Breeding for improved water productivity in temperate cereals: phenotyping, quantitative trait loci, markers and the selection environment
Richard A. Richards A B , Greg J. Rebetzke A , Michelle Watt A , A. G. (Tony) Condon A , Wolfgang Spielmeyer A and Rudy Dolferus AA CSIRO Plant Industry, PO Box 1600, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.
B Corresponding author. Email: richard.richards@csiro.au
Functional Plant Biology 37(2) 85-97 https://doi.org/10.1071/FP09219
Submitted: 12 August 2009 Accepted: 15 December 2009 Published: 3 February 2010
Abstract
Consistent gains in grain yield in dry environments have been made by empirical breeding although there is disturbing evidence that these gains may have slowed. There are few examples where an understanding of the physiology and the genetics of putative important drought-related traits has led to improved yields. Success will first depend on identifying the most important traits in the target regions. It will then depend on accurate and fast phenotyping, which, in turn, will lead to: (1) trait-based selection being immediately transferable into breeding operations and (2) being able to identify the underlying genes or the important genomic regions (quantitative trait loci), perhaps leading to efficient marker-based selection (MBS). Genetic complexity, extent of genotype × environment (G × E) interaction and sampling cost per line will determine value of phenotyping over MBS methods. Here, we review traits of importance in dry environments and review whether molecular or phenotypic selection methods are likely to be the most effective in crop improvement programs and where the main bottlenecks to selection are. We also consider whether selection for these traits should be made in dry environments or environments where there is no soil water limitation. The development of lines/populations for trait validation studies and for varietal development is also described. We firstly conclude that despite the spectacular improvements in molecular technologies, fast and accurate phenotyping remains the major bottleneck to enhancing yield gains in water-limited environments. Secondly, for most traits of importance in dry environments, selection is generally conducted most effectively in favourable moisture environments.
Additional keywords: drought, dwarfing genes, indirect selection, phenomics, root architecture, stem carbohydrates, transpiration efficiency, vigour, water use efficiency, wheat.
Allan RE
(1980) Influence of semidwarfism and genetic background on stand establishment of wheat. Crop Science 20, 634–638.
Araki H, Iijima M
(2001) Deep rooting in winter wheat: rooting of nodes of deep roots in two cultivars with deep and shallow root systems. Plant Production Science 4, 215–219.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
PubMed |
Blacklow WM,
Darbyshire B, Pheloung P
(1984) Fructans polymerised and depolymerised in the internodes of winter wheat as grain filling progressed. Plant Science Letters 36, 213–218.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Bonnett DG,
Rebetzke GJ, Spielmeyer W
(2005) Strategies for efficient implementation of molecular markers in wheat breeding. Molecular Breeding 15, 75–85.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Cattivelli L,
Rizza F,
Badeck FW,
Mazzucotelli E,
Mastrangelo AM,
Francia E,
Marè C,
Tondelli A, Stanca AM
(2008) Drought tolerance improvement in crop plants: an integrated view from breeding to genomics. Field Crops Research 105, 1–14.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Cavanagh C,
Morell M,
Mackay I, Powell W
(2008) From mutations to MAGIC: resources for gene discovery, validation and delivery in crop plants. Current Opinion in Plant Biology 11, 215–221.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed |
Christopher JT,
Manschadi AM,
Hammer GL, Borrell AK
(2008) Development and physiological traits associated with high yield and stay-green phenotype in wheat. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 59, 354–364.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Clarke JM
(1986) Effect of leaf rolling on leaf water loss in Triticum spp. Canadian Journal of Plant Science 66, 885–891.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Coleman RK,
Gill GS, Rebetzke GJ
(2001) Identification of quantitative trait loci for traits conferring weed competitiveness in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 52, 1235–1246.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Condon AG, Richards RA
(1992) Broad sense heritability and genotype × environment interaction for carbon isotope discrimination in field-grown wheat. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 43, 921–934.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Condon AG,
Richards RA, Farquhar GD
(1992) The effect of variation in soil water availability, vapour pressure deficit and nitrogen nutrition on carbon isotope discrimination in wheat. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 43, 935–947.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Cooper PJM,
Gregory PJ, Keatinge JDH
(1987) Effects of fertilizer, variety and location on barley production under rainfed conditions in northern Syria. 2. Soil water dynamics and crop water use. Field Crops Research 16, 67–84.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Dreccer MF,
van Herwaarden AF, Chapman SC
(2009) Grain number and grain weight in wheat lines contrasting for stem water soluble carbohydrate concentration. Field Crops Research 112(1), 43–54.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Duggan BL,
Richards RA, Tsuyuzaki H
(2002) Environmental effects on stunting and the expression of a tiller inhibition (tin) gene in wheat. Functional Plant Biology 29, 45–53.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Duggan BL,
Richards RA, van Herwaarden AF
(2005) Agronomic evaluation of a tiller inhibition gene (tin) in wheat. II. Growth and partitioning of assimilate. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 56, 179–186.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Ehdaie B,
Whitkus RW, Waines JG
(2003) Root biomass, water-use efficiency, and performance of wheat-rye translocations of chromosomes 1 and 2 in spring bread wheat “Pavon”. Crop Science 43, 710–717.
