Received: 10 September 2024 / Accepted: 26 November 2024 / Published Online: 23 January 2025
Abstract
Leaf rust is one of the most prevalent and harmful wheat diseases in the world. Wheat leaf rust is best controlled over the sustainable development of genetic resistance, which requires thorough testing via field trials and marker-assisted selection. In this research, we studied sixty wheat genotypes to assess their resistance to foliage rust over two growing seasons: 2019/2020 and 2020/2021. The adult plant resistance (APR) severity and the area under the disease progress curve (AUDPC) were calculated for each wheat entry studied. The results of molecular screening showed that five Lr genes, namely, Lr19, Lr24, Lr34, Lr50, and Lr68, both independently and in combination, were identified in 25 wheat genotypes. The genes Lr24 (8.3%), Lr37 (6.7%) and Lr50 (25%) were characterized by the highest frequency of occurrence. Five genotypes were identified as carriers of two Lr resistance genes: CP_13 (Lr19 and Lr68), CP_21 and CP_22 (Lr24 and Lr50), CP_21 and 388_SP2 (Lr50 and Lr68). These genotypes may be used to introduce Lr genes into Kazakhstani wheat cultivars acclimating to leaf rust, since most showed high to moderate resistance to the disease in mature plants. Principal component analysis (PCA) biplots demonstrated the strong correlation between each spike productivity attribute. The study’s sources of leaf rust resistance may be leveraged to improve resistance to leaf rust in Kazakhstani and other relevant international wheat breeding programs.
Keywords: Wheat, Leaf rust, Puccinia triticina, Molecular markers, Lr genes
