ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Genetics, Epigenetics and Chromosome Biology
This article is part of the Research TopicMeiotic Recombination and DNA Repair: New Approaches to Solve Old Questions in Model and Non-Model Plant Species - Volume IIView all 3 articles
Accumulation of ph1 (zip4-5B) and ph2 (msh7-3D) mutations fails to boost homoeologous recombination in hexaploid wheat
Provisionally accepted
Pierre Sourdille1,2*
Camille HAQUET1,2*
Isabelle NADAUD1,2
Azahara Carmen Martin3Maria-Dolores REY4Asma BEN BOUSLAH1,2
Carus John-Bejai5
Graham Moore6- 1INRAE Clermont-Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Lyon, France
- 2Genetique Diversite Ecophysiologie des Cereales, Clermont-Ferrand, France
- 3Instituto de Agricultura Sostenible, Córdoba, Spain
- 4Universidad de Cordoba, Córdoba, Spain
- 5KWS UK Ltd, Thriplow, United Kingdom
- 6John Innes Centre Department of Crop Genetics, Norwich, United Kingdom
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Diversification of the hexaploid (bread) wheat genetic pool using wild genetic resources relies on effective meiotic recombination (crossover) between wheat chromosomes and their counterparts from related species (homoeologues). However, crossover between homoeologues is normally suppressed by two major genes, ZIP4-5B (Ph1) and MSH7-3D (Ph2). We investigated the effect of introducing zip4-5B and/or msh7-3D mutations into interspecific hybrids derived from crosses between wheat and Aegilops variabilis. Single and double mutants were exploited in Chinese Spring (CS) and Cadenza (Cad) genetic backgrounds, as well as in a CS/Cad recombinant background. Meiotic cells at metaphase I were scored for univalents, bivalents, and multivalents, from which chiasma numbers were deduced. We demonstrated a non-cumulative effect of simultaneous zip4-5B and msh7-3D mutations on homoeologous recombination, as homoeologous crossovers reached a maximum when ZIP4-5B alone was mutated. We also showed that hybrids carrying both the zip4-5B and msh7-3D mutations in the same genetic background exhibited a higher recombination rate compared to a double mutant in the CS/Cad recombinant background. The progression of meiosis was also monitored in the various interspecific hybrids mutants, revealing clear disruptions. Thus, our study provides key insights for optimizing the introgression of beneficial alleles from wild relatives into elite wheat germplasm; first by demonstrating the efficiency of ZIP4-5B and MSH7-3D mutations independently and in combination and second by elucidating the influence of the genetic background in which these mutations are present in an interspecific hybrid context.
Keywords: Chiasmata, Crossover, Homoeologous recombination, Homologous Recombination, Meiosis, synapsis
Received: 27 Oct 2025; Accepted: 08 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Sourdille, HAQUET, NADAUD, Martin, REY, BEN BOUSLAH, John-Bejai and Moore. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Pierre Sourdille
Camille HAQUET
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