Level ◽

Wheat Varieties ◽

Fhb Resistance ◽

Highly Correlated

From economic and environmental points of view, enhancing resistance to Fusarium head blight (FHB) in wheat is regarded as the best option to reduce fungal colonisation and the concomitant mycotoxin contamination. This review focuses on the effect of FHB resistance on deoxynivalenol (DON) and the masked metabolite deoxynivalenol-3-glucoside (DON-3-glucoside) in wheat. Based on published information complemented with our own results we draw the following conclusions: (1) All investigated wheat cultivars can convert DON to DON-3-glucoside. Hence, detoxification of DON to DON-3-glucoside is not a new trait introduced by recent resistance breeding against FHB. (2) The amount of DON-3-glucoside relative to DON contamination can be substantial (up to 35%) and is among other things dependent on genetic and environmental factors. (3) Correlation analyses showed a highly significant relationship between the amount of FHB symptoms and DON contamination: breeding for FHB resistance reduces DON contamination. (4) DON contamination data are highly correlated with DON-3-glucoside concentration data: in other words, reduction of DON content through resistance breeding results in a concomitant reduction in DON-3-glucoside content. (5) The DON-3-glucoside/DON ratio increases with decreasing DON contamination: the most resistant lines with the lowest DON contamination show the highest relative level of DON-3-glucoside to DON. In summary, introgressing FHB resistance reduces both DON and DON-3-glucoside levels in the grain, but the reduction is lower for the masked toxin. DON-3-glucoside can represent a possible hazard to human and animal health, especially in wheat samples contaminated with DON close to permitted limits.

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