Isolation of wheat mutants with increased resistance to powdery mildew from small induced variant populations

Small variant wheat populations created by induced mutagenesis (n = 69) or adventitious regeneration (n = 66) were intensively screened for an altered response (compared to the parent variety 'Guardian') to the causal pathogen of powdery mildew in wheat, Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici. Intensive field screening following natural infection of replicated plots of wheat lines over two years revealed a total of 13 mutants exhibiting significantly greater resistance than 'Guardian': eight from induced mutagenesis (11.6%) of the M2 population and five from adventitious regeneration (7.6%). Complete resistance was identified in two lines, (one (M66) developed following induced mutagenesis, and the other (SC240) by adventitious regeneration). The complete resistance in the induced mutant was stable over two generations and was associated with a high frequency of leaf flecking, and consequently a low grain yield. Resistance in SC240 proved to be unstable; SC240 exhibited complete resistance to powdery mildew in the SC₂ and SC₃ generations, but only 20% of the SC₄ plants were completely resistant, while-the remainder were indistinguishable in mildew response to 'Guardian'. The mildew response of all the SC₅ generation of SC240 was not significantly different from 'Guardian'. Yield analysis of the thirteen mutants with increased resistance in the presence of powdery mildew indicated that eleven exhibited grain yields at least as high as that of 'Guardian', while the mutant M19 exhibited a yield significantly higher than that of 'Guardian'.