Ellis MH,
Rebetzke GJ,
Chandler P,
Bonnett D,
Spielmeyer W, Richards RA
(2004) The effect of different height reducing genes on the early growth of wheat. Functional Plant Biology 31, 583–589.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Ellis MH,
Rebetzke GJ,
Spielmeyer W,
Richards RA, Bonnett DB
(2005) Molecular mapping of gibberellin-responsive dwarfing genes in bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Theoretical and Applied Genetics 111, 423–430.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
PubMed |
Farquhar GD, Richards RA
(1984) Isotopic composition of plant carbon correlates with water-use efficiency of wheat genotypes. Australian Journal of Plant Physiology 11, 539–552.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Fischer RA, Turner NC
(1978) Plant productivity in the arid and semiarid zones. Annual Review of Plant Physiology 29, 277–317.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Furbank RT
(2009) Plant phenomics: from gene to form and function. Functional Plant Biology 36, v–vi.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Ho MD,
Rosas JC,
Brown KM, Lynch JP
(2005) Root architectural tradeoffs for water and phosphorus acquisition. Functional Plant Biology 32, 737–748.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Johnson DA,
Richards RA, Turner NC
(1983) Yield, water relations, gas exchange, and surface reflectances of near-isogenic wheat lines differing in glaucousness. Crop Science 23, 318–325.
Keyes GJ,
Paolillo DJ, Sorrells ME
(1989) The effects of dwarfing genes Rht1 and Rht2 on cellular dimensions and rate of leaf elongation in wheat. Annals of Botany 64, 683–690.
Kirkegaard JA
(1995) A review of trends in wheat yield responses to conservation cropping in Australia. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture 35, 835–848.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Kirkegaard JA,
Lilley JM,
Howe GN, Graham JM
(2007) Impact of subsoil water use on wheat yield. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 58, 303–315.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Kuchel H,
Fox R,
Reinheimer J,
Mosionek L,
Willey N,
Bariana H, Jefferies S
(2007) The successful application of a marker-assisted wheat breeding strategy. Molecular Breeding 20, 295–308.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Lekberg Y, Koide RT
(2005) Is plant performance limited by abundance of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi? A meta-analysis of studies published between 1988 and 2003. New Phytologist 168, 189–204.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
PubMed |
Liang YL, Richards RA
(1994) Coleoptile tiller development is associated with fast early vigour in wheat. Euphytica 80, 119–124.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Liao M,
Fillery IRP, Palta JA
(2004) Early vigorous growth is a major factor influencing nitrogen uptake in wheat. Functional Plant Biology 31, 121–129.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Liao M,
Palta JA, Fillery IRP
(2006) Root characteristics of vigorous wheat improves early nitrogen uptake. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 57, 1097–1107.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Lilley JM, Kirkegaard JA
(2007) Seasonal variation in the value of subsoil water to wheat: simulation studies in southern New South Wales. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 58, 1115–1128.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Lopes MS, Reynolds M
(2010) Partitioning of assimilates to deeper roots is associated with cooler canopies and increased yield under drought in wheat. Functional Plant Biology 37(2), 147–156.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Lòpez-Castañeda C, Richards RA
(1994) Variation in temperate cereals in rainfed environments. II. Phasic development and growth. Field Crops Research 37, 63–75.
| Crossref |
Lòpez-Castañeda C,
Richards RA,
Farquhar GD, Williamson RE
(1996) Seed and seedling characteristics contributing to variation in early vigour among temperate cereals. Crop Science 36, 1257–1266.
