Webinar: Using Applied Quantitative Genetics to Uncover the Potential of Diversity-Enriched Wheat

Outline

For over a decade NIAB has been creating ‘diversity-enriched’ wheat with the aim of targeting the diversity bottleneck in modern cultivars. One route to diversity is Synthetic Hexaploid Wheat (SHW), formed through resynthesizing the hybridisation events that formed modern wheat. Via backcrossing SHW into adapted elite cultivars, we have formed several large, diverse, and powerful Nested Association Mapping (NAM) populations which exploit untapped D genome diversity. Due to a desirable combination of competitive grain yield and high genetic diversity, UK based wheat breeders have actively incorporated this novel material into their own pre-breeding programs.  

These resources offer powerful forward genetic tools with high allele richness for discovering novel genes and haplotypes from ancestral wheat backgrounds. We have explored these panels by growing large scale field trials and genotyping on available wheat SNP arrays. Linked to important traits such as disease resistance, genes have been mapped that are under exploited in UK elite wheat backgrounds. These germplasm resources are very large, and field assessment can be resource intensive. We are investigating methods of genomic prediction that could reduce the need to phenotype at such large scale, while still identify promising genotypes that can be used for breeding improve varieties. 

References

• Wright, T.I.C., Horsnell, R., Love, B. et al. A new winter wheat genetic resource harbors untapped diversity from synthetic hexaploid wheat. Theor Appl Genet 137, 73 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00122-024-04577-1
• Horsnell, R., Leigh, F. J., Wright, T. I. C., Burridge, A. J., Ligeza, A., Przewieslik-Allen, A. M., Howell, P., Uauy, C., Edwards, K. J., & Bentley, A. R. (2024). A wheat chromosome segment substitution line series supports characterization and use of progenitor genetic variation. The Plant Genome, 17, e20288. https://doi.org/10.1002/tpg2.20288
• Leigh, F.J., Wright, T.I.C., Horsnell, R.A. et al. Progenitor species hold untapped diversity for potential climate-responsive traits for use in wheat breeding and crop improvement. Heredity 128, 291–303 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41437-022-00527-z  

Recording