Mapping adult plant stem rust resistance in barley accessions Hietpas-5 and GAW-79

Key message Major stem rust resistance QTLs proposed to be Rpg2 from Hietpas-5 and Rpg3 from GAW-79 were identified in chromosomes 2H and 5H, respectively, and will enhance the diversity of stem rust resistance in barley improvement programs. Stem rust is a devastating disease of cereal crops worldwide. In barley (Hordeum vulgare ssp. vulgare), the disease is caused by two pathogens: Puccinia graminis f. sp. secalis (Pgs) and Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici (Pgt). In North America, the stem rust resistance gene Rpg1 has protected barley from serious losses for more than 60 years; however, widely virulent Pgt races from Africa in the Ug99 group threaten the crop. The accessions Hietpas-5 (CIho 7124) and GAW-79 (PI 382313) both possess moderate-to-high levels of adult plant resistance to stem rust and are the sources of the resistance genes Rpg2 and Rpg3, respectively. To identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) for stem rust resistance in Hietpas-5 and GAW-79, two biparental populations were developed with Hiproly (PI 60693), a stem rust-susceptible accession. Both populations were phenotyped to the North American Pgt races of MCCFC, QCCJB, and HKHJC in St. Paul, Minnesota, and to African Pgt races (predominately TTKSK in the Ug99 group) in Njoro, Kenya. In the Hietpas-5/Hiproly population, a major effect QTL was identified in chromosome 2H, which is proposed as the location for Rpg2. In the GAW-79/Hiproly population, a major effect QTL was identified in chromosome 5H and is the proposed location for Rpg3. These QTLs will enhance the diversity of stem rust resistance in barley improvement programs.