Implanted "disease resistance program", wheat "cancer" conquered

Jiangsu agricultural staff solve the world's problems

Right now, Jiangsu's wheat harvest is more than half-way through, and a bumper harvest can be expected

When it comes to wheat, farmers are most worried about scab, known as the "cancer" of wheat

It is gratifying that Gao Derong, a wheat breeding expert from the Institute of Agricultural Sciences in Lixiahe District, Jiangsu Province, led the scientific research team to continue to tackle key problems and successfully selected a new high-quality and high-yield variety "Yangmai 33" with resistance to scab and powdery mildew.

Using molecular breeding technology to overcome the world's problems

"In China's wheat growing areas, chemical methods are generally used to prevent and control scab.

However, with the influence of climate change and delayed sowing of wheat, head blight has become more and more frequent, and varieties with moderate resistance to head blight can no longer meet the production needs, and it is urgent to breed new varieties of wheat with high resistance

After studying the genetic composition of scab resistance of wheat varieties (lines) and various germplasm resources, researchers found that "Yangmai" varieties showed good resistance to scab, but most of them did not carry the The widely used resistance gene Fhb1

In late May 2021, the expert group of Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences evaluated the "Yangmai 33" demonstration field.

"'Yangmai 33' has reached the highest level of resistance to Fusarium head blight in the world.

New varieties are implanted with "disease resistance program", good resistance and high yield

Seeds are the "chips" of agriculture.

　　According to Gao Derong, "Yangmai 33" uses molecular marker-assisted selection technology to realize the combination of the main anti-scab gene Fhb1 and the anti-scab locus derived from "Yangmai" itself, thus completing the "disease resistance program" implantation

　　In 2021, the results of large-scale demonstration planting in Gaoyou City, Jiangsu Province showed that the diseased ear rate of "Yangmai 33" without control of scab was 1.

　　"Yangmai 33" overcomes the problem of high yield in resistance to scab, and has good "body" and high yield

　　"We have carried out repeated field experiments for more than ten years, and finally achieved the synergistic improvement of scab resistance and yield under the premise of ensuring excellent agronomic traits of 'Yangmai 33'

　　In addition, the interviewed experts introduced that the grain selenium content of "Yangmai 33" is higher than that of other wheat varieties, with good stability and high nutritional value, which meets the people's demand for healthy food

　　From "Experience Breeding" to "Precision Breeding"

　　Guo Wenshan, head of the wheat expert guidance group of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and a professor at the School of Agriculture of Yangzhou University, said that over the years, wheat scab has occurred frequently in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and the Huanghuai wheat producing areas, with an annual incidence of more than 100 million mu

　　Wheat breeding has changed from "experience breeding" to "precision breeding"

　　According to the interviewed experts, "Yangmai 33" mainly realizes the combination of the recognized main gene for resistance to scab with the locus of resistance to scab originating from Yangmai itself on the premise of ensuring excellent agronomic traits, so that the Disease resistance and yield were significantly improved synergistically
.
At the same time, "Yangmai 33" has also introduced the powdery mildew resistance gene Pm21 by molecular breeding technology, which achieves high resistance to powdery mildew, can reduce drugs and increase efficiency, and has outstanding ecological benefits
.

　　In Gao Derong's view, in the current process of China's grain production moving towards modernization, each family is not aware of the cost of inputs such as pesticides and fertilizers, and is more concerned about output
.
However, family farms and planting enterprises are not only concerned about yield, but also pay attention to cost input and production risks, requiring varieties with strong disease resistance and stress resistance, high yield and stable yield, and high cost savings, which are more conducive to the popularization of improved varieties
.
He believes that it is the duty of agricultural scientific research workers to continuously improve the disease resistance and stress resistance of wheat, improve farmers' grain production efficiency, and help ensure national food security.
He will work hard and continue to explore
.

(Reporter Zhao Jiulong and Chen Xiyuan)