Wheat genetic diversity trends during domestication and breeding

Reif, J C and Zhang, P and Dreisigacker, S and Warburton, M L and Ginkel, M van and Hoisington, D A and Bohn, M and Melchinger, A E (2005) Wheat genetic diversity trends during domestication and breeding. TAG Theoretical and Applied Genetics, 110 (5). pp. 859-864. ISSN 1432-2242

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Abstract

It has been claimed that plant breeding reduces genetic diversity in elite germplasm which could seriously jeopardize the continued ability to improve crops. The main objective of this study was to examine the loss of genetic diversity in spring bread wheat during (1) its domestication, (2) the change from traditional landrace cultivars (LCs) to modern breeding varieties, and (3) 50 years of international breeding. We studied 253 CIMMYT or CIMMYT-related modern wheat cultivars, LCs, and Triticum tauschii accessions, the D-genome donor of wheat, with 90 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers dispersed across the wheat genome. A loss of genetic diversity was observed from T. tauschii to the LCs, and from the LCs to the elite breeding germplasm. Wheats genetic diversity was narrowed from 1950 to 1989, but was enhanced from 1990 to 1997. Our results indicate that breeders averted the narrowing of the wheat germplasm base and subsequently increased the genetic diversity through the introgression of novel materials. The LCs and T. tauschii contain numerous unique alleles that were absent in modern spring bread wheat cultivars. Consequently, both the LCs and T. tauschii represent useful sources for broadening the genetic base of elite wheat breeding germplasm.

Item Type:	Article
Divisions:	UNSPECIFIED
CRP:	UNSPECIFIED
Subjects:	Others > Genetics and Genomics Others > Wheat
Depositing User:	Mr Sanat Kumar Behera
Date Deposited:	16 Mar 2012 06:36
Last Modified:	16 Mar 2012 06:36
URI:	http://oar.icrisat.org/id/eprint/5741
Official URL:	http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00122-004-1881-8
Projects:	UNSPECIFIED
Funders:	Vater & Sohn Eiselen-Stiftung, German Federal Ministry of Economic Co-operation and Development
Acknowledgement:	D. A. Hoisington is presently with ICRISAT (Patancheru)
Links:	Organisation

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