AAC Whitehead hard white spring wheat

AAC Whitehead, an awned hard white spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivar, combines high grain yield and good agronomic characteristics with excellent disease resistance. Based on 34 station-years of registration trial data from 2017 to 2019, AAC Whitehead had grain yield significantly higher than all of the check cultivars. AAC Whitehead had maturity similar to the checks, low lodging scores, and significantly shorter plant height than Snowstar and Whitehawk. AAC Whitehead had significantly lower test weight and higher kernel mass than than all the check cultivars. AAC Whitehead expressed resistance to the prevalent races of leaf, stripe and stem rust, and common bunt; and moderate resistance to Fusarium head blight (FHB). It also expressed tolerance to the orange wheat blossom midge. AAC Whitehead expresses quality attributes within the range of the check cultivars and is eligible for grades of Canada Western Hard White Spring wheat.

AAC Awesome special purpose spring wheat

AAC Awesome is a high yielding spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivar eligible for the Canada Western Special Purpose (CWSP) wheat class. Based on 29 site-years of testing over 3 years in the General Purpose Wheat Registration trial (2013–2015), AAC Awesome yielded 14% more grain than AC Andrew, and surpassed yields of Sadash, 5702PR, and Pasteur by 12%, 22%, and 9%, respectively. AAC Awesome had similar maturity, was slightly taller, had higher test weight and larger kernels as compared to AC Andrew. AAC Awesome had excellent levels of resistance to the prevalent races of leaf, stem and stripe rust. It expressed an intermediate level of resistance to Fusarium head blight (FHB), common bunt and loose smut. It also expressed tolerance to the orange wheat blossom midge. AAC Awesome is eligible for grades of Canada Western Special Purpose Wheat class.

Characteristics of the Infection of Tilletia laevis Kühn (syn. Tilletia foetida (Wallr.) Liro.) in Compatible Wheat

<i>Tilletia laevis</i> Kühn (syn. <i>Tilletia foetida</i> (Wallr.) Liro.) causes wheat common bunt, which is one of the most devastating plant diseases in the world. Common bunt can result in a reduction of 80% or even a total loss of wheat production. In this study, the characteristics of <i>T. laevis</i> infection in compatible wheat plants were defined based on the combination of scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and laser scanning confocal microscopy. We found <i>T. laevis</i> could lead to the abnormal growth of wheat tissues and cells, such as leakage of chloroplasts, deformities, disordered arrangements of mesophyll cells and also thickening of the cell wall of mesophyll cells in leaf tissue. What’s more, <i>T. laevis</i> teliospores were found in the roots, stems, flag leaves, and glumes of infected wheat plants instead of just in the ovaries, as previously reported. The abnormal characteristics caused by <i>T. laevis</i> may be used for early detection of this pathogen instead of molecular markers in addition to providing theoretical insights into <i>T. laevis</i> and wheat interactions for breeding of common bunt resistance.

AAC Redberry Hard Red Spring Wheat

AAC Redberry hard red spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) has a grain yield significantly higher than the check cultivars Katepwa, and Lillian and is similar to Carberry. AAC Redberry matures in a similar number of days as Katewpa and Lillian, and is significantly earlier maturing than Carberry. AAC Redberry has an awned spike, and a low lodging score indicative of strong straw that is significantly lower than Katepwa and Lillian but significantly higher than Carberry. Plant stature is taller than Carberry, but shorter than Lillian and Katepwa. AAC Redberry expressed resistance to prevalent races of leaf rust, stem rust, yellow rust, loose smut, moderate resistance to common bunt and intermediate resistance to Fusarium head blight. AAC Redberry has quality attributes within the range of the check cultivars and is eligible for grades of Canada Western Red Spring wheat.

Immunological characteristics of winter wheat varieties to the main pathogens in the right-bank Forest Steppe

Aim. To determine the resistance of winter wheat varieties to the main pathogens, to establish their stability and plasticity, to identify perspective sources of resistance. Methods. Laboratory – production of inoculum of pathogens; field – artificial inoculation,, assessment of variety stability; statistical calculation of disease severity, indicators of stability and plasticity. Results. In 2015–2017, the resistance of 43 varieties of winter wheat to the main pathogens of leaf diseases, common bunt and root rots was assessed. Resistance to powdery mildew was found in 32 varieties, tan spot – in 2, root rot – in 3, hard smut – in 2 varieties. Six varieties of winter wheat were characterized by group resistance. Varieties that combine high plasticity and stability of the sign of disease resistance have been identified. Conclusions. Valuable sources of resistance are winter wheat varieties with group resistance to common bunt and powdery mildew – Tradytsiia Odeska and Kurs; powdery mildew and tan spot – Nasnaga and Zolotonozhka; powdery mildew and root rot – Nezabudka and Shchedrist kyivska.Keywords: resistance, winter wheat, diseases, plasticity, stability.

