Thinopyrum ponticum chromatin-integrated wheat genome shows salt-tolerance at germination stage

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 16; no. 3; pp. 4512 - 4517
• Main Authors: Yuan, Wen-Ye, Tomita, Motonori
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 26.02.2015; MDPI
• Subjects: Brief Report; Chromatin; Chromatin - genetics; dominant gene block; Genome, Plant - genetics; Genomes; genomic in situ hybridization (GISH); Germination; Germination - drug effects; Germination - genetics; In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; Salt; salt tolerance; Salt-Tolerance - genetics; Sodium Chloride - pharmacology; Thinopyrum ponticum; translocation; Triticum - drug effects; Triticum - genetics; Triticum aestivum; Wheat
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms16034512

A wild wheatgrass, Thinopyrum ponticum (2n = 10x = 70), which exhibits substantially higher levels of salt tolerance than cultivated wheat, was employed to transfer its salt tolerance to common wheat by means of wide hybridization. A highly salt-tolerant wheat line S148 (2n = 42) was obtained from the BC3F2 progenies between Triticum aestivum (2n = 42) and Th. ponticum. In the cross of S148 × salt-sensitive wheat variety Chinese Spring, the BC4F2 seeds at germination stage segregated into a ratio of 3 salt tolerant to 1 salt sensitive, indicating that the salt tolerance was conferred by a dominant gene block. Genomic in situ hybridization analysis revealed that S148 had a single pair of Th. ponticum-T. aestivum translocated chromosomes bearing the salt-tolerance. This is an initial step of molecular breeding for salt-tolerant wheat.