Genetic diversity and relationships among safflower (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Carthamus tinctorius</Emphasis> L.) analyzed by inter-simple sequence repeats (ISSRs)

Genetic diversity and relationships among 48 safflower accessions were evaluated using 22 inter-simple sequence repeats (ISSR) primers. A total of 429 bands were amplified, and 355 bands (about 82.7%) were polymorphic. Five to forty-one polymorphic bands could be amplified by each primer, with an average of 16.1 polymorphic bands per primer. The results showed that the polymorphism of the safflower germplasm was higher at the DNA level. All the 48 accessions could be distinguished by ISSR markers and were divided into 9 groups based on ISSR GS by using UPGMA method. The genetic relationships among the accessions from different continents were closer. Comparatively, the genetic diversity of the accessions originated from Asia was higher, from Europe assembled. The results also showed that the genetic variation of accessions from Indian and Middle Eastern safflower diversity centers were relatively higher. ISSR is an effective and promising marker system for detecting genetic diversity among safflower and give some useful information on its phylogenic relationships.     

Relationships among different geographical groups,agro-morphology,fatty acid composition and RAPD marker diversity in Safflower (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Carthamus tinctorius</Emphasis>)

Patterns of geographical diversity, and the relationship between agro-morphological traits and fatty acid composition were assessed for 193 safflower (Carthamus tinctorius) accessions representing forty countries. Accessions were assigned to eight groups based on geographical proximity. Cluster and Principal Component analyses were performed to assess patterns of diversity among the accessions and to select the most distant accessions from each of eight groups for analysis of randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. There was a large amount of diversity for agro-morphological traits, fatty acid composition, and RAPD markers. Most correlations among different traits were rather low. Plant height showed a positive correlation with days to flowering (r = 0.63**). Palmitic acid was positively correlated with stearic acid and oleic acid values, and negatively correlated with linoleic acid (P < 0.01). Oleic acid and linoleic acid showed a strong negative correlation (r = −0.89**). The first three principal components together explained 59% of the variation, however, neither principal component analysis (PCA) nor marker analysis revealed a clear relationship between diversity pattern and geographical origin. Accessions from some geographical regions tended to group together, such as accessions from South Western Asia, Central Western Europe, and the Mediterranean region. The correlation between the morphological matrix and the genetic matrix based on RAPD markers was not significant (r = 0.027). Wide diversity in safflower germplasm indicates a considerable potential for improving this crop for both agronomic and quality traits.     

Evaluation of Wild Lens Taxa for Agro-Morphological Traits, Fungal Diseases and Moisture Stress in North Western Indian Hills

Exploitation of wild gene pool for breeding is a common practice in an increasing number of cultivated plants. The cultivated lentil could not attain the substantial improvement in the yield potential due to loss of genes for higher productivity and lack of resistance against biotic and abiotic stresses. The absence of evaluation data of wild lentils for characters of economic importance, besides biotic and abiotic stresses, is one of the constraints in their use in lentil breeding programme. In the present study, 70 wild accessions from four wild Lens subsp./sp. (L. culinaris subsp. orientalis, L. odomensis, L. ervoides and L. nigricans) along with 3 checks (Precoz, PL-406 and PL-639) were evaluated for phenological and agro-morphological characters, for their reaction to three fungal diseases (wilt, powdery mildew and rust) and screened for tolerance to moisture stress. The wild accessions showed higher performance for branches/plant as compared to cultivated genotypes. Similarly, a few accessions of L. culinaris subsp. orientalis were earlier to flower and had higher seeds and seed yield/plant as compared to cultivated lentil. However, some were comparable with cultivated genotypes for flowers/peduncle, peduncle length and plant height. The mean performance for flowers per peduncle, leaflets per leaf, plant height, seeds and seed yield per plant increased, while decreased for days to flowering and maturity, and branches per plant during the evolution of cultivated lentil from the wild Lens taxa. Of Lens taxa, L. nigricans had the maximum resistant accessions for biotic and tolerance to abiotic stresses. The valuable variation existing among wild accessions can be exploited following introgression with cultivated lentils. It will help in the flow of useful genes from wild to cultivated lentil for generating wide spectrum of variability and its subsequent use in genetic restructuring of lentil.     

