Comparative RFLP mapping of the chlorotoluron resistance gene (Su1) in cultivated wheat (Triticum aestivum) and wild wheat (Triticum dicoccoides)

Chlorotoluron is a selective phenylurea herbicide widely used for broad-leaved and annual grass weed control in cereals. Variation in the response to chlorotoluron (CT) was found in both hexaploid bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and wild tetraploid wheat (Triticum dicoccoides KöRN.). Here, we describe the comparative mapping of the CT resistance gene (Su1) on chromosome 6B in bread and wild wheat using RFLP markers. In bread wheat, mapping was based on 58 F(4) single-seed descent (SSD) plants of the cross between a genotype sensitive to chlorotoluron, 'Chinese Spring' (CS), and a resistant derivative, the single chromosome substitution line, CS ('Cappele-Desprez' 6B) [CS (CAP6B). In T dicoccoides, mapping was based on 37 F(2) plants obtained from the cross between the CT-susceptible accession B-7 and the resistant accession B-35. Nine RFLP probes spanning the centromere were chosen for mapping. In bread wheat Su1 was found to be linked to alpha-Amy-1 (9.84 cM) and Xpsr371 (5.2 cM), both on the long arm of 6B, and Nor2 (2.74 cM) on the short arm. In wild wheat the most probable linkage map was Nor2-Xpsr312-Su1-Pgk2, and the genetic distances between the genes were 24.8cM, 5.3cM, and 6.8cM, respectively. These results along with other published map data indicate that the linear order of the genes is similar to that found in T. aestivum. The results of this study also show that the Su1 gene for differential response to chlorotoluron has evolved prior to the domestication of cultivated wheat and not in response to the development and use of chemicals.