Interactive effects of multiple vernalization (Vrn-1)- and photoperiod (Ppd-1)-related genes on the growth habit of bread wheat and their association with heading and flowering time

Shulin Chen,Kehui Zhan,Genwang Deng,Haixia Xu,Xiyong Cheng,Long Chen,Junsen Wang

doi:10.1186/s12870-018-1587-8

Abstract

BackgroundThe precise identification of Winterness/Springness (growth habit) for bread wheat, which is determined by genes involved in vernalization and photoperiod, will contribute to the effective utilization of bread wheat varieties. Here, 198 varieties from the Yellow and Huai wheat production region (YHW) in China were collected to identify their vernalization (Vrn-1) and photoperiod (Ppd-1) gene composition via a series of functional markers and their association with vernalization and photoperiod requirements at three locations during two years of experiments. The growth habits were measured during the spring sowing season.ResultsThe results showed that the semi-winter varieties (grades1–4) were most prevalent in the population. The relative effects of single Vrn alleles on the growth period, such as heading date (HD) and/or flowering date (FD), were as follows: Vrn-B1b > Vrn-B1a > Vrn-D1b > Vrn-D1a > vrn-D1 = vrn-B1. The interactive effects of Vrn-B1 and Vrn-D1 on HD and FD were identical to those of Vrn-B1b. Approximately 35.3% of the cultivars carried Ppd-B1a (photoperiod-insensitive) and exhibited the earliest HD and FD. The Ppd-D1a-insensitive allele (Hapl II) was carried by just 0.5% of the varieties; however, the other two sensitive alleles were present at a higher frequency, and their effects were slightly weaker than those of Ppd-B1a. In addition, strong interactive effects between Ppd-B1 and Ppd-D1 were detected. In terms of mean values among various genotypes, the effects followed the order of Vrn-1 > Ppd-1.ConclusionsAccording to the results of ANOVA and least significant range (LSR) tests, we can conclude that Vrn-1 rather than Ppd-1 played a major role in controlling vernalization and photoperiod responses in this region. This research will be helpful for precisely characterizing and evaluating the HD, FD and even growth habit of varieties in the YHW at molecular levels.

Highlights

The precise identification of Winterness/Springness for bread wheat, which is determined by genes involved in vernalization and photoperiod, will contribute to the effective utilization of bread wheat varieties
Semi-winter varieties were predominant in the Yellow and Huai wheat production region (YHW) according to the field spring sowing method
With respect to their effects, we found that accessions with the vrn-B1 + vrn-D1 genotype presented the latest heading date (HD) and flowering date (FD) (178.9 d), while varieties that harboured the Vrn-B1b + vrn-D1

Summary

Introduction

The precise identification of Winterness/Springness (growth habit) for bread wheat, which is determined by genes involved in vernalization and photoperiod, will contribute to the effective utilization of bread wheat varieties. The characterization of the growth habits of winter wheat in China, especially in the Yellow and Huai wheat production region, which is the largest winter wheat production region, relied on field evaluations or in-house artificial identification [3, 4]. These identification procedures are tedious and costly, and the practicality of field evaluation and in-house artificial identification methods is limited. Molecular identification methods are relatively credible, but more novel types of vernalization alleles must be surveyed, and their interactive effects among each other remain unclear

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Conclusion