AFLP analysis in pigeonpea (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Cajanus cajan</Emphasis> (L.) Millsp.) revealed close relationship of cultivated genotypes with some of its wild relatives

A total of 561 amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) loci were generated and used to study the genetic diversity of wild and cultivated genotypes of pigeonpea. Out of 561 marker loci, 558 were polymorphic with an average of 76.12 bands. Analysis of molecular variation (AMOVA) revealed significant strong population structure when genotypes were structured according to continent of origin (F_ST = 0.22) also when structured into cultivated and wild genotypes (F_ST = 0.16). Maximum polymorphic loci were observed in cultivated species C. cajan (352) which is due to more number of genotypes used while, a minimum number of 45 polymorphic bands were obtained in C. acutifolius. Highest (0.291) average gene diversity was recorded in species C. mollis and lowest (0.079) average gene diversity was recorded in C. acutifolius. The 33 genotypes grouped into 14 clusters at 26% Jaccard’s similarity coefficients. Clustering analysis revealed most cultivated genotypes grouped into one major cluster while, the wild genotypes grouped into many clusters at 26% Jaccard’s similarity revealing greater diversity within wild species as compared to cultivated genotypes. From among the various cultivated genotypes studied, four genotypes BRG 3, ICP 7035, TTB 7 and ICP 8863 were molecularly and morphologically diverse and were used as parental genotypes to study nature of inheritance and to identify markers linked to sterility mosaic disease.     

RAPD and ISSR fingerprinting in cultivated chickpea (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Cicer arietinum</Emphasis> L.) and its wild progenitor <Emphasis Type="Italic">Cicer reticulatum</Emphasis> Ladizinsky

Detection of genetic relationships between 19 chickpea cultivars and five accessions of its wild progenitor Cicer reticulatum Ladizinsky were investigated by using RAPD and ISSR markers. On an average, six bands per primer were observed in RAPD analysis and 11 bands per primer in ISSR analysis. In RAPD, the wild accessions shared 77.8% polymorphic bands with chickpea cultivars, whereas they shared 79.6% polymorphic bands in ISSR analysis. In RAPD analysis 51.7% and 50.5% polymorphic bands were observed among wild accessions and chickpea cultivars, respectively. Similarly, 65.63% and 56.25% polymorphic bands were found in ISSR analysis. The dendrogram developed by pooling the data of RAPD and ISSR analysis revealed that the wild accessions and the ICCV lines showed similar pattern with the dendrogram of RAPD analysis. The ISSR analysis clearly indicated that even with six polymorphic primers, reliable estimation of genetic diversity could be obtained, while nearly 30 primers are required for RAPD. Moreover, RAPD can cause genotyping errors due to competition in the amplification of all RAPD fragments. The markers generated by ISSR and RAPD assays can provide practical information for the management of genetic resources. For the selection of good parental material in breeding programs the genetic data produced through ISSR can be used to correlate with the relationship measures based on pedigree data and morphological traits to minimize the individual inaccuracies in chickpea.     

Genetic diversity in sorghum [<Emphasis Type="Italic">Sorghum bicolor</Emphasis> (L.) Moench] germplasm from Southern Africa as revealed by microsatellite markers and agro-morphological traits

Cultivated sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] is an important food security crop in the semi-arid regions of the world including Asia and Africa. Its genetic diversity is contained mostly in traditional varieties and modern cultivars used by farmers. In this study, agro-morphological traits and molecular markers were used to assess genetic diversity in 22 accessions of cultivated sorghum from five countries (Botswana, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe) in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. The study revealed a significant variation among 22 accessions in both qualitative and quantitative morphological traits, indicating the accessions’ promising potential as breeding material. For molecular analysis, 11 microsatellite primer-pairs were used, and generated a total of 70 alleles across 20 accessions. Analysis of molecular variance revealed a high level of genetic variation; 67 % among the accessions and 10 % among the five countries. The patterns of genetic diversity and the relationships observed in this study should provide insights for genetic resource conservation and utilization of sorghum germplasm in the SADC region.     

