Effect of Morphological Traits on Sheath Blight Resistance in Rice

Sheath blight, caused by the Rhizoctonia solani Kuhn, is one of the most serious diseases of rice (Oryza sativa L.). The relationship between morphological traits and sheath blight resistance was investigated in 1999 and 2000 by using a segregant population consisting of 240 inbred recombination lines, derived from an elite combination of Zhenshan 97 X Minghui 63. Partial correlation analysis between phenotypic data (morphological characteristics and heading date (HD)) and sheath blight ratings (SBR) showed that only one trait, plant compactness, was significantly correlated with resistance to sheath blight in both 1999 and 2000, eight traits, such as plant height, heading date, and penultimate leaf angle, were significantly correlated with SBR in either of the two years, and the remaining 10 morphological traits were not consistently associated with SBR in the two years. A major quantitative trait locus (QTL) controlling plant compactness was found to be in the site on chromosome 9 adjacent to the region responsible for qSB9, a major QTLs conferring sheath blight resistance. One out of the three QTLs contributing to a penultimate leaf angle was mapped approximately on the same region as another sheath blight resistance QTL, qSB5, located on chromosome 5. Whereas, no QTLs underlying most other traits was detected on the chromosomal region correlated with sheath blight resistance QTL. The results in the present study suggested that the morphological traits were not the main factors responsible for the SBR separation among the recombinant inbred lines (RILs) population. Nevertheless, some morphological characteristics had some indirect influence on expression of sheath blight resistance genes through altering a microclimate on paddy field so as to influence the infection of the pathogen and development of the disease. An efficient approach in resistance breeding to sheath blight was recommended by pyramiding major QTLs for sheath blight resistance and selecting those morphological traits that favor resistance gene expression.

Mapping QTLs Associated with Sheath Blight Resistance Using Chromosome Segment Substitution Lines of Rice(Oryza sativa L.)

In this study, a population of 119 chromosome segment substitution lines （CSSLs） derived from backcross between indica 9311 and japonica Nipponbare was employed to map quantitative trait loci （QTL） associated with sheath blight resis-tance in rice with toothpick inoculation method. A total of three sheath blight resis-tance-associated QTLs （qsb8-1, qsb8-2 and qsb8-3） were identified, which were lo-cated on adjacent molecular markers RM3262, RM5485 and RM3496 of chromo-some 8; the genetic interval was 81.7cM-91.7cM, 91.7cM-108.1cM and 108.1cM-119.6cM, respectively. The additive effect of qsb8-2 was negative, indicating that sheath blight resistance of susceptible parent harboring qsb8-2 fragment was en-hanced; additive effects of qsb8-1 and qsb8-3 were positive, indicating that sheath blight resistance of susceptible parent harboring qsb8-1 and qsb8-3 fragments was reduced.

Mapping of QTLs for Sheath Blight Resistance Using Recombinant Inbred Lines of Rice(Oryza sativa L.)

A recombinant inbred line （RIL） population composed of 157 lines derived from an inter-subspecific hybrid of Daguandao/IR28 by the single seed descent method was used as materials, and the quantitative trait loci （QTLs） coffering the resistance to sheath blight in the 157 RILs and the parents were detected using the toothpick inoculation method. The disease indexes of rice sheath blight in the two parents and 157 RILs were scored and the QTLs responsible for rice sheath blight resistance were detected accordingly by QTL Cartographer software. The results showed that a total of 4 QTLs （qsbl, qsb2, qsb5-1, qsb5-2） conferring sheath blight resistance were detected on chromosomes 1, 2 and 5, and their variance explained ranged from 10.41% to 36.92%. The additive effect of qsb5-1 was negative, indicat- ing that the QTLs derived from donor parent IR 28 could enhance the resistance to sheath blight. However, the additive effects of qsbl, qsb2 and qsb5-2 were positive, indicating that the QTLs derived from donor parent Daguandao weakened the resis- tance to sheath blight.

Transgenic Rice Plants Harboring Genomic DNA from Zizania latifolia Confer Bacterial Blight Resistance

Based on the sequence of a resistance gene analog FZ14 derived from Zizania latifolia （Griseb.）, a pair of specific PCR primers FZ14P1/FZ14P2was designed to isolate candidate disease resistance gene. The pooled-PCR approach was adopted using the primer pair to screen a genomic transformation-competent artificial chromosome （TAC） library derived from Z. latifolia. A positive TAC clone （ZR1） was obtained and confirmed by sequence analysis. The results indicated that ZR1 consisted of conserved motifs similar to P-loop （kinase la）, kinase 2, kinase 3a and GLPL （Gly-Leu-Pro-Leu）, suggesting that it could be a portion of NBS-LRR type of resistance gene. Using Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of Nipponbare mature embryo, a total of 48 independent transgenic To plants were obtained. Among them, 36 plants were highly resistant to the virulent bacterial blight strain PXO71. The results indicate that ZR1 contains at least one functional bacterial blight resistance gene.

