Genetics of phosphorus use efficiency in a MAGIC wheat population grown in the field

Genotypic variation for response and resilience were identified in all trials with moderate to strong correlation with productivity with and without P between trials. Multiparent Whole Genome Average Interval Mapping (WGAIM) QTL analyses were conducted on the four traits (Biomass / Yield × P Response / Resilience) across the five trials and identified 130 QTL in total. QTL within 10 cM of each other were clustered into 56 groups that were likely to represent identical or linked loci. Of the clusters 27 (48%) contained only a single QTL but 17 (31%) contained 3 or more in different trials or traits. This suggests multiple biological mechanisms driving PUE in different environments. Eight of the 56 groups collocated with QTL for seedling root hair length identified in the same MAGIC population in an earlier study.