Molecular and functional characterization of wheat near‐isogenic line ‘i:S29Ra’ having intensive anthocyanin pigmentation of the coleoptile, culm, leaves and auricles

Abstract

AbstractNear‐isogenic line of the common spring wheat cultivar ‘Saratovskaya 29’, designated ‘i:S29Ra’, has been earlier developed during eight backcrosses and selection for the red auricle colour inherited from donor ‘Ulyanovka’. In this study, the line ‘i:S29Ra’ was characterized using 274 molecular and a number of morphological markers. It was found that the donor's genome material in ‘i:S29Ra’ is presented by a fragment on chromosome 7D flanked by the microsatellite loci Xgwm0044 and Xgwm1481 and carrying cluster of the genes Rc‐D1 (red coleoptile), Pc‐D1 (purple culm), Pls‐D1 (purple leaf sheaths), Plb‐D1 (purple leaf blades) and Ra‐D1 (red auricles), conferring intensive anthocyanin pigmentation of the coleoptile, culm, leaf sheaths, leaf blades and auricles, respectively. The Ra‐D1 is a novel locus described in wheat. The relative anthocyanin contents (OD530) in different parts of wheat plant and expression level of the anthocyanin biosynthesis (AB) structural genes in auricles were compared between ‘i:S29Ra’ and ‘S29’. In auricles of ‘i:S29Ra’, the OD530 (optical density) value was twice higher and transcription of some AB structural genes was increased in comparison with ‘S29’, suggesting regulatory role of the Ra gene in anthocyanin biosynthesis in wheat.