Conventional Breeding and Molecular Markers for Blast Disease Resistance in Rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Monogenic lines,which carried 23 genes for blast resistance were tested and used donors to transfer resistance genes by crossing method.The results under blast nursery revealed that 9 genes from 23 genes were susceptible to highly susceptible under the three locations(Sakha,Gemmeza,and Zarzoura in Egypt);Pia,Pik,Pik-p,Piz-t,Pita,Pi b,Pi,Pi 19 and Pi 20.While,the genes Pii,Pik-s,Pik-h,Pi z,Piz-5,Pi sh,Pi 3,Pi 1,Pi 5,Pi 7,Pi 9,Pi 12,Pikm and Pita-2 were highly resistant at the same locations.Clustering analysis confirmed the results,which divided into two groups;the first one included all the susceptible genes,while the second one included the resistance genes.In the greenhouse test,the reaction pattern of five races produced 100%resistance under artificial inoculation with eight genes showing complete resistance to all isolates.The completely resistant genes:Pii,Pik-s,Piz,Piz-5(=bi2)(t),Pita(=Pi4)(t),Pita,Pi b and Pi1 as well as clustering analysis confirmed the results.In the F1 crosses,the results showed all the 25 crosses were resistant for leaf blast disease under field conditions.While,the results in F2 population showed seven crosses with segregation ratio of 15(R):1(S),two cross gave segregated ratio of 3 R:1 S and one gave 13:3.For the identification of blast resistance genes in the parental lines,the marker K3959,linked to Pik-s gene and the variety IRBLKS-F5 carry this gene,which was from the monogenic line.The results showed that four genotypes;Sakha 105,Sakha 103,Sakha 106 and IRBLKS-F5 were carrying Pik-s gene,while was absent in the Sakha 101,Sakha 104,IRBL5-M,IRBL9-W,IRBLTACP1 and IRBL9-W(R)genotypes.As for Pi 5 gene,the results showed that it was present in Sakha 103 and Sakha 104 varieties and absent in the rest of the genotypes.In addition,Pita-Pita-2 gene was found in the three Egyptian genotypes(Sakha 105,Sakha 101 and Sakha 104)plus IRBLTACP1 monogenetic.In F2 generation,six populations were used to study the inheritance of blast resistance and specific primers to confirm the ratio and identify the resistance genes.However,the ratios in molecular markers were the same of the ratio under field evaluation in the most population studies.These findings would facilitate in breeding programs for gene pyramiding and gene accumulation to produce durable resistance for blast using those genotypes.

Geographic Distribution of Avirulence Genes in Rice Blast Fungusin Yunnan Province,China

Knowledge of the geographic distribution and frequency of avirulence genes will contribute to the development of strategies to effectively use rice varieties that carry various resistances genes, including combinations of varieties in mixture cropping systems. Here, we analyzed the geographic distribution and frequencies of avirulence genes in rice blast fungus using samples collected from 11 prefectures across Yunnan province, China. A total of 467 single spore isolates were assayed for pathotypes based on their reaction to 20 rice blast resistance monogenic lines. The results revealed that frequencies of avirulence genes among 10 prefectures showed insignificant difference, but frequencies of avirulenee genes in Xishuangbanna showed significant differences compared to the remaining 10 prefectures. The avirulence genes Avr-Pi9, Avr-Piz and Avr-Pizt were observed at the highest frequency in blast isolates from the 11 prefectures; their average frequency was greater than 80%. Our results imply that the composition and distribution of rice genetic diversity are more important than climate and other environment conditions for formation and maintenance of rice blast fungus genetic diversity. Using average frequencies, the avirulence genes can be categorized into 4 groups. There were significant differences of frequencies of avirulence genes among different groups, while insignificant differences observed within any group. These results will provide useful information for evaluation of resistance genes and effective management of rice blast disease.