Genetic diversity and phylogenetic relationship of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Tadehagi</Emphasis> in southwest China evaluated by inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR)

There are many valuable Tadehagi accessions in southwest China, but it is unknown that the genetic diversity and phylogenetic relationship of these Tadehagi resources. This report is the first study in which 41 primers of inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) were used to assess the genetic diversity of 36 Tadehagi accessions from 3 provinces in the southwest of China. Totally, 30 usable ISSR primers detected 163 polymorphic bands among the 36 accessions, which suggested high utility of ISSR primers in the genetic analysis of Tadehagi accessions. Genetic similarity coefficients among all of the accessions ranged from 0.54 to 0.92 with the average of 0.79 based on the ISSR data, indicating high level of genetic variation in Tadehagi resources from the southwest of China. As for the 3 population, Hainan population had the maximum average genetic similarity coefficients of 0.81, while similarity coefficient of Guangxi and Yunnan population was 0.75 and 0.74, respectively. All the 36 Tadehagi accessions were divided into 4 groups in the UPGMA dendrogram constructed from genetic similarity coefficients. The Tadehagi accessions from Yunnan and Guangxi provinces showed more genetic variation and occupied the bottom of the dendrogram. On the contrary, those from Hainan Province had less genetic variation and clustered in the middle and top of the dendrogram. The information on the genetic diversity and phylogenetic relationship from this study is propitious to construct a core germplasm collection and develop novel Tadehagi cultivars with desired economic traits.     

Genetic diversity of cultivated flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) and its wild progenitor pale flax (Linum bienne Mill.) as revealed by ISSR markers

Little is known about the genetic diversity of pale flax (Linum bienne Mill.), the wild progenitor of cultivated flax (L. usitatissimum L.), and ex situ germplasm of pale flax was scarce. Effort was made to collect 34 pale flax accessions and five landrace accessions of cultivated flax in Turkey. The inter simple sequence repeat (ISSR) technique was applied to characterize this set of flax germplasm, along with one Turkish cultivar, one Russian cultivar, five winter and four dehiscent type accessions of cultivated flax. Twenty-four ISSR primer pairs detected a total of 311 DNA fragments, of which 298 bands were polymorphic across 493 flax samples (roughly 10 samples per accession). These polymorphic bands had frequencies ranging from 0.002 to 0.998 and averaging 0.38. Accession-specific ISSR variation (Fst values) ranged from 0.469 to 0.514 and averaged 0.493. There was 49.3% ISSR variation resided among these 50 accessions, 35.9% harbored among landrace, winter, dehiscent types of cultivated flax and pale flax, and 38.2% present among 34 pale flax accessions. Pale flax displayed more ISSR variation than landraces and dehiscent type, but less than winter type, of cultivated flax. Clustering 493 individual plants revealed that these assayed plants were largely grouped according to their plant types and that pale flax was genetically more close to the dehiscent type, followed by the winter type and landrace, of cultivated flax. Pale flax collected within the geographic range of 180 km displayed a significant spatial genetic autocorrelation. Genetic distances among the pale flax accessions were significantly associated with their geographic distances and elevation differences. These findings are significant for understanding flax domestication and its primary gene pool.     

Genetic diversity of wild soybean (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Glycine soja</Emphasis> Sieb. et Zucc.) and Japanese cultivated soybeans [<Emphasis Type="Italic">G. max</Emphasis> (L.) Merr.] based on microsatellite (SSR) analysis and the selection of a core collection

Wild soybeans, Glycine soja, are a source of genetic variation to improve soybeans. To improve the efficiency evaluation of conserved germplasm a core or mini-core collection approach that maximizes allelic diversity in a proportion of the whole collection has frequently been advocated. The genetic diversity of a wild soybean collection (1,305 accessions) plus Japanese cultivated soybeans (53 accessions) were analyzed at 20 SSR marker loci. Higher levels of allelic diversity were found in wild soybeans (28 alleles per locus) than Japanese cultivated soybean (five alleles per locus). The genetic distance between wild soybeans from different regions reflected their proximity. Accessions from Russia consisted of a diverse array of alleles resulting in accessions being spread further apart in a PCA plot than accessions from other regions. Accessions of wild soybean from Korea included many rare alleles and thus had a high representation in the core collection. The two core collections developed here, traditional and mini, consisted of 192 accessions with 97% of the allelic diversity (14% of the whole collection) and 53 accessions with 62.4% of the allelic diversity (5% of the whole collection), respectively.     

