The Effect Of Photoperiod And Vernalization Alleles And Their Combinations On Phenological Development And Agronomic Traits In Common Wheat Under Autumn And Spring Sowing Conditions

Wheat is a major food crop which is important to food security.In many climates around the world,wheat(Triticum aestivum L.)is cultivated depending on rainfall and temperature ranges during the growing season.Two of the most important physiological factors affecting its phenology are its response to vernalization and photoperiod,which are influenced by allelic variation at the corresponding VRN-1 and PPD-1 loci.To investigate the effect of these genes and their alleles on phenological stage,morphological traits,yield and related trait across two sowing conditions,we genotyped 61 varieties for VRN-1 and PPD-1 alleles using molecular markers and carried out analysis to uncover the association with the data collected.1.Molecular characterization of Vrn and Ppd alleles of wheat panelFrom the genotyping result,the wheat varieties carrying the winter alleles of vrn-A1,vrn-B1,and vrn-D1 constituted the vast majority,representing 38,44,and 54 varieties,respectively.When it comes to PPD-1 loci,varieties with the sensitive alleles of Ppd-A1 b,Ppd-D1 b and the insensitive alleles Ppd-B1 a constituted the majority,representing 53,41,and 48 varieties respectively.2.The effect of VRN-1 and PPD-1 on phenology stagesThe results revealed that the earlier heading(HD),and flowering(FD)conferred by spring alleles for VRN-1 genes and the insensitive alleles of PPD-1 genes was consistent under both autumn and spring sowing conditions.The effects of a single dominant allele of VRN-1 were similar,with an additive effects when combined.The effects of a single PPD-1 insensitive allele differed,with Ppd-D1 a stronger than Ppd-B1 a,and Ppd-A1 a was the least,with an additive effects when combined.3.The effect of VRN-1 and PPD-1 on morphological traitsVarieties sown under spring condition recorded a larger flag leaf area than that sown under autumn condition regardless of the single and combined influence at the VRN-1 and PPD-1 loci.Varieties with spring alleles reduced plant height,flag leaf length,and flag leaf area under spring conditions.When compared to other genes,PPD-D1 had a consistent and significant effect on flag leaf area,and plant height across both sowing conditions.In addition,varieties with the Ppd-A1 a,Ppd-B1 b,and Ppd-D1 b alleles lowered flag leaf width at different magnitude.The effect of the various combinations of these VRN-1 and PPD-1 alleles on morphological traits differs based on the genetic background.4.The effect of VRN-1 and PPD-1 on spike and yield traitsVarieties cultivated under ASC showed no significant differences in grain yield,biomass,grain number per spike,or harvest index when considering the single allelic effect of VRN-1 alleles.The sensitive allele Ppd-D1 b had larger biomass across both sowing conditions,but the Ppd-D1 a insensitive allele recorded higher yield.The impact of PPD-D1 gene on grain yield was evident across both sowing conditions.The PPD-1 gene had a substantial effect on Grain number per spike,spike length,spikelet per spike,and spike fertility.The Ppd-D1 b sensitive allele raises grain number per spike,spike length,and spikelet per spike by 6.2%,23.5%,and 6.9%,respectively.The Ppd-D1 b impact resulted in a 10.6% drop in spike fertility.However,the effect of the different combinations of these VRN-1 and PPD-1 alleles on spike and yield traits differs based on the genetic background.Overall,according to the findings of this study,VRN-1 and PPD-1 genes impact in modulating phenology stages,morphological,spike and yield traits was dependent on the sowing conditions and also on genetic background with the spring and insensitive alleles poised to be favored for selection.