SPRING WHEAT BREEDING AND GENETICS

• Sponsoring Institution: State Agricultural Experiment Station
• Project Status: ACTIVE
• Funding Source: STATE
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 1026851
• Project Start Date: Jul 1, 2021
• Project End Date: Jun 30, 2026
• Program Code: [(N/A)]- (N/A)

Recipient Organization
UNIV OF MINNESOTA
(N/A)
ST PAUL,MN 55108

Performing Department
Agronomy & Plant Genetics

Non Technical Summary
Spring wheat was grown on more than 1.4 million acres annually in Minnesota from 2016-2020, ranking 3rd behind soybeans and corn. Improved cultivars are one of the most important components of profitable wheat production. Wheat yields must increase in order for this crop to remain economically viable in Minnesota. One intended outcome of our research is new, high yielding cultivars with good lodging resistance, disease resistance, and good end-use quality. Disease resistance breeding will focus on Fusarium head blight, bacterial leaf streak, leaf rust, and stem rust. A comprehensive genetic and breeding approach is necessary to respond to these needs. Genetic studies will be utilized to identify the chromosomal locations and DNA markers for genes influencing disease resistance and grain quality. DNA markers will be used to characterize crossing parents for essential genes and also to make selections in early generations. Genomic prediction will be used to enhance efficiency and increase the genetic gain of traits under complex genetic control. In addition, the breeding program coordinates the testing of commercially available cultivars each year in statewide trials to assess their performance in yield nurseries and reactions to important diseases. This information is critical to growers to make informed choices regarding wheat cultivars.

Animal Health Component

25%

Research Effort Categories

Basic

25%

Applied

25%

Developmental

50%

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
201	1541	1081	75%
201	1541	1080	25%

Knowledge Area
201 - Plant Genome, Genetics, and Genetic Mechanisms;

Subject Of Investigation
1541 - Hard red spring wheat;

Field Of Science
1081 - Breeding; 1080 - Genetics;

Keywords

wheat

dna markers

genomic prediction

fusarium head blight

disease resistance

wheat breeding

Goals / Objectives
1. Develop superior spring wheat cultivars2. Genetically enhance spring wheat germplasm3. Investigate and implement genomic prediction and marker-assisted selection to improve breeding program efficiencies and improve genetic gain4. Train graduate students

