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ARS Home » Plains Area » Fargo, North Dakota » Edward T. Schafer Agricultural Research Center » Cereal Crops Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #317264
Title: Development of genetic and genomic resources for target breeding in durum wheat

Author
item Xu, Steven
item Chao, Shiaoman
item Faris, Justin
item Friesen, Timothy
item LIU, ZHAOHUI - North Dakota State University
item Jin, Yue
item Rouse, Matthew
item ELIAS, ELIAS - North Dakota State University

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/5/2015
Publication Date: 5/29/2015
Citation: Xu, S.S., Chao, S., Faris, J.D., Friesen, T.L., Liu, Z., Jin, Y., Rouse, M.N., Elias, E.M. 2015. Development of genetic and genomic resources for target breeding in durum wheat [abstract]. From Seed to Pasta & Beyond: A Sustainable Durum Wheat Chain for Food Security and Healthy Lives, May 31-June 3, 2015, Bologna Italy.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Durum wheat (Triticum durum) is an important commodity crop in the Northern Great Plains where 32% and 62% of durum wheat acreage in the United States in 2014 was planted in Montana and North Dakota, respectively. In recent years, durum wheat production in North Dakota has suffered serious losses from outbreaks of Fusarium head blight (FHB), and it has also been threatened by other fungal diseases such as tan spot, Septoria nodorum blotch (SNB), and stem rust. In addition, wheat stem sawfly is a serious problem for durum production in Montana and western North Dakota. To assist the durum breeding programs in developing new durum cultivars with resistance to these diseases, we have extensively evaluated tetraploid wheat collections maintained at the USDA National Small Grains Collection and identified a number of durum and other tetraploid wheat (T. carthlicum, T. dicoccum, T. dicoccoides, and T. turgidum) accessions with high levels of resistance to FHB, tan spot, SNB, and stem rust. Based on the evaluation results, we assembled two association mapping panels and developed 10 mapping populations comprised of over 2,000 doubled haploids or recombinant inbred lines. By using these panels and populations, we identified a number of unique genes or QTLs and their linked markers for resistance to FHB, tan spot, SNB, and stem rust though association and linkage analysis. Several genes or QTLs for resistance to FHB and stem rust have been transferred into the durum cultivars. For developing elite durum germplasm for resistance to sawfly, we have transferred a gene controlling super-solid stem from a durum landrace (Golden Ball) into six durum cultivars recently developed in North Dakota. The elite durum germplasm lines and molecular markers developed from this study are currently being used to develop new durum cultivars with resistance to FHB, stem rust, and sawfly.