Allele Distribution at Microsatellite Locus Xgwm 261 Marking the Dwarfing Gene Rht8 in Hexaploid Wheat from Bulgarian and Belgian Gene Bank Collections and its Application in Breeding Programs

The study of inheritance and distribution of alleles linked to important agronomic characters is of a great value for planning breeding programs directed towards development of high-yielding hexaploid wheat varieties. The wheat microsatellite marker Xgwm 261 is of particular interest to international breeders because of its association with a commercially significant reduced height phenotype. The allele distribution at the tightly linked to the dwarfing gene Rht8 microsatellite Xgwm 261 locus was analyzed in the modern hexaploid wheat varieties and advanced breeding lines from the gene bank of Dobrudja Agricultural Institute (DAI), G. Toshevo, Bulgaria and CRAW, Gembloux, Belgium. A prevalence of 192 bp allele at Xgwm 261 was found in Bulgarian and other South-Eastern European wheat varieties collected at DAI, G. Toshevo, Bulgaria thus indicating the adaptive significance of the corresponding allele of Rht8 gene in this geographical region. The majority of wheat varieties from CRAW gene bank, Belgium carried 174 bp and 164 bp allele variants and only few of them were with 192 and 196 bp. The study demonstrated that a limited number of varieties and advanced breeding lines from the gene bank of Dobrudja Agricultural Institute-G. Toshevo, Bulgaria carried 164bp, 174bp, 194 bp, 196 bp and Xgwm 261 variants over 200bp.