Phenotypic diversity in wild barley (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Hordeum vulgare</Emphasis> L. ssp. <Emphasis Type="Italic">spontaneum</Emphasis> (C. Koch) Thell.) accessions collected in Jordan

Wild barley, Hordeum vulgare L. ssp. spontaneum (C. Koch) Thell., is the progenitor of cultivated barley. Almost unanimously the center of diversity is considered to be in the Fertile Crescent of the Near East, where wild barley grows under a wide range of environmental and climatic conditions. Jordanian wild barley is expected to harbor genes useful for the improvement of cultivated barley, particularly those associated with tolerance to drought. This study evaluated 103 wild barley accessions collected from different areas of Jordan along with 29 cultivated barley genotypes for several morphological and agronomical traits. The Hordeum vulgare ssp. spontaneum C. Koch accessions were grouped into six populations according to the longitude, latitude, altitude, and rainfall zone of the collection site, and the cultivated barley in one population. The evaluation was conducted during the 2004–2005 growing season under field conditions in three locations in Jordan; namely, Khanasri, Ramtha, and Maru with 123.0, 222.9, and 429.2 mm annual rainfall, respectively. We used an unreplicated design with two systematic checks (the cultivars Rum and Mu’ta) each repeated 15 times. The results showed the existence of high variability among the Hordeum vulgare ssp. spontaneum C. Koch accessions for most of the traits, especially for plant height, tiller number, days to heading, days to anthesis, peduncle length, and peduncle extrusion. Plant height, earliness, peduncle length, and peduncle extrusion were found to be adaptive traits under drought conditions and several superior genotypes for each trait were identified. Genetic variation within population was much higher than between populations. Clustering of populations was according to their ecological geographical pattern.     

Pheno-morphological,agronomic and genetic diversity among natural populations of sulla (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Hedysarum coronarium</Emphasis> L.) collected in Sicily,Italy

Sulla (Hedysarum coronarium L.) is a short-lived perennial forage legume that plays a key role in cereal-based systems in semi-arid Mediterranean regions, particularly in organic production and low-input oriented agriculture. In Sicily, the species is widespread both as a wild and cultivated plant. The present study assessed the phenotypic and genetic variation among natural populations of sulla collected from different environments throughout Sicily and analysed how the patterns of phenotypic diversity varied according to the environmental parameters of each collection site. Two commercial varieties and two Sicilian agro-ecotypes were also included in the study as controls. Principal components analysis (PCA) was performed on the sites using geographic, climatic, and pedological data to assess the differences in types of collection sites. PCA was also performed on the accessions (using pheno-morphological and agronomic data) to establish the importance of different traits in explaining multivariate polymorphisms. The results showed a large degree of genetic diversity (based on ISSR markers) and variability in pheno-morphological and agronomic traits. PCA did not clearly differentiate the accessions according to their habitats of origin, but in some cases accessions from the same habitat had a tendency to group together. The agronomic attributes of several populations were more pronounced than those of the controls. The observed variability may be valuable when selecting for H. coronarium varieties suitable for various uses (e.g., hay production, grazing, soil protection).     

Genetic Diversity within and Between Populations of Lathyrus genus (Fabaceae) Revealed by ISSR Markers

In order to evaluate the genetic diversity in Lathyrus genus, the Inter Simple Sequence Repeats method (ISSR) was exploited in five populations. These consisted of two cultivated species belonging to section Lathyrus (L. sativus L. and L. cicera L.) and a wild one belonging to the section Clymenum (L. ochrus DC.). Two 3′anchored ISSR primers and two unanchored ones, generated a total of 60 useful polymorphic DNA bands. Our data provide evidence of high molecular polymorphism at the intra- and the inter-specific levels showing that both wild and cultivated forms constitute an important pool of diversity. Moreover, among the generated DNA bands, a 500 bp band, totally absent in the banding patterns of the section Clymenum, appears to be a molecular marker of section Lathyrus. Results provided for lineage and suggest recent origin of these species that might have evolved from a common ancestor producing both L. ochrus species and the two other species L. sativus and L. cicera. These relationships support previous studies based on morphological variation and molecular analysis.     

