Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana-141004
National Symposium on “Plant Pathology in the Changing Global Scenario” held at National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi on February 27–28, 2009
Breeding for resistance against rusts and high yielding varieties is an important objective of wheat breeding program in the country. It is also widely recognized that in the absence of diverse genetic input, the breeding approach may not prove fruitful. The genetic variability for resistance to rusts within wheat needs to be supplemented with identification and mobilization of new genes from untrapped germplasm collection. So there is a need to identify suitable parental genotypes to be involved in the hybridization program. Keeping this in view, more than 1000 entries of wheat germplasm received from National Bureau of Pant Genetic Resources, New Delhi were evaluated for resistance to rusts (stripe rust and leaf rust) during 2006–07 and 2007–08 by creating artificial epiphytotic conditions. The genetic diversity of these lines was also studied. It was observed that the resistance to stripe and leaf rust was inferred in 79 entries. Three entries namely, IC 416287, IC 427157 and IC 427162 were good in yield, grain weight and grain weight/spike in addition to resistance for stripe and leaf rust. These lines can be used as parental lines/base material for developing disease resistant genotypes in the wheat improvement program.