Project Methods
Objective 1. Develop superior spring wheat cultivarsA modified bulk breeding method will be utilized to develop superior spring wheat cultivars and germplasm. These procedures may change based on the success of genomic prediction as described in Objective 3. Most of the biparental crosses will be among elite germplasm from the U of M hard red spring breeding program. Three-way and backcrosses will be used, especially when less adapted materials containing new genes for high priority traits are being used as parents. Two generations (F3 and F6) will be grown in winter nurseries to provide generation advance (F3) and seed increase (F6), saving two years in the development of new cultivars. Yield trials will be sown as 4.65 m2 plots in a single replicate with repeated checks at up to 15 locations, in collaboration with Dr. Jochum Wiersma and scientists at UMN Research & Outreach Centers. Experimental design for the MN Variety trials will be a randomized complete block with 3 replicates, also using 4.65 m2 plots. All yield trials will be designed for row-column analysis using spatial correction to improve yield estimates. Other agronomic characteristics routinely examined will include heading date, plant height, lodging, shattering, as well as any diseases that appear.Intensive screening for reaction to leaf rust and stem rust will occur in the F2 and F4, generations and grown in plot areas that contain susceptible spreader rows inoculated with the stem rust and leaf rust pathogens. In addition, all materials in the preliminary yield trial stage or later are grown in a rust nursery managed to produce high levels of disease. Scientists at the USDA-ARS Cereal Disease Laboratory maintain and distribute inoculum and record reaction of materials in the rust nursery. Screening for reaction to Fusarium head blight will be a major component of the wheat improvement project. Dr. R. Dill-Macky produces and distributes inoculum for the St. Paul nursery and coordinates this service for the Crookston nursery.Two inoculated and misted FHB field screening nurseries will be used to characterize levels of FHB resistance as described in Anderson et al. (2019). Visual assessment of FHB symptoms in the field will be done approximately 20 days after anthesis. A sample of 100+ spikes per row will be harvested, and after careful cleaning of grain, the percentage of visually scabby grain will be estimated. DON content will be determined from a bulk of grain from all replications of entries from the most advanced nurseries (~1,000 total DON samples per year).End-use quality will be evaluated beginning with remnant grain harvested from the candidate preliminary yield trial lines in New Zealand, using the Glutopeak instrument (Malegori et al., 2018) in cooperation with Dr. Annor in the Food Science & Nutrition Dept. Grain harvested from preliminary yield trial lines and advanced to the next stage based on yield, agronomic characteristics, disease reaction, grain protein, and test weight will be sent to the USDA-ARS lab for evaluation of milling, flour color, and bread-making characteristics. All materials in advanced yield trials will be tested for preharvest sprouting reaction at two locations each year following the methods of Anderson et al. (1993). We have explored the use of aerial imaging to add objectivity to difficult to score traits (Moghimi et al., 2020). During this 5-year period we plan to work with Dr. Walid Sadok to expand our use of drone-based imaging for traits that are of interest in his research and to aid in the evaluation of plant height (to save time/labor) and early season vigor and time to canopy closure, two traits that are quite subjective and difficult for the human eye to detect differences.Data of new breeding lines that merit release consideration will be provided to the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station's Crop Variety Review Committee which recommends further seed increase and release. We test all hard red spring wheat cultivars grown in Minnesota on more than 1% of the total acreage for performance in yield trials, disease nurseries, and measures of end-use quality. Results of these evaluations are published in Prairie Grains magazine which is subscribed to by most spring wheat growers, and the U of MN Varietal Trials Results publication at www.maes.umn.edu/. Varieties and released germplasm will be announced as registration articles in The Journal of Plant Registrations.Objective 2. Genetically enhance spring wheat germplasm Four diseases: FHB, bacterial leaf streak, leaf rust, and stem rust (including resistance to race Ug99), will be the main focus of spring wheat germplasm enhancement in the next five years. Germplasm evaluated in the course of the breeding program (Objective 1) will be evaluated for these diseases in field-based tests. Fusarium head blight resistant lines will be considered for inclusion in regional FHB trials based on i) high resistance level observed in at least six screening nurseries (3 years); ii) the likelihood of the germplasm containing novel FHB resistance genes (i.e. genes not already present in regional germplasm); and iii) other agronomic characteristics. We will also submit lines to regional and international disease screening efforts, including a regional bacterial leaf streak nursery coordinated by Dr. Dill-Macky and an African stem rust nurseries coordinated by USDA-ARS (~60 entries annually). Elite germplasm will be used as crossing parents and may also be released as germplasm and/or be used as a parent for subsequent gene mapping research (see Objective 3).Objective 3. Investigate and implement genomic prediction and marker-assisted selection to improve breeding program efficiencies and improve genetic gainDNA marker technology will be used to locate genes influencing traits that are difficult to manipulate using conventional breeding and selection procedures or when gene pyramiding is desired. The main focus will be on mapping resistance genes for FHB, leaf rust and stem rust, and bacterial leaf streak in the next five years and using these genes in a marker-assisted selection program to introgress them into elite germplasm.We will use DNA markers to characterize crossing parents and screen progeny lines for presence of genes underlying important traits. We routinely genotype all pre-yield trial lines (2,500-3,000) for the presence of two genes for FHB resistance (Fhb1 and Fhb5), two genes for leaf rust resistance (Lr21 and Lr34), high grain protein, high molecular weight glutenins, and semi-dwarfing genes Rht1, Rht2, and Rht24. The USDA-ARS Genotyping Center in Fargo does the DNA extraction and marker assay for these samples. BC1 populations ( ~1,500 plants) will be screened in-house with these same DNA markers. Selecting at the BC1 stage results in a genetic enrichment of the population by eliminating those plants that do not contain the desired gene(s). All parents used in crossing and seed purifications of new variety candidates will be screened using markers for the genes referred to above as well as up to 40 other gene-specific markers, depending on the population.During this 5 year period we will extend and explore the use of genomic prediction for grain yield, straw strength, bacterial leaf streak, and grain end-use quality traits. These are all traits that can't be phenotyped accurately until later stages of a breeding pipeline when sufficient seed is available to grow larger plots in multiple locations. Therefore, the predictions of these traits will occur prior to sending the F6 generation to New Zealand, or while the candidate PYs are growing in New Zealand.Objective 4. Train graduate studentsThe activities described in objectives 1-3, especially objective 3, will provide training opportunities for graduate students that will be supported by national competitive funding and international agencies.

