Barley β-amylase and β-glucanase activities at germination in vulgare-type lines from backcrosses of wild, spontaneum strains with cv. Adorra

Authors

• Hannu Ahokas Agricultural Research Centre of Finland, Institute of Plant Breeding, SF-31600 Jokioinen, Finland
• Maria J. Erkkilä Agricultural Research Centre of Finland, Institute of Plant Breeding, SF-31600 Jokioinen, Finland

DOI: https://doi.org/10.23986/afsci.72454

Abstract

Two hundred and nineteen lines derived from the backcross progenies of eight different Hordeum spontaneum strains were evaluated for β-amylase and β-glucanase activity five days after germination under aseptic conditions. The activities were determined on the basis of soluble protein or grain mass. The recurrent parent cultivar, Adorra, served as the standard. Putative recombinants with high B-amylase activity were relatively easily achieved from high-activity strains of H. spontaneum. Recombinants with high β-glucanase were rare. They appear to be eliminated, possibly due to the strong selection for the domesticated phenotype during the derivation process.