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Wheat breeding in Brazil began in 1919. A cross between the varieties Fronteira and Mentana gave rise to Frontana, the most popular ever released, being recommended for more than 40 years. Frontana played an important role as a source of resistance to leaf and stripe rust as well as resistance to preharvest sprouting. Possessing an early maturity cycle, it contributed to change the predominant varietal pattern at that time. The resistance gene Lr34 was first described in Frontana. The gene confers durable adult plant resistance to leaf rust and other biotrophic fungi. Because of its durability, stability across environments, haplotype diversity and wide geographical distribution, Lr34 is probably the most important single resistance gene in wheat. We evaluated 453 wheat varieties that have been released or recommended for cultivation in Brazil from 1922 to 2016 using KASPar markers to detect those varieties carrying the diagnostic mutations corresponding to the presence of the Lr34 resistance allele. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leaf rust, caused by the fungal pathogen Puccinia triticina, is a major threat to wheat production in many wheat-growing regions of the world. The introduction of leaf rust resistance genes into elite wheat germplasm is the preferred method of disease control, being environmentally friendly and crucial to sustained wheat production. Consequently, there is considerable value in identifying and characterizing new sources of leaf rust resistance. While many major, qualitative leaf rust resistance genes have been identified in wheat, a growing number of valuable sources of quantitative resistance have been reported. Here we review the progress made in the genetic identification of quantitative trait loci (QTL) for leaf rust resistance detected primarily in field analyses, i.e., adult plant resistance. Over the past 50 years, leaf rust resistance loci have been assigned to genomic locations through chromosome analyses and genetic mapping in biparental mapping populations, studies that represent 79 different wheat leaf rust resistance donor lines. In addition, seven association mapping studies have identified adult plant and seedling leaf rust resistance marker trait associations in over 4,000 wheal genotypes. Adult plant leaf rust resistance QTL have been found on all 21 chromosomes of hexaploid wheat, with the B genome carrying the greatest number of QTL. The group 2 chromosomes are also particularly rich in leaf rust resistance QTL. The A genome has the lowest number of QTL for leaf rust resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]