Manschadi AM,
Christopher J,
de Voil P, Hammer GL
(2006) The role of root architectural traits in adaptation of wheat to water-limited environments. Functional Plant Biology 33, 823–837.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Manschadi AM,
Hammer GL,
Christopher JT, deVoil P
(2008) Genotypic variation in seedling root architectural traits and implications for drought adaptation in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Plant Soil 303, 115–129.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Miralles DJ,
Slafer GA, Lynch V
(1997) Rooting patterns in near-isogenic lines of spring wheat for dwarfism. Plant and Soil 197, 79–86.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Morgan JM
(1991) A gene controlling differences in osmoregulation in wheat. Australian Journal of Plant Physiology 18, 249–257.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Morgan JM
(1999) Pollen grain expression of a gene controlling differences in osmoregulation in wheat leaves: a simple breeding method. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 50, 953–962.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Morgan JM
(2000) Increases in grain yield of wheat by breeding for an osmoregulation gene: relationship to water supply and evaporative demand. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 51, 971–978.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Morgan JM, Tan MK
(1996) Chromosomal location of a wheat osmoregulation gene using RFLP analysis. Australian Journal of Plant Physiology 23, 803–806.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Ogbonnaya FC,
Subrahmanyam NC,
Moullet O,
deMajnik J,
Eagles HA,
Brown JS,
Eastwood RF,
Kollmorgen J,
Appels R, Lagudah ES
(2001) Diagnostic DNA markers for cereal cyst nematode resistance in bread wheat. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 52, 1367–1374.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Olivares-Villegas JJ,
Reynolds MP, McDonald GK
(2007) Drought-adaptive attributes in the Seri/Babax hexaploid wheat population. Functional Plant Biology 34, 189–203.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Oliver SN,
Van Dongen JT,
Alfred SC,
Mamun EA, Zhao X ,
et al
.
(2005) Cold-induced repression of the rice anther-specific cell wall invertase gene OSINV4 is correlated with sucrose accumulation and pollen sterility. Plant, Cell & Environment 28, 1534–1551.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Passioura JB
(1972) The effect of root geometry on yield of wheat growing on stored water. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 23, 745–752.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Passioura JB
(2006) Increasing crop productivity when water is scarce – from breeding to field management. Agricultural Water Management 80, 176–196.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Passioura JB, Angus JF
(2010) Improving productivity of crops in water-limited environments. Advances in Agronomy (in press). ,
Rebetzke GJ, Richards RA
(1999) Genetic improvement of early vigour in wheat. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 50, 291–301.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Rebetzke GJ,
Bruce SE, Kirkegaard JA
(2005) Longer coleoptiles improve emergence through crop residues to increase seedling number and biomass in wheat. Plant and Soil 272, 87–100.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Rebetzke GJ,
Richards RA,
Condon AG, Farquhar GD
(2006) Inheritance of carbon isotope discrimination in bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Euphytica 150, 97–106.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Rebetzke GJ,
Richards RA,
Fettell NA,
Long M,
Condon AG, Botwright TL
(2007a) Genotypic increases in coleoptile length improves wheat establishment, early vigour and grain yield with deep sowing. Field Crops Research 100, 10–23.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Rebetzke GJ,
Ellis MH,
Bonnett DG, Richards RA
(2007b) Molecular mapping of genes for coleoptile growth in bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Theoretical and Applied Genetics 114, 1173–1183.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
PubMed |
Rebetzke GJ,
Condon AG,
Richards RA,
Appels R, Farquhar GD
(2008a) Quantitative trait loci for carbon isotope discrimination are repeatable across environments and wheat mapping populations. Theoretical and Applied Genetics 118, 123–137.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
PubMed |
Rebetzke GJ,
van Herwaarden A,
Jenkins C,
Ruuska S,
Tabe L,
Lewis D,
Weiss M,
Fettell N, Richards RA
(2008b) Quantitative trait loci for water soluble carbohydrates and associations with agronomic traits in wheat. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 59, 891–905.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Reynolds M, Tuberosa R
(2008) Translational research impacting on crop productivity in drought-prone environments. Current Opinion in Plant Biology 11(2), 171–179.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed |
Reynolds MP,
Saint Pierre C,
Vargas M,
Saad ASI, Condon AG
(2007) Evaluating potential genetic gains in wheat associated with stress-adaptive trait expression in elite genetic resources under drought and heat stress. Crop Science 47, S172–S189.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Richards RA
(1988) A tiller inhibitor gene in wheat and its effect on plant growth. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 39, 749–757.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Richards RA
(1991) Crop improvement for temperate Australia: future opportunities. Field Crops Research 26, 141–169.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Richards RA
(1992a) The effect of dwarfing genes in spring wheat in dry environments. I. Agronomic characteristics. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 43, 517–527.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Richards RA
(1992b) The effect of dwarfing genes in spring wheat in dry environments. II. Growth, water use and water use efficiency. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 43, 529–539.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Richards RA
(2006) Physiological traits used in the breeding of new cultivars for water-scarce environments. Agricultural Water Management 80, 197–211.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Richards RA, Lukacs Z
(2002) Seedling vigour in wheat – sources of variation for genetic and agronomic improvement. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 53, 41–50.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Richards RA, Passioura JB
(1989) A breeding program to reduce the diameter of the major xylem vessel in the seminal roots of wheat and its effect on grain yield in rain-fed environments. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 40, 943–950.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Richards RA,
Rawson HM, Johnson DA
(1986) Glaucousness in wheat: its development and effect on water-use efficiency gas exchange and photosynthetic tissue temperatures. Australian Journal of Plant Physiology 13, 465–473.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Richards RA,
Rebetzke GJ,
Condon AG, van Herwaarden AF
(2002) Breeding opportunities for increasing the efficiency of water use and crop yield in temperate cereals. Crop Science 42, 111–121.
