Breeding for Resistance

Control important crop diseases and pests

Must have genetic variability

Consider both genetic variability in the plant

and in the pest

Sources:
Fehr, ch. 21
Slusarenko, Fraser, and van Loon, 2000
 Types of Genetic Resistance

• Qualitative Resistance
• Distinct classes of resistance and susceptible plants
• Controlled by one or a few genes
• Also called “Vertical” resistance

• Quantitative Resistance
• Continuous variation among genotypes
• Many loci
• Also called “Horizontal” resistance
 Qualitative Resistance

 Controlled by major genes (one or two)

 Genes are readily transferred from one

genotype to another

 Presence of genes can be determined

by exposing plants to particular races
 Qualitative Resistance

Advantages
Easier screenings

Easier transfer of genes “all or nothing”

Disadvantages
Vulnerability to new races

Continuous use of particular cultivar may

lead to development of new race or shift in
pest population (shift from race 1 to race 2)
 Qualitative Resistance

Examples:
Leaf Rust Resistance in Wheat
 Quantitative Resistance

Controlled by many genes each with minor

effects

Advantages
 Can control a broad range of races due to the
fact that many loci are involved

Disadvantages
 Difficult to transfer resistance from one genotype to
another
 Individual genes harder to identify
 Quantitative Resistance

Examples:
Fusarium Head Blight in Wheat
 Sources of Resistance
Primary Gene Pool
Other breeding programs
Landraces
Germplasm collections (GRIN)

Wild Relatives
Tomato: Lycopersicon genus
Wheat: Agropyron genus
Aegilops tauschii, Triticum monococum

Mutant Transformations: powdery mildew in Barley

 Vertical vs Horizontal Resistance
Resistance

Susceptibility

1 2 3 4 5 6
Races
Vertical Resistance to Races 2, 5, and 6
 Vertical vs Horizontal Resistance
Resistance

Susceptibility

1 2 3 4 5 6
Races

Horizontal Resistance to all Races

Hypersensitive Response
Stem Rust of Wheat

Programmed cell death

A lot of black boxes

Pathogen recognition,
signaling proteins,
transcription factors,
 Gene-for-Gene Hypothesis

Proposed by Flor (1956)-study on flax rust

“For each resistance gene in the plant

there is a gene in the pathogen that
determines if the pathogen will be able to
injure the plant.”
Gene combinations and Disease Reaction
Types in the Gene for Gene concept

Virulence or R (resistant, R
avirulence dominant) (susceptible,
genes in recessive)
pathogen
A dominant AR (-) Ar (+)

a recessive aR (+) Ar (+)

 Complementary Interaction of Two Host Genes
For Resistance and the Corresponding Two
Pathogen Genes for Virulence

Resistance R or susceptibility r
genes in the plant
R1R2 R1r2 r1R2 r1r2

A1A2 - - - +
Virulence
a or A1a2 - - + +
Avirulence
A genes a1A2 - + - +
In the
pathogen
a1a2 + + + +
 Races of Pests

 Genetic variability within the pathogen

population

 Different isolates cause different responses

among host genotypes

 Example: Soybean Cyst Nematode Races

 Minimizing Changes in Races

 Alternation of Resistant and Susceptible

Cultivars (soybean cyst nematode)

 Mixtures of Resistant and Susceptible

Genotypes

 Prevention of New Races

 Resistance vs Tolerance

Resistance: no establishment of the

pathogen in/on the host, or a limited
establishment

Tolerance: the host develops,

continues to grow, and produces well
despite the pathogen’s presence
Breeding for Specific Resistance
 Individual Major Genes

 Multilines

 Pyramiding
 Breeding for Specific Resistance
Individual Major Genes

 Breed cultivars with major genes that

control the prevalent pest races
 Select progeny from a segregating
population or …
 Transfer major genes from other sources
 Example: Black Shank Tobacco Varieties

 Advantages and Disadvantages

 Breeding for Specific Resistance
Multilines

 Develop many individual lines each with

individual major resistance genes and then …
 Mix the seed of these lines together to get …
 Protection against a broad spectrum of races
 Example: wheat cultivar Miramer 63

 Advantages and Disadvantages

Breeding for Specific Resistance
Pyramiding

 Put all known major genes into one line

 Advantages and Disadvantages

 Example: Leaf Rust in Wheat

Comparative structural analysis of the Lr10 homologous regions from
diploid wheat, rice 5 (japonica), indica rice and rice 1 (japonica).

Lr10
 QTL and Resistance

 Quantitative Trait Loci

 Identify QTL that control variation in

resistance observed in genotypes

 Use markers to screen genotypes (throw out

the susceptibles)

 Applications in Marker Assisted Selection

(MAS)
 QTL and Resistance

Wheat
chromosome 1A

Leaf rust gene

Source:
‘Lr10’
J.C. Nelson et al.
1997 Crop
Science 37:1928-
1935
 QTL for Fusarium Head Blight Resistance in
Wheat

Ning 7840/Clark population

11 AFLP markers associated with resistance
1 marker explained 53% of the variation
Bai, Kolb, Shaner, and Domier. Phytopathology 89:343-348.

Sumai 3/Stoa population -- used RFLP markers

5 genomic regions were associated with
resistance (3 from Sumai 3, 2 from Stoa)
Waldron, Moreno-Sevilla, Anderson, Stack, Frohberg. Crop Sci 39:805-811.
 Example of Quantitative Genetics

 3 F2:3 populations, 40 families, 3 reps,

13 individual observations per rep
 Separated variance into two parts


2
Among families G

 W   WG   WE
2 2 2
Within families

 Narrow sense heritabilities were

estimated
ANOVA

Source df MS EMS

W  39G
2 2
Among Families 39 5393.49


2
Within Families 1496 965.72
W
 Example from Population 2
 113.53    
2 2 2 1 2
G G A 4 D

  965.72
2
W

  835.70
2
WE Estimate from 2555

  A  D
2 1 2 1 2
 130.02
2
WG W G 2 2

  64.69
2
A

 195.35
2
D
Genetic Parameters and h2 of FHB Severity

Pop 1 Pop 2 Pop 3


2
A
73.77 64.69 118.17


2
D
89.43 195.35 0.00
2
h ind 0.12 0.06 0.12

h 2(NS) F 3 x 0.64 0.39 0.69

G 12.14 8.88 15.89