Application of Functional Markers to Identify Genes for Bacterial Blight Resistance in Oryza rufipogon

Field resistances of nine accessions of common wild rice （Oryza rufipogon Griff.） and one rice variety （IR24） were evaluated by using nine strains of bacterial blight pathogen （Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae） from the Philippines. IR24 was highly susceptible to all the strains, and six common wild rice accessions resisted all the nine strains, with a resistance frequency of 67%. The accessions Yulin and Wanning were only susceptible to PXO280 and PXO71, respectively. The accession Gaozhou was susceptible to the three strains PXO79, PXO99 and PXO339, whereas resistant to the other six strains. It could be concluded that there is at least one resistance gene in each common wild rice accession. The functional markers of the genes xa5, xa13, Xa21 and Xa27 were used to detect the presence of these resistance genes in the nine tested wild rice accessions, and it was found that four wild rice accessions contained heterozygous xa13. Among the nine common wild rice accessions, five were homozygous for Xa27 and three homozygous for xa27, and the accession Laibin contained neither xa27 nor Xa27. In addition, there were no xa5 and Xa21 in all of these accessions.

Yield Stability and Late Blight Resistance Analysis among Potato Clones Bred with Quantitative Resistance

Thirteen promising clones from population B3C2 potato genotypes （bred for quantitative resistance to late blight） obtained from the International Potato Center and three control cultivars were evaluated for four planting dates within two cropping seasons at Kalengyere Research Station in Southwestern Uganda in order to determine performance and yield stability. The analysis of variance of the relative area under disease progress curve （rAUDPC） revealed significant difference （P 〈 0.001） among genotype x planting date interaction, and significant difference （P 〈 0.001） among genotypes x fungicide treatments x planting date interaction. The analysis of variance （ANOVA） of yield revealed also significant difference among genotypes x planting date interaction and significant difference （P 〈 0.05） among genotypes x fungicide treatments x planting date interaction, showing the variable response of genotypes and the need for stability analysis. The additive main effects and multiplicative interactive （AMMI） statistical model showed that the most stable and high yielding genotypes were 396038.107, 396026.103 and 393280.82. The cultivars Victoria, Nakpot 5 and Cruza recorded low yields （below the average）, but Nakpot 5 was generally more variable, and is therefore highly adaptable to some environments.

Evaluatien of Near-lsogenic Rice Lines with 8 Genes for Bacterial Blight Resistance to Strains in China

A set of near-isogenic rice lines withmonogenic resistance to bacterial blight weredeveloped by IRRI.The Cultivar IR24 wasused as the recurred parent.They wereevaluated with 6 races of Xanthomonascampestris pv.oryzae(Xco)in the Philip-pines at the maximum tillering and the bootingstages by ZHANG and MEW at IRRI in 1989.

Improving the resistance of the rice PTGMS line Feng39S by pyramiding blast,bacterial blight,and brown planthopper resistance genes

Knowledge of rice(Oryza sativa L.)genes and various DNA markers can be used in genomic breeding programs aimed at developing improved elite rice cultivars.We used an efficient genomic breeding approach to pyramid four resistance genes(Pi2,Xa23,Bph14,and Bph15)in the popular photoperiod-and thermosensitive genic male sterile(PTGMS)rice line Feng39S.We performed foreground selection for the target genes,followed by recombinant selection and background selection.This process reduced the sizes of the genomic segments harboring the target genes(566.8 kb for Pi2,1143.9 kb for Xa23,774.7 kb for Bph14,and 1574.9 kb for Bph15)and accelerated the recovery of the recurrent parent genome to proportions ranging from 98.77%to 99.16%,thus resulting in four near-isogenic lines.To assemble the four resistance genes in Feng39S,we performed a double-way cross combined with foreground and background selection to generate two improved lines of Feng39S(Pi2+Xa23+Bph14+Bph15)with a recurrent parent genome recovery of 98.98%.The two lines showed agronomic performance,grain quality,and fertility–sterility transition characteristics similar to those of the original Feng39S line.The newly developed PTGMS lines and corresponding hybrid combinations were resistant to various field blast isolates and seven representative isolates of bacterial blight.At the seedling stage,the lines also showed resistance against brown planthopper.This study provides an efficient and accurate genomic breeding approach for introducing desirable traits into PTGMS lines.

