The inoculation of
Epichloë endophytes into modern cereals, resulting in systemic infection, depends on the genetics of both the host and the endophyte strain deployed. Until very recently, the only modern cereal to have been infected with
Epichloë, in which normal phenotype
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The inoculation of
Epichloë endophytes into modern cereals, resulting in systemic infection, depends on the genetics of both the host and the endophyte strain deployed. Until very recently, the only modern cereal to have been infected with
Epichloë, in which normal phenotype seed-transmitted associations were achieved, is rye (
Secale cereale). Whilst minor in-roads have been achieved in infecting hexaploid wheat (
Triticum aestivum), the phenotypes of these associations have all been extremely poor, including host death and stunting. To identify host genetic factors that may impact the compatibility of
Epichloë infection in wheat, wheat–alien chromosome addition/substitution lines were inoculated with
Epichloë, and the phenotypes of infected plants were assessed. Symbioses were identified whereby infected wheat plants were phenotypically like uninfected controls. These plants completed their full lifecycle, including the vertical transmission of
Epichloë into the next generation of grain, and represent the first ever compatible wheat–
Epichloë associations to be created.
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