Molecular basis of multiple resistance to herbicides inhibiting acetyl-CoA carboxylase and acetolactate synthase in American sloughgrass (Beckmannia syzigachne) from China

Abstract

American sloughgrass (Beckmannia syzigachne Steud.) is a problematic grass that is widely distributed in wheat and oilseed rape fields in China. The herbicides fenoxaprop-P-ethyl and mesosulfuron-methyl failed to control B. syzigachne JCWJ-R populations collected from a wheat field in Jiangsu Province. Dose-response experiments showed that JCWJ-R was resistant to the acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACCase) inhibitors fenoxaprop-P-ethyl (33.8-fold), haloxyfop-R-methyl (12.7-fold), clethodim (7.8-fold) and pinoxaden (11.6-fold), and to the acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitors mesosulfuron-methyl (15.9-fold), pyroxsulam (17.6-fold), flucarbazone-Na (10.7-fold) and imazethapyr (7-fold). Resistance to ALS inhibitors was due to a Pro-197-Ser mutation in the ALS gene and resistance to ACCase inhibitors was due to an Ile-1781-Leu mutation in the ACCase gene. A derived cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence method was developed to detect the ALS mutation in B. syzigachne. This was combined with a previously established method to detect Ile-1781-Leu, and the mutation frequency and homozygous mutation rates in the JCWJ-R population were determined. The evolution of multiple resistance to ACCase and ALS inhibitors in this B. syzigachne population indicated that alternative methods should be developed to control resistant weeds.