RAPD Polymorphism of the White-Flowered Gourd (Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl. Landraces and its Wild Relatives in Kenya

The present study was performed to investigate genetic diversity of Kenyan landraces of the white-flowered gourd (Lagenaria siceraria), which exhibits tremendous morphological variation. RAPD analyses were performed on 53 landraces of the cultivated species L. siceraria and 42 accessions of three wild species (40 L. sphaerica, 1 L. abyssinica, and 1 L. breviflora). A total of 432 polymorphic bands were detected using 54 primers. The four species were clearly differentiated from one another. Intra-specific variations were investigated with L. siceraria and its wild relative L. sphaerica. Landraces of the cultivated species collected from different ethnic communities or regions were differentiated. Morphological variations were not associated with RAPD variations. Bitter landraces collected in Maasai communities showed two specific RAPD bands. In the wild species, accessions collected from the eastern and western sides of the Great Rift Valley were genetically differentiated from each other. In both species, genetic and geographical distance matrices computed among all pairs of accessions were significantly correlated, implying that the observed geographical variation can be explained by the 'Isolation by distance model'. Progeny plants derived from a common mother in L. siceraria showed a low level of segregation in RAPD pattern, suggesting that collected landraces are cultivated, maintaining their inherent traits although they are monoecious and insect-pollinated, whereas the wild relative L. sphaerica showed a higher level of segregation. The morphological diversity observed among landraces of L. siceraria is the result of human selection and their genetic identities are maintained by inbreeding probably resulting from frequent self-pollination.     

Processes affecting genetic structure and conservation: a case study of wild and cultivated <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brassica rapa</Emphasis>

When planning optimal conservation strategies for wild and cultivated types of a plant species, a number of influencing biological and environmental factors should be considered from the outset. In the present study Brassica rapa was used to illustrate this: to develop Scandinavian conservation strategies for wild and cultivated B. rapa, DNA-marker analysis was performed on 15 cultivated and 17 wild accessions of B. rapa plus 8 accessions of the cross compatible B. napus. The B. rapa cultivars were bred in Sweden and Finland in 1944–1997 and the wild B. rapa material was collected from Denmark, Sweden and United Kingdom. The B. napus accessions were bred within the last 20 years in the Scandinavian countries. Results were based on scoring of 131 polymorphic ISSR markers in the total plant material. A Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) approach implemented in NewHybrids demonstrated a clear distinction of B. rapa and B. napus individuals except for three individuals that seemed to be backcrosses. The backcrossed hybrids descended from two Swedish populations, one wild and one escaped. The overall pattern of genetic variation and structure in B. rapa showed that cultivated and wild B. rapa accessions formed two almost separated clusters. Geographical origin and breeding history of cultivars were reflected in these genetic relationships. In addition, wild populations from Denmark and Sweden seemed to be closely related, except for a Swedish population, which seemingly was an escaped cultivar. The study point to that many processes, e.g. spontaneous introgression, naturalisation, breeding and agricultural practise affected the genetic structure of wild and cultivated B. rapa populations.     

Agro-morphological and molecular variability in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Triticum boeoticum</Emphasis> accessions from Zagros Mountains,Iran

Genetic erosion in cultivated wheat provides a good reason for studying genetic diversity in crop wild relatives. In the present study, genetic diversity of 32 accessions belonging to T. boeoticum species collected from different parts of Iran were evaluated using 13 morphological traits as well as ten inter-simple sequence repeat primers. Statistical analysis for morphological traits showed significant differences among accessions (except number of fertile tillers and total tillers per plant). In principal component analysis, the first three PCA showed 82.65 % of the total morphological variation. Based on the morphological traits, accessions were separated into two main groups by cluster analysis. In molecular analysis, polymerase chain reactions amplified 105 DNA fragments, out of which, 95 (90.47 %) were polymorphic. From geographic perspective, the accessions sampled from western and southwestern of Iran showed the highest and lowest polymorphism, respectively. However, the maximum values of effective number of alleles (Ne), Nei’s gene diversity (He) and Shannon’s information index (I) was related to accessions collected from NW regions. Also, according to cluster analysis and PCoA plot genetic diversity was not related to geographical distribution. Overall, our results revealed a remarