Effect of 2NS translocation on wheat head blast resistance and grain production

Abstract Wheat head blast (WHB), caused by the fungus Pyricularia oryzae pathotype Triticum (PoT), is a major disease affecting wheat in the Brazilian Cerrado region. This disease can significantly reduce grain yield because the environmental conditions in the tropical Cerrado biome favor PoT infection of wheat heads. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of the 2NS/AS translocation on WHB resistance and its impact on key yield components across multiple environments in the southern region of Minas Gerais state. As a result, eight wheat cultivars were evaluated under field conditions over five consecutive growing seasons (2021–2025). Disease incidence, grain yield (kg.ha −1 ), and thousand-kernel weight (TKW; g) were assessed. Significant differences ( p ≤ 0.05) were observed for all traits, with selective accuracies ranging from 0.79 to 0.99. Cultivars ORS1403 and TBIODuque exhibited the lowest disease incidence. TBIODuque, along with BRS404, ORSFeroz, and TBIOAton were the highest-yielding genotypes, while BRS404 and ORSFeroz showed the highest TKW. Furthermore, GGE biplot analysis confirmed that the patterns aligned with the average trends, with the TBIODuque cultivar standing out for its higher resistance and yield. Cultivars carrying the 2NS/2AS translocation showed lower average disease incidence to WHB. However, this translocation was not associated with increases in grain yield or TKW. This study provides valuable information to assist researchers in selecting wheat cultivars with partial WHB resistance for the tropical regions of the Brazilian Cerrado biome.