GENETIC-ANALYSIS OF RESISTANCE TO KARNAL BUNT (TILLETIA-INDICA, MITRA) IN BREAD WHEAT

Karnal bunt caused by Tilletia indica in wheat seriously affects the q uality of the grains. It is important to generate information on the g enetics of resistance to this pathogen so as to aid resistance breedin g. For this purpose, four Karnal bunt-resistant lines from China, Braz il and CIMMYT (International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center) and a susceptible Indian cultivar, WL711, were used. The parents, F1 and F3 progenies of five parental diallel crosses revealed that independentl y segregating loci with three partial dominant resistance alleles were involved in the resistance of Karnal bunt. Lines RC7201/2BR2 and Roe k/Maya/NAC carried one locus for resistance while Shanghai#7 and Aldan /IAS58 have two and three loci, respectively. One common locus was pre sent in all four resistant parents, which imparted a high level of res istance.