Identification of Chromosomal Regions Associated with Frost Resistance in Bread Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Using Microsatellite Markers

Freezing resistance is a quantitative trait which is affected by 10 out of 21 wheat chromosomes. In order to identify the microsatellite molecular markers linked to freezing resistance QTLs in bread wheat, a set of 280 F2:3 families derived from a cross between cv. Norstar (winter type and frost resistant) and cv. Zagros (spring type and sensitive to low temperatures) was evaluated at 11 temperatures under controlled conditions. The LT50 was used as a frost resistance index. Parental polymorphism was assessed using 200 microsatellite primer pairs and 41 polymorphic markers were used to screen F2 individuals. QTL analysis revealed association of LT50 with seven microsatellite markers, Xgwm357, Xgwm148, Xgwm666, Xcfa190, Xgwm499, Xgwm292 and Xgwm174 located on chromosomes 1A, 2B, 5A, 5B and 5D. In total, these markers determined 27% of frost resistance variation in the population. QTL detected on chromosome 1A was the first report about the contribution of this chromosome in frost resistance.