Marker-Assisted Pyramiding of Genes Conferring ResistanceAgainst Bacterial Blight and Blast Diseases into Indian RiceVariety MTU1010

Two major bacterial blight （BB） resistance genes （Xa21 and xa13） and a major gene for blastresistance （Pi54） were introgressed into an Indian rice variety MTU1010 through marker-assistedbackcross breeding. Improved Samba Mahsuri （possessing Xa21 and xa13） and NLR145 （possessingPi54） were used as donor parents. Marker-assisted backcrossing was continued till BC2 generationwherein PCR based functional markers specific for the resistance genes were used for foregroundselection and a set of parental polymorphic microsatellite markers were used for background selectionat each stage of backcrossing. Selected BC2F1 plants from both crosses, having the highest recoveriesof MTU1010 genome （90% and 92%, respectively）, were intercrossed to obtain intercross F1 （ICF1） plants,which were then selfed to generate 880 ICF2 plants possessing different combinations of the BB andblast resistance genes. Among the ICF2 plants, seven triple homozygous plants （xa13xa13Xa21Xa21Pi54Pi54）with recurrent parent genome recovery ranging from 82% to 92% were identified. All the seven ICF2plants showed high resistance against the bacterial blight disease with a lesion lengths of only 0.53–2.28 cm, 1%–5% disease leaf areas and disease scoring values of ‘1’ or ‘3’. The seven ICF2 plants wereselfed to generate ICF3, which were then screened for blast resistance, and all were observed to behighly resistant to the diseases. Several ICF3 lines possessing high level of resistance against BB andblast, coupled with yield, grain quality and plant type on par with MTU1010 were identified and advanced forfurther selection and evaluation.

A substitution mutation in OsPELOTA confers bacterial blight resistance by activating the salicylic acid pathway

We previously reported a spotted-leaf mutant pelota（originally termed HM_（47）） in rice displaying arrested growth and enhanced resistance to multiple races of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae. Here, we report the mapbased cloning of the causal gene OsPELOTA（originally termed spl^（HM47））. We identified a single base substitution from T to A at position 556 in the coding sequence of OsPELOTA, effectively mutating phenylalanine to isoleucine at position 186 in the translated protein sequence. Both functional complementation and over-expression could rescue the spotted-leaf phenotype. OsPELOTA, a paralogue to eukaryotic release factor 1（eRF_1）, shows high sequence similarity to Drosophila Pelota and also localizes to the endoplasmic reticulum and plasma membrane.OsPELOTA is constitutively expressed in roots, leaves,sheaths, stems, and panicles. Elevated levels of salicylic acid and decreased level of jasmonate were detected in the pelota mutant. RNA-seq analysis confirmed that genes responding to salicylic acid were upregulated in the mutant. Our results indicate that the rice PELOTA protein is involved in bacterial leaf blight resistance by activating the salicylic acid metabolic pathway.

Identification of molecular markers linked to rice bacterial blight resistance genes from Oryza meyeriana

Y73 is a progeny of asymmetric somatic hybridization between Oryza sativa cv.Dalixiang and the wild rice species Oryza meyeriana.Inoculation with a range of strains of Xanthomonas oryzae pv.oryzae showed that Y73 had inherited a high level of resistance to rice bacterial blight(BB)from its wild parent.An F2 population of 7125 individuals was constructed from the cross between Y73 and a BB-susceptible cultivar IR24.After testing 615 SSR and STS markers covering the 12 rice chromosomes,186 markers were selected that showed polymorphism between Y73 and IR24.Molecular markers linked to the BB resistance genes in Y73 were scanned using the F2 population and the polymorphic markers.The SSR marker RM128 on chromosome 1,the STS marker R03D159 on chromosome 3 and the STS marker R05D104 on chromosome 5 were found to be linked to the rice BB resistance genes in Y73.

Resistance Evaluation to Sheath Blight in Transgenic Rice Lines

Resistance of forty-one homozygous rice lines transformed with chitinase gene (RC24) and β-1,3 -glucanse gene β-1,3-Glu) to sheath blight was analyzed by inoculation. Among different lines, the resistance had significant differences according to the result by cluster analysis. The lines could be categorized into resistant, moderately resistant, moderately susceptible and susceptible types, while 92.1% of which belonging to moderately resistant or moderately susceptible type. For different resistant or susceptible lines, the resistance to rice sheath blight was remarkable correlated with the chitinase activity of transgenic lines except resistant type lines, in which enzyme activity coded by target gene was lower than moderately resistant type. The chitinase activity of transgenic lines tested at different time after inoculation or different organs of the same plant was uniform, which suggested that the expression of chitinase gene was constitutive in nature. Check varieties chitinase activity would change at different time after inoculation and reach a peak at sometime, but it had no difference at various pans of the same plant.

