Inheritance of Resistance to Loquat Canker (Group C) in Progenies Derived from ‘Shiromogi’ Loquat

Abstract

Loquat canker (Pseudomonas syringae pv. eriobotryae) is a serious disease of loquat (Eriobotrya japonica), and no commercial cultivar in Japan is resistant to all strains of the disease. Loquat cultivar Shiromogi, which was selected from progeny seedlings of ‘Mogi’, is resistant to loquat canker Group C and has good fruit characteristics. This study was conducted to determine the inheritance of resistance to loquat canker Group C in ‘Shiromogi’. Seedlings produced from crosses between two resistant and 13 susceptible genotypes were classified as either resistant (R) or susceptible (S) based on the appearance of black–brown cankers ≈2 months after inoculation with a bacterial suspension of loquat canker Group C. Cross combinations between resistant parents ‘Champagne’ and ‘Shiromogi’ and selfing of ‘Shiromogi’ produced all resistant seedlings. Most crosses between ‘Shiromogi’ and susceptible parents either produced only susceptible seedlings or segregated for resistance in a ratio of 1 R:1 S. Seedlings produced by selfing two of the susceptible parents segregated in a ratio of 1 R:3 S. These results indicate that the resistance to loquat canker Group C of ‘Shiromogi’ is conferred by a single recessive gene, designated pse-c. Based on the crossing tests, we conclude that resistant parents ‘Shiromogi’ and ‘Champagne’ are homozygous for pse-c; the susceptible parents ‘Fukuharawase’, ‘Fusahikari’, ‘Gold Nugget’, ‘Kusunoki’, Nagasaki No. 2, ‘Tanaka’, ‘Tsukumo’, and ‘Yougyoku’ are homozygous for Pse-c; and the other susceptible parents in this experiment (‘Mogi’, ‘Nagasakiwase’, Nagasaki No. 3, ‘Taisho’, and 75-142) are heterozygous. Based on the pedigree of ‘Shiromogi’ and the results reported here, pse-c is probably derived from ‘Mogi’, a major cultivar in Japan.