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CURRENT STATUS OF THE OCCURRENCE AND DISTRIBUTION OF (PUCCINIA TRITICINA) WHEAT LEAF RUST VIRULENCE IN PAKISTAN

M. FAYYAZ¹, A. R. RATTU¹, I. AHMAD¹, M.A. AKHTAR¹, A.A. HAKRO¹ AND A. MUJEEB-KAZI²

Abstract: Leaf rust caused by Puccinia triticina Eriks & Henn., is a serious fungal wheat disease of global occurrence. In order to determine its presence and virulence distribution within Pakistan, a trap nursery comprising of 39 isogenic wheat lines and 12 commercial bread wheat varieties carrying different Lr genes were planted and evaluated at 5 locations over 2 consecutive crop cycles; 2004-05 and 2005-06. The study objectives were to identify the naturally prevailing leaf rust virulences. Entries with leaf rust genes Lr9, Lr19 and Lr28 were resistant at all locations. Leaf rust genes Lr1, Lr2a, Lr2b, Lr2c, Lr3, Lr3ka, Lr3bg, Lr10, Lr11, Lr12, Lr14b, Lr15, Lr16, Lr17, Lr18, Lr20, Lr21, Lr23, Lr24, Lr25, Lr26, Gatcher (10, 27+31), Lr29, Lr30, Lr32, Lr33, Lrb and Lr23+ indicated presence of virulence at most of the locations. The genes Lr13, Lr22a, Lr34 and Lr35 possessed virulence at Karachi and Nawabshah. Partial virulence was observed on genes Lr36 and Lr37 at three locations. Majority of the commercial wheat varieties in Sindh showed susceptibility against leaf rust. Utilization of this data for wheat improvement coupled with national varietal and gene deployment is discussed.

¹Crop Disease Research Programme (CDRP), National Agricultural Research Center (NARC), Islamabad, Pakistan
²National Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering (NIBGE), Faisalabad, Pakistan.