Sustainable Wheat Production and Food Security of Domestic Wheat in Tajikistan: Implications of Seed Health and Protein Quality

Staple crop yield, quality and sustainable production are critical for domestic food security in developing countries. In Tajikistan, both seed-borne diseases and protein quality impair the yield and the quality of the major staple crop, wheat. Here, we used a detailed two-year survey of fields on 21 wheat-producing farms in Tajikistan, combined with lab analyses on seed health and protein quality, to investigate the presence of seed-borne diseases and bread-making quality in Tajik wheat. Seed samples were collected for the analysis of: (i) the presence of common bunt (Tilletia spp.) using the centrifuge wash test, (ii) the major pathogenic fungi on/in the seed using the agar plate test and (iii) the protein amount and size distribution using size-exclusion high-performance liquid chromatography (SE-HPLC). Field occurrence of common bunt and loose smut was generally low (3 farms in year one (14%) showed common bunt occurrence), but the presence of fungi was observed microscopically on most seed samples (on seeds from 19 out of 21 farms = 91%). Tilletia laevis was the dominant agent in common bunt (present in 19 farms compared to T. tritici present in 6 farms). Altogether, 18 different fungi were identified from seed samples by microscopy. Protein composition, measured with high-performance liquid chromatography as protein amount and size distribution (known to correlate with bread-making quality), differed significantly between samples from different farms and years, although the farm type and land elevation of the farm were not the determinants of the protein composition. The presence of certain fungi on the seed correlated significantly with the protein quality and could then have an impact on the bread-making quality of the Tajik wheat. The presence of seed-borne diseases, a low protein content and weak gluten were the characteristics of the majority of the grain samples, mostly irrespective of farm type and farmer’s knowledge. For sustainable development of the Tajik farming systems, and to strengthen the food security of the country, the knowledge of Tajik farmers needs to be increased independently of farm type; in general, plant breeding is required and certified seeds need to be made available throughout the country.

SEARCHING FOR RESISTANCE SOURCES TO WHEAT COMMON BUNT (Tilletia caries (DC.)

Common bunt (Tilletia caries (DC.) the disease occurs in areas where autumn wheat is grown. In our country, most of the zoned wheat varieties are infected with this disease. Therefore, foreign germoplasm should look for sources of strength. In our research in the field of artificial epizootic environment, the Hungarian 21 varieties of soft wheat Tilletia caries (DC.) of the pathogen was made the phytopathological and genetic-selection analysis. The study revealed that 15 wheat varieties are resistant to diseases, of which 8 wheat varieties were highly resistant to diseases (IT-0). They are; Ati, Békés, Berény, Csillag, Futár, Pilis, Szala and Rege. We say 7 varieties that are resistant to common bunt (IT-1), they are Kalász, Mentor, Göncöl, Fény, Garaboly, Szemes and Vitorlás. The indicator of the biomass index (NDVI) was determined at the stages of vegetative development of plants in ears, flowering phase and milky stage. The average value of the biomass index is higher than 0.70, with a high score of 9 varieties that have Ati, Mentor, Hajnal, Göncöl, Tisza, Csillag, Futár, Garaboly and Szala. As a result of the analysis of structural characteristics, the varieties Körös, Mentor, Tisza, Szala, Szemes and Rege showed a high index for all characteristics. As a result, disease-resistant and high-performance varieties can be presented as common bunt resistant specimens in immune selection.

Effects of Tilletia foetida on Microbial Communities in the Rhizosphere Soil of Wheat Seeds Coated with Different Concentrations of Jianzhuang

Tilletia foetida (syn. T. laevis) leads to wheat common bunt, a worldwide disease that can lead to 80% yield loss and even total loss of production, together with degrading the quality of grains and flour by producing a rotten fish smell. To explore the potential microbial community that may contribute to the control of soil- and seed-borne pathogens, in this study, we analyzed the effects of the plant pathogenic fungus T. foetida on rhizosphere soil microorganisms in wheat seeds coated with different concentrations of a fungicide (Jianzhuang) used to control the disease. To analyze the bacterial and fungal abundance in T. foetida-infected and mock-infected plants, the microorganisms were sequenced using high-throughput HiSeq 2500 gene sequencing. The results showed that bacterial communities, including Verrucomicrobia, Patescibacteria, Armatimonadetes, Nitrospirae, Fibrobacteres, Chlamydiae, and Hydrogenedentes, and fungal communities, including Basidiomycota and Ciliophora, were more prevalent in the mock group than in the T. foetida-infected group, which may contribute to the control of wheat common bunt. Moreover, cluster and PCoA analysis revealed that replicates of the same samples were clustered together, and these results were also found in the distance index within-group analysis for bacterial and fungal communities in the T. foetida-infected and mock groups.