اعتماد التوصيف المظهري ل U.P.O.V في تحديد التقارب الوراثي عند أصناف القمح

Abstract

In order to determine the genetic similarity among 20 local wheat cultivars grown in the oases regions, we relied on the morphological characterization of U.P.O.V (International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants) traits. We measured and estimated the morphological characteristics of the spike, and this work was conducted in the field experimentation laboratories affiliated with the Faculty of Natural and Life Sciences at EL-Oued University during the 2022/2023. Through hierarchical cluster analysis of the U.P.O.V morphological characterization results, we clustered and classified the cultivars based on the levels of similarity in grain, spike shape, and internal arrangement of spikelets. By relying on these results, we estimated the genetic similarity among the cultivars, considering that the studied traits are heritable. We were able to distribute the cultivars into different clusters. The study found that among the studied traits, spike shape, compactness, distribution of awns on the spikes (at the spike), length and shape of the awn, hairiness on the glumes (at the glumes), as well as grain shape and hairiness at the tip of the grain (at the grain) were indicators of genetic similarity among wheat cultivars that can be relied upon in the process of cultivar grouping during selection and breeding based on phenotypic traits. Moreover, the results of the variance analysis for spike length, awn length, and number of grains among the studied wheat cultivars indicated the presence of diversity among the cultivars. This is supported by the values of the hierarchical cluster analysis, where deviations within the cultivars reached values of 15 and 18 within Cluster 1 and Cluster 2, respectively. These traits are related to spike characteristics, which further confirms that the diversity and adaptability of cultivars to environmental factors such as drought and water scarcity are more evident in wheat spikes compared to other plant traits.