Pyramiding adult-plant powdery mildew resistance QTLs in bread wheat

Abstract

Powdery mildew is an important wheat disease worldwide. Pyramiding of minor resistance genes can be an effective approach for developing durable resistance to the disease. Twenty one lines carrying two-five resistance genes developed from two Chinese wheat cultivars Bainong 64 and Lumai 21, had significant effects on response to powdery mildew disease. Experienced breeders with a good knowledge of minor genes can achieve durable resisatnce by phenotypic selection, and selection by molecular markers will still require uniform field testing for powdery mildew and disease phenotype to validate the resistance. These results provided very useful information for pyramiding durable minor genes in wheat breeding programs.