Cost-Effective Markers and Candidate Genes Analysis at Wheat MQTL Loci.

Abstract

High-resolution melting analysis (HRM) is a resolutive technique, using PCR amplification and in-tube detection, which is based on the PCR product’s melting analysis. It is a promising technique for breeding analysis, as it does not require dedicated sequencing equipment. It can be performed using QRT-PCR equipment that can be available in small-medium molecular biology laboratories or locally by the breeders, and it does not require an electrophoretic step to analyze the amplified DNA fragments. To develop effective HRM assays, the search for highly polymorphic sites amenable to PCR amplification is a prerequisite, which is not an easy task in wheat due to its genome complexity. The insertion site-based polymorphism markers (ISBPs) are PCR markers designed based on the knowledge of the sequence flanking transposable element (TE) sequences. The two PCR primers are designed with one in the transposable element and the other in the flanking DNA sequence. TEs are very abundant and nested in the wheat genome, with unique (genome-specific) insertion sites that are highly polymorphic. In this work, we analyze the available HRM-ISBP assays for wheat 3B and 4A chromosomes, and update their applications in wheat diversity at drought and heat MQTL loci.