ABSTRACT
In most of the annual crops, the genetic diversity exploited by breeders largely lies in the elite, adapted germplasm. Successful gene complexes assembled through repeated breeding cycles characterize the genetic makeup of the adapted genotypes (Allard, 1996, 1999) and should be preserved when exploiting exotic materials for introgression of novel alleles. On the other hand, concerns about the potential narrowing of genetic diversity in the major gene pools of crop plants, especially in self-pollinating cereals, have been repeatedly raised (Frankel, 1970; Hawkes, 1983; Rosegrant et al., 1997).
