Identification of a microsatellite marker linked with powdery mildew resistance gene Pm6 in wheat

Wheat powdery mildew, caused by Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici, is a prevalent disease worldwide. Breeding and planting resistance cultivars have been proved effective and environmental friendly for control of the disease. To develop easily used PCR-based markers in marker assisted selection (MAS) for Pm6, a dominant powdery mildew resistance gene in wheat, 25 microsatellite markers on chromosome 2BL in wheat were screened between susceptible parent Yumai13 and resistance parent Timgalen carrying Pm6. F_2 population derived from Yumai13 and Timgalen was further analyzed by the marker Xgwm501. The results indicated that Xgwm501 was a co-dominant marker linked to Pm6 gene at a distance of 14.8 cM. 29 Pm-carrying varieties were tested by the marker Xgwm501 and only those carrying Pm6 showed 117 bp resistance specific band. This marker is proved to have high practicability and can be used in MAS of Pm6 gene in wheat breeding programs.