Genetics, Vol. 178, 563-571, January 2008, Copyright © 2008
doi:10.1534/genetics.107.081414

Few Mendelian Genes Underlie the Quantitative Response of a Forest Tree, Eucalyptus globulus, to a Natural Fungal Epidemic

Jules S. Freeman1, Brad M. Potts and René E. Vaillancourt

School of Plant Science and Cooperative Research Centre for Forestry, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia

1 Corresponding author: School of Plant Science, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 55, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia.
E-mail: jsfreema{at}utas.edu.au

Foliar fungal pathogens from the genus Mycosphaerella affect eucalypts in natural forests and plantations worldwide. QTL analysis was conducted to dissect the genetic control of resistance in Eucalyptus globulus to a natural infection by Mycosphaerella leaf disease, using a clonally replicated outbred F2 family (112 genotypes) planted in a field trial. Two major QTL, with high LOD support (20.2 and 10.9) and high genomewide significance, explained a large proportion (52%) of the phenotypic variance in the severity of damage by Mycosphaerella cryptica, which may be indicative of oligogenic control. Both QTL were validated in a second F2 family and one was validated in a third F2 family. The mean values of different genotype classes at both major QTL argue for Mendelian inheritance with resistance dominant over susceptibility. There were strong correlations between the levels of Mycosphaerella damage in related genetic material planted in three widely separated locations in Tasmania. These findings together provide evidence that the genes controlling resistance to Mycosphaerella damage are stable in different genetic backgrounds and across different environments.