Resistance evaluation of advanced and commercial genotypes of Iranian wheat to leaf rust at seedling and adult plant stages

Rusts have always been considered as important diseases of wheat, have significant economic losses worldwide and cultivation of resistant cultivars is the most effective way to control the disease. This research project was conducted in order to evaluate reaction of 101 advanced and commercial wheat genotypes of Iran to wheat leaf rust at seedling and adult plant stages with artificial inoculation. These genotypes were evaluated in two cropping years of 2020 and 2021 in Dezful, Gorgan, Ardabil and Moghan under field conditions. In Karaj, resistance of genotypes was evaluated at seedling stage and under greenhouse conditions using four wheat leaf rust pathotypes with a specific virulence/avirulence formula. According the results of the present study, 63 percent of the genotypes of the South warm and dry zone, 96 percent of the genotypes of the North warm and humid zone, 26 percent of the genotypes of the cold zone, 57 percent of the genotypes of the moderate zone, 10 percent of the genotypes of the salinity program, and all durum wheat genotypes responded acceptable level of resistance. Under seedling conditions, 33 percent of the genotypes were resistant to four wheat leaf rust pathotypes. In this study, five cultivars Aflak, Shoush, Sirvan, Zarrineh and Ehsan were resistant in field conditions but reacted susceptibility to four leaf rust pathotypes at the seedling stage. It seems that these cultivars probably have adult plant resistance gene or genes.