In-Vitro Evaluation of Resistance to Late Blight (Phytophthora infestans Mont. De Bary.) in Solanum Accessions Native to Chile, by Inoculation of Detached Leaflets

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the resistance of 10 accessions to P. infestans, by in-vitro inoculation of detached leaflets with a complex isolation of the fungus. Late blight, caused by the fungus Phytophthora infestans Mont. De Bary, is one of the most important diseases of the potato crop, and can destroy complete plantations in a short space of time. Chile is considered as a sub-centre of the origin of cultivated potatoes with many native potato varieties in the country. The different resistance components demonstrated that within the material of Chilean native Solanum, there was a wide range of variation to late blight. The resistant control (R-8906384) and the accessions UCT-34-Cor presented the lowest infection efficiency, small sizes of the lesions and low levels of sporulation classifying them as the most resistant. This suggests low efficiency of the infection and high resistance to penetration in these materials. The more susceptible accessions often presented a good level of resistance for one or few components. It would be of great interest to go into the genetic control of the different resistance components to know if the same level of resistance expressed for a component by different accessions is under the same genetic control or not.

Influence of different inoculation methods on the evaluation of the resistance to rice sheath blight(Rhizoctonia solani Kuhn)

To establish a standard system for geneticstudies on sheath blight resistance, a field testwas conducted at the experimental farm ofYangzhou University to compare several pro-cedures for inoculating rice plants with R.solani Kuhn (RH9). The varieties used wereJasmine 85, Teqing (resistant or moderatelyresistant), and Lemont (susceptible). They

Analyses of gene effects and inheritance of resistance to bacterial blight in rice

We analyzed the resistant inheritance of ajaponica variety,Jia23,to two bacterial blightpathogen strains,KS-6-6 and Zhe 173,rep-resenting respectively the two predominantpathogenic types(Ⅱ and Ⅳ)in the rice crop-ping area along the Yangtze River Valley.Jia23 was crossed with susceptible vari-eties,Ewan8 and 7416.Fplants were back-

Primary study on the resistance to bacterial blight(X. oryzae)in Cecropin B gene transgenic rices

Bacterial blight (BB) is one of the major dis-eases to rice. Antibacterial Cecropin B genehas been cloned and transformed into rice. Westudied the resistance to bacterial blight inCecropin B gene transgenic rices.Rice variety JYll9 transformed withCecropin B gene by particle bombardment andprogenies were randomly planted in the field in

Breeding of near-isogenic japonica rice lines with three major genes for resistance to bacterial blight

From 1986 to 1993, a set of near-isogenic japonicarice Iines with three major genes Xα-3, Xα - 4,and Xα-12 for resistance to bacterial blight(Xan-thomonas oryzae pv.oryzae)were developed anddesignated as CBB3, CBB4, and CBB12 respective-

Inheritance of resistance to bacterial streak and bacterial blight in rice

Bacterial streak (BS) caused by Xanthomonascampestris pv. oryzicola has become one of themajor diseases in southern rice areas. Up todate, there are few reports on the inheritanceof resistance to BS and its relationship with theresistance to bacterial blight (BB). Therefore,we analyzed the inheritance of resistant to BSin three resistant rice cultivars and the geneticrelationship of resistance between BS and BB.

Verification test on an innovated method for the studies on inheritance of resistance to rice sheath blight

We have recently developed a systematic method for the study on the inheritance of resistance to sheath blight. The key of the system is an innovated method of inoculation and investigation along with the employment of the permanent population. This paper reported the procedure of the system and the result of its verification.

Production of bacterial blight resistant lines from somatic hybridization between Oryza sativa L. and Oryza meyeriana L.

Novel bacterial blight (BB) resistance gene(s) for rice was (were) introduced into a cultivated japonica rice variety Oryza sativa (cv. 8411), via somatic hybridization using the wild rice Oryza meyeriana as the donor of the resistance gene(s). Twenty-nine progenies of somatically hybridized plants were obtained. Seven somatically hybridized plants and their parents were used for AFLP (amplified fragment length polymorphism) analysis using 8 primer pairs. Results confirmed that these plants were somatic hybrids containing the characteristic bands of both parents. The morphology of the regenerated rice showed characters of both O.sativa and O.meyeriana. Two somatic hybrids showed highest BB resistance and the other 8 plants showed moderate resistance. The new germplasms with highest resistance have been used in the rice breeding program for the improvement of bacterial blight resistance.