Progress 10/01/21 to 09/30/22

Outputs
Target Audience:Wheat growers in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest Wheat Industry Wheat Breeders and Researchers Plant Breeders Postdoctoral Associates Graduate Students Undergraduate Students Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Two post-doctoral research associates and five graduate students were mentored during this reporting period. In addition, three full-time staff assisted with our research activities. All of these individuals participated in weekly lab meetings where they had the opportunity to learn of the research of others in our group and contribute suggestions to improve productivity, data quality, and improve analysis methodology. Postdocs and graduate students are encouraged to attend one or more conferences per year to present results of their research. During this reporting period, project members presented their research virtually at the American Society of Agronomy Annual meetings, National Fusarium Head Blight Forum, Plant and Animal Genome meeting. In addition, project personnel attended numerous online seminars on topics ranging from agronomy to plant breeding. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Data from the yield and disease nurseries are summarized and published in Prairie Grains and the MAES's Minnesota Varietal Trials Results. Also, the publications listed earlier and other talks listed earlier and reproduced below. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?The breeding program will function similar to the last year.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Obj. 1-3: During the 2021/2022 crossing cycle, 235 crosses were made. The 2022 State Variety Trial, which contained 45 released varieties, 13 University of Minnesota experimental lines, 4 experimental lines from other programs, and 3 long term checks was evaluated at 14 locations. Another 230 advanced experimental lines were evaluated in advanced yield trials at up to 10 locations and 468 lines were evaluated in preliminary yield trials at 3 locations. A total of 8,779 yield plots were harvested in 2022. Fusarium-inoculated, misted nurseries were established at Crookston and St. Paul. An inoculated leaf and stem rust nursery was conducted at St. Paul. DNA sequence information was obtained from 3,072 pre-yield trial lines and their FHB resistance and dough mixing properties were predicted based on a training set of 210 lines and their 55 parents. The predictions based on DNA sequence information were used to help select the 468 preliminary yield trial lines from the 3,072 candidate lines, therefore avoiding more expensive and time-consuming field-based evaluations on more than 2,000 lines with low genetic potential. Data from the yield and disease nurseries are summarized and published in Prairie Grains and the MAES's 2022 Minnesota Field Crop Variety Trials (https://varietytrials.umn.edu). Experimental line MN15005-4 (Prosper/MN08301-6//Norden) was released as MN-Rothsay in 2022. MN-Rothsay has excellent grain yields, very good straw strength, and average grain protein. Disease resistance and baking quality are acceptable. University of Minnesota developed spring wheat varieties accounted for an estimated 34.5% of Minnesota's 1.21 million spring wheat acres in 2022 and MN-Torgy, released in 2020, was the no. 1 wheat variety in Minnesota in 2022, grown on 21.7% of the state's wheat acres. UMN-developed varieties were also grown on more than 10% of North Dakota's 5.4 million spring wheat acres. Obj. 4: Emily Conley completed her PhD during this reporting period, investigating genomic selection for Fusarium head blight resistance in spring wheat. Zenith Tandukar defended his PhD dissertation on pennycress during this reporting period. Continuing students include Max Fraser, Ph.D. candidate studying wheat; Hannah Stoll, Ph.D. candidate studying Intermediate wheatgrass; and Nanthicha Krueger, M.S. candidate studying wheat.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Hay, W., J. Anderson, S. McCormick, and M. Vaughan. 2021. Fusarium Head Blight Resistance Exacerbates Nutritional Loss of Wheat Grain at Elevated CO2. In: Proceedings of the 2021 National Fusarium Head Blight Forum.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Hirsch, C.D., J. Cooper, J. Wodarek, R. Page, A. Min, J. Abdulridha, R. Dill- Macky, K.P. Smith, Ja.A. Anderson, C. Yang, and B.J. Steffenson. 2021. Utilizing a High-Throughput Field Based Rover for High Fidelity and High Temporal Resolution of FHB Phenotyping. In: Proceedings of the 2021 National Fusarium Head Blight Forum.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Hay, W.T., J.A. Anderson, S.P. McCormick, M.P. Hojilla?Evangelista, G.W. Selling, K.D. Utt, M.J. Bowman, K.M. Doll, K.L. Ascher, M.A. Berhow, and M.M. Vaughan. 2022. Fusarium head blight resistance exacerbates nutritional loss of wheat grain at elevated CO2. Scientific Reports https://doi-org.ezp3.lib.umn.edu/10.1038/s41598-021-03890-9
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Jordan, K.W., Peter J Bradbury, Z.R. Miller, M. Nyine, F. He, M. Fraser, J. Anderson, E. Mason, A. Katz, S. Pearce, A.H. Carter, S. Prather, M. Pumphrey, J. Chen, J. Cook, S. Liu, J.C. Rudd, Z. Wang, C. Chu, A.M.H. Ibrahim, J. Turkus, E. Olson, R. Nagarajan, B. Carver, L. Yan, E. Taagen, M. Sorrells, B. Ward, J. Ren, A. Akhunova, G. Bai, R. Bowden, J. Fiedler, J. Faris, J. Dubcovsky, M. Guttieri, G. Brown-Guedira, E. Buckler, J.-L. Jannink, E.D. Akhunov. 2022. Development of the Wheat Practical Haplotype Graph database as a resource for genotyping data storage and genotype imputation. G3, https://doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkab390
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Zhang, J. A. Min, B.J. Steffenson, W.-H. Su, C.D. Hirsch, J. Anderson, J. Wei, Q. Ma, and C. Yang. 2022. Wheat-Net: An Automatic Dense Wheat Spike Segmentation Method Based on an Optimized Hybrid Task Cascade Model. Front. Plant Sci. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2022.834938
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Rauf, Y., C. Lan, M. Randhawa, R.P. Singh, J. Huerta-Espino, J. Anderson. 2022. Quantitative trait loci mapping reveals the complexity of adult plant resistance to leaf rust in spring wheat Copio. Crop Sci. https://doi.org/10.1002/csc2.20728
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Whitney, K. ,G. Gracia-Gomez, J.A. Anderson, and S. Simsek. 2022. Time course metabolite profiling of Fusarium head blight-infected hard red spring wheat using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time of flight/MS. J. Food Chem. 70: 4152?4163 https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.1c08374
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Tamang, B.G., D. Monnens, B.J. Steffenson, J.A. Anderson, and W. Sadok. 2022. The genetic basis of transpiration sensitivity to vapor pressure deficit in wheat. Planta 250:115127 https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-019-03151-0

Progress 07/01/21 to 09/30/21

Outputs
Target Audience: Nothing Reported Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Nothing to report.

Publications