| PubMed |
Richards RA,
Watt M, Rebetzke GJ
(2007) Physiological traits and cereal germplasm for sustainable agricultural systems. Euphytica 154, 409–425.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Ries SK, Everson EH
(1973) Protein content and seed size relationship with seedling vigour of wheat cultivars. Agronomy Journal 65, 884–886.
Ruuska S,
Rebetzke GJ,
van Herwaarden A,
Richards RA,
Fettell N,
Tabe L, Jenkins C
(2006) Genotypic variation in water-soluble carbohydrate accumulation in wheat. Functional Plant Biology 33, 799–809.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Saini HS, Westgate ME
(2000) Reproductive development in grain crops during drought. Advances in Agronomy 68, 59–96.
| Crossref |
Sanguineti MC,
Li S,
Maccaferri M,
Corneti S,
Rotondo F,
Chiari T, Tuberosa R
(2007) Genetic dissection of seminal root architecture in elite durum wheat germplasm. The Annals of Applied Biology 151, 291–305.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Sasaki T,
Ryan PR,
Delhaize E,
Hebb DM, Ogihara Y ,
et al
.
(2006) Sequence upstream of the wheat (Triticum aestivum L). ALMT1 gene and its relationship to aluminium resistance. Plant & Cell Physiology 47, 1343–1354.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
PubMed |
Schillinger WF,
Donaldson E,
Allan RE, Jones SS
(1998) Winter wheat seedling emergence from deep sowing depths. Agronomy Journal 90, 582–586.
Spielmeyer W, Richards RA
(2004) Comparative mapping of wheat chromosome 1AS which contains the tiller inhibition gene (tin) with rice chromosome 5S. Theoretical and Applied Genetics 109, 1303–1310.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
PubMed |
Spielmeyer W,
Hyles H,
Paul J,
Azanza F,
Bonnett D,
Ellis M,
Moore C, Richards RA
(2007) A QTL on chromosome 6A in bread wheat (Triticum aestivum) is associated with longer coleoptiles, greater seedling vigour and final plant height. Theoretical and Applied Genetics 115, 59–66.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
PubMed |
Tsunewaki K, Ebana K
(1999) Production of near-isogenic lines of common wheat for glaucousness and genetic basis of this trait clarified by their use. Genes & Genetic Systems 74, 33–41.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Turner NC, Asseng S
(2005) Productivity, sustainability, and rainfall use efficiency in Australian Mediterranean rainfall agricultural systems. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 56, 1123–1136.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
van Herwaarden AF,
Farquhar GD,
Angus JF,
Richards RA, Howe GN
(1998a) ‘Haying-off’, the negative grain yield response of dryland wheat to nitrogen fertilizer I. Biomass, grain yield, and water use. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 49, 1067–1081.
| Crossref |
van Herwaarden AF,
Angus JF,
Richards RA, Farquhar GD
(1998b) ‘Haying-off’, the negative grain yield response of dryland wheat to nitrogen fertiliser. II. Carbohydrate and protein dynamics. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 49, 1083–1093.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Watt M,
Kirkegaard JA, Rebetzke GJ
(2005) A wheat genotype developed for rapid leaf growth copes well with the physical and biological constraints of unploughed soil. Functional Plant Biology 32, 695–706.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Watt M,
Magee LJ, McCully ME
(2008) Types, structure and potential for axial water flow in the deepest roots of field-grown cereals. New Phytologist 178, 135–146.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed |
Weyhrich RA,
Carver BF, Smith EL
(1994) Effects of awn suppression on grain yield and agronomic traits in hard red winter wheat. Crop Science 34, 965–969.
Xue G,
McIntyre CL,
Rattey AR,
van Herwaarden AF, Shorter R
(2009) Use of dry matter content as a rapid and low-cost estimate for ranking genotypic differences in water-soluble carbohydrate concentrations in the stem and leaf sheath of Triticum aestivum. Crop & Pasture Science 60, 51–59.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
CAS |
Zenone T,
Morelli G,
Teobaldelli M,
Fischanger F,
Matteucci M,
Sordini M,
Armani A,
Ferre C,
Chiti T, Seufert G
(2008) Preliminary use of ground-penetrating radar and electrical resistivity tomography to study roots in pine forests and poplar plantations. Functional Plant Biology 35, 1047–1058.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
