Agropyron cristatum (L.) Gaertn. (2n = 28, PPPP), a relative of wheat, carries desirable genes associated with high yield, disease resistance, and stress resistance, which is an important resource for wheat genetic improvement. The long arm of A. cristatum chromosome 2P carries favorable genes conferring powdery mildew and leaf rust resistance, and two wheat-A. cristatum 2P translocation lines, 2PT3 and 2PT5, with a large segment of 2P chromatin were obtained. In this study, 2PT3 and 2PT5 translocation lines with powdery mildew and leaf rust resistance genes were used to induce translocations of different chromosomal sizes via ionizing radiation. According to cytological characterization, 10 of those plants were new wheat-A. cristatum 2P small-chromosome segment translocation lines with reduced 2P chromatin, and 6 plants represented introgression lines without visible 2P chromosomal fragments. Moreover, four lines were resistant to both powdery mildew and leaf rust, while two lines were resistant only to leaf rust.
Keywords: 2P translocation; Agropyron cristatum; Leaf rust resistance; Powdery mildew resistance; Wheat.
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