Genetic Diversity of Wheat Genotypes based on Resistance to Powdery Mildew, Grain Yield, Yield Components and Molecular Markers

Genetic diversity in field crops has important role in breeding programs. The object of this study were to evaluate the genetic diversity and association analysis of morphological traits and mildew disease of wheat germplasm.

In the research 116 wheat genotypes were assessed for morphologic traits using a lattice design with 3 replications in the research field of Gonbad Kavous University. Plants response to powdery mildew was also evaluated. 10 ISSR and IRAP markers were applied for molecular analysis.
 

There was a significant difference between genotypes for all measured traits except 1000 grain weight. In molecular evaluation using ISSR and IPBS markers, 57 bands were amplified where 47 bands were polymorphic. The number of polymorphic bands was ranged from 3 to 6 bands for each primer. The maximum polymorphic bands belonged to PRI-14, PRI 43 and PRI 50 primer. The PIC and MIC values ranged from 0.35-0.88 and 0.62-3.14 respectively. The maximum percent of polymorphism belonged to PRI-13, PRI-14, PRI-43, PRI-20 and PRI-10. The maximum Molecular Index was 3.14 in PRI-7. Cluster analysis was grouped lines into three groups, which genotypes 60 and 786 were the most resistance to Powdery mildew. Association analysis between markers and resistance to powdery mildew revealed that total of 9 primers showed a connection to the character.
 

Based on the results of this research, genotypes with acceptable morphological traits and resistance to powdery mildew could be screened for advanced wheat breeding programs.