Skip to main content
ARS Home » Plains Area » Lincoln, Nebraska » Wheat, Sorghum and Forage Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #370125
Research Project: Genetic Improvement of Sorghum for Bioenergy, Feed, and Food Uses

Location: Wheat, Sorghum and Forage Research

Title: Testing transgenic spring wheat and barley lines for reaction to fusarium head blight: 2019 field nursery report

Author
item DILL-MACKY, RUTH - University Of Minnesota
item CURLAND, REBECCA - University Of Minnesota
item ZARGARAN, BEHESHTEH - University Of Minnesota
item MUEHLBAUER, GARY - University Of Minnesota
item BETHKE, GERIK - University Of Minnesota
item Funnell-Harris, Deanna
item SHAH, JYOTI - University Of North Texas
item MCLAUGHLIN, JOHN - Rutgers University
item TUMER, NILGEN - Rutgers University

Submitted to: National Fusarium Head Blight Forum
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/8/2019
Publication Date: 12/8/2019
Citation: Dill-Macky, R., Curland, R. D., Beheshteh, Z., Muehlbauer, G. J., Bethke, G., Funnell-Harris, D., Shah, J., McLaughlin, J. and Tumer, N. 2019. Testing transgenic spring wheat and barley lines for reaction to Fusarium head blight: 2019 field nursery report. In: Canty, S., A. Hoffstetter, B. Wiermer and R. Dill-Macky (Eds.), Proceedings of the 2019 National Fusarium Head Blight Forum (p. 46). East Lansing, MI/Lexington, KY: U.S. Wheat & Barley Scab Initiative.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The 2019 field screening nursery consisted of 67 wheat and 8 barley entries evaluated in adjacent experiments. Entries within each experiment were arranged in a randomized complete block design with four replications in a field located at UMore Park, Rosemount MN. Trial entries and untransformed parental controls* were submitted by the University of Minnesota (20 wheat lines + Linkert* and Rollag* and 8 barley lines + Rasmusson*), Rutgers University (4 wheat lines + RB07*), University of North Texas (9 wheat lines + Bobwhite*) and the USDA-ARS (8 wheat lines + CB037*). Lines with known reactions to Fusarium head blight (FHB) were also included as checks. The wheat checks included were the moderately resistant cultivars Alsen, Linkert, Rollag, and Sumai 3 and the susceptible cultivar Wheaton. The barley checks were the moderately resistant cultivar Quest and the susceptible cultivar Stander. Individual plots were 2.43 m long single rows. The trial was planted on May 17, 2019. All plots were inoculated twice. The first inoculations were applied between July 1 and 10 to coincide with anthesis for wheat and head emergence for barley. The second inoculation was applied three days after the initial inoculation (d.a.i.) for each plot with the last inoculations conducted on July 15. The inoculum was a composite of 26 F. graminearum isolates, applied at a concentration of 100,000 macroconidia.ml-1 with Tween 20 (polysorbate) added at 2.5 ml.L-1 as a wetting agent. The inoculum was applied using a CO2-powered backpack sprayer fitted with a SS8003 TeeJet spray nozzle with an output of 10 ml.sec-1 at a working pressure of 275 kPa. Mist-irrigation was applied from the first inoculation on June 29 through July 22 to facilitate FHB development. FHB incidence and severity were assessed visually 17-19 d.a.i. on 20 arbitrarily selected heads per plot. FHB incidence was determined by the percentage of spikes with visually symptomatic spikelets of the 20 heads observed. FHB severity was determined as the percentage symptomatic spikelets of the total of all spikelets observed. Plots were hand harvested at maturity; between August 2 and 23, 2019. Approximately forty heads where harvested from each plot, threshed and the seed cleaned by hand. The wheat grain was used to determine the percentage of visually scabby kernels (VSK) and then all samples (wheat and barley) were ground and submitted for deoxynivalenol (DON) analysis. Mean FHB severities for the wheat untransformed parental and/or checks Alsen, Bobwhite, CB037, Linkert, RB07, Rollag, and Sumai 3 were 41%, 61%, 52%, 35%, 39%, 37%, and 34%, respectively. The mean FHB severity for the susceptible wheat check Wheaton was 53%. The mean FHB severity for the untransformed parent barley check Rasmusson was 43% while the barley checks Quest and Stander had a mean FHB severities of 23% and 62%, respectively. The FHB severity data indicated that resistance was improved in some transformed lines compared to the untransformed checks. The DON data are not yet available, although we expect this data will be included in the poster presented at the forum.