Evaluation of wheat Rht genes using molecular markers

Using STSs and SSR markers, three worldwide the most important major height reducing genes, Rht-B1b, Rht-D1b and Rht8 were evaluated in this paper. In the analysed set of hexaploid wheat, composed of 172 genotypes originated from more than 20 countries, Rht-B1b, Rht- D1b and Rht8 were found in 40%, 22% and 62% of cases, respectively. In genotype groups of domestic and foreign origin, the highest difference in allele frequency was determined in the case of Rht8, which was more frequent in domestic genotypes (78, 3%). The Rht-B1b was dominantly present in foreign germplasm (57, 6%). Portion of Rht-D1b was almost equal with 22, 6% in domestic and 21, 2% in foreign varieties. Obtained results and accepted methodology for detection of these three, the most important Rht genes, represent great start point for Marker Assisted Selection (MAS) for high yielding wheat genotypes in agro climatic conditions of Serbia and Mediterranean area.