EVALUATION OF SCAB RESISTANCE QUANTITATIVE TRAIT LOCI (QTL) EFFECTS ON WHEAT

Abstract

Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) of wheat (<italic>Triticum aestivum</italic>), caused by <italic>Fusarium graminearum</italic>, is a disease that periodically strikes the mid-Atlantic region of the USA. Breeding for resistant wheat cultivar is an effective method of disease control. McCormick, a genotype adapted to the mid-Atlantic region, was used in a backcross program with the Chinese cultivar Ning7840. Eight Near-Isogenic Lines (NIL) were developed by marker-assisted backcrossing. Three FHB resistance QTL on chromosomes 3BS, 2DL, and 5A were introgressed from non-adapted Ning7840 into the elite soft red winter wheat McCormick. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of QTL singly and in combination on FHB resistance. The 3BS+2DL NIL showed higher resistance and lower deoxynivalenol content than other NIL in both field and greenhouse studies. This suggests that the 3BS+2DL NIL can be used in the mid-Atlantic region to breed for improved FHB resistance.