Inheritance of Cell Membrane Stability and Yield Components Under Drought and Salinity Stress in Bread Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Drought and salinity induce oxidative stress in wheat, leading to lipid peroxidation, loss of cell membrane stability (CMS), and ultimately, yield reduction. Changes in membrane permeability, along with ion leakage from the cell, have been widely used as screening tests for stress tolerance. This study aimed to determine the genetic control of abiotic stress tolerance based on the gene action of CMS and various physio– morphological traits to develop stress tolerant and high- yielding wheat breeding material. Seven high- yielding genotypes were crossed with four testers (drought and salinity tolerant) following line × tester mating design. In results, the tester, Aas–11 performed well under control and salinity stress, Tatara– 96 under drought stress, while Lasani–08 showed better performance under both stresses. The crosses Imdad–05 × Tatara– 96, Dharabi–11 × Tatara–96, Dharabi–11 × Lasani–08 exhibited better performance and higher specific combining effects for CMS, and yield– related morphological traits under drought. Similarly, the crosses Dharabi–11 × Hashim– 08, Imdad–05 × Aas–11, Kohsar–95 × Hashim–08 performed better under salinity stress. The cross Sehar–06 × Aas11 showed positive combining effects for CMS, thousand grain weight, and grain yield per plant under both stresses. Most of the traits demonstrated high heritability under drought and salinity stress. Higher specific combining effects were observed for the studied traits, indicating the predominance of non– additive gene effects. The genetic potential of these crosses can be further utilized to develop high yielding varieties through selection in segregating generations, focusing on lines with enhanced CMS and higher yields under salinity and drought conditions.