DETECTION OF TERMINAL DELETIONS IN BARLEY CHROMOSOMES BY THE PCR-BASED METHOD

Barley chromosomes have barley-specific repetitive sequences (HvTO1) i n the subtelomeric regions. The subtelomeric repeats were amplified by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in II wheat-barley telosome addit ion lines, but no or little amplification occurred in the euploid comm on wheat cultivar 'Chinese Spring'. A gametocidal chromosome 2C, deriv ed from an Aegilops cylindrica chromosome, induces chromosome breaks i n Chinese Spring. To explore the potential of using PCR as a screen fo r barley telosomes with terminal deletions, induced by chromosome 2C, the progeny of a barley ditelosomic (6HS) addition Line of Chinese Spr ing carrying chromosome 2C was investigated. The progeny plants in whi ch DNA amplification occurred by PCR always had a normal 6HS whereas t hose in which no DNA amplification was observed carried either no 6HS or a 6HS telosome with a deletion. Ln this work the PCR based assay de scribed is shown to be a robust and reliable method of identifying ter minal deletions in barley telosomes in a Chinese Spring background.