Eastern Filbert Blight Resistance in Hazelnut Accessions ‘Culplà’, ‘Crvenje’, and OSU 495.072

Abstract

European hazelnut (Corylus avellana L.) is a significant crop in Oregon, where 99% of United States hazelnuts are produced. Eastern filbert blight (EFB) caused by Anisogramma anomala (Peck) E. Müller is an important disease that infects the trees, reduces yield, and causes premature death. Managing the disease through cultural methods and fungicide applications is laborious and expensive, and genetic host resistance is considered the most viable option for control. Genetic resistance from ‘Gasaway’ has been used to develop resistant cultivars including Yamhill and Jefferson, but concern about the durability of this single resistance gene stimulated a search for additional sources of resistance. This study used three recently identified sources of EFB resistance: ‘Culplà’ from Spain, ‘Crvenje’ from Serbia, and OSU 495.072 from southern Russia. RAPD markers linked to resistance from ‘Gasaway’ were absent in all three accessions. Disease response was noted in segregating progenies following greenhouse or structure inoculation, and the resistance loci were mapped using microsatellite markers. In only four of the nine progenies did segregation for disease response fit the ratio of 1 resistant:1 susceptible expected for a single locus, a heterozygous resistant parent, and a dominant allele for resistance. Three progenies showed an excess of resistant seedlings while two showed a deficiency of resistant seedlings. The reciprocal translocations reported in several leading hazelnut cultivars may be present in the parents of the studied progenies, and affecting the segregation ratios. Microsatellite marker A614, previously mapped to linkage group (LG) 6, was closely linked to resistance from all three sources. Maps were constructed for LG6 for each resistant parent using microsatellite markers. The three resistance loci mapped to the same region on LG6 where resistance from ‘Gasaway’ and OSU 408.040 are located. The resistance alleles in all five accessions may be the same, or more likely are a cluster of different resistance genes in the same region. Markers LG628, LG610, and LG696 will be useful to breed new hazelnut cultivars with resistance from Culplà, Crvenje, and OSU 495.072.