Indian Society of Genetics & Plant Breeding
This study was undertaken to elucidate the nature of inheritance of the two types
of drought tolerance in cowpea {Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walpl so that the drought
tolerant can be effectively used in breeding programme. Three cowpea lines viz
TVu 11986 willi 'Type l' drought tolerance, Dan IIa with 'Type 2' drought tolerance
and TVu 7718 as susceptible to drought were crossed in all possible combinations.
The genetic segregation revealed that drought tolerance is a dominant trait and both
'Type l' and 'Type 2' reactions are controlled by a single dominant gene but the
genes are different in the two types. These are being designated as 'Rds l' (resistance
to drought stress) and 'Rds2'. Test of allelism indicated that 'Type l' is dominant
over 'Type 2' and the F2 population between the two types segregated to 3 'Type
1': 1 'Type 2' plants indicating that the two genes for drought tolerance are either
alleles at the same locus or tightly liriked. Efforts are being made to transfer these
genes into improved varieties. However, due to allelic relationship, or close lirikage,
both types of drought tolerance may not be bred in the same cowpea line.
Keywords: Cowpea, Vigna unguiculata, drought tolerance, inheritance
Year: 1999
Volume: 59
Issue: 3
Article DOI: NA
Print ISSN: 0019-5200
Online ISSN: 0975-6906
Y. MAI-KODOMI, B. B. SINGH, T. TERAO, O. MYERS, JR., J. H. YOPP AND P. J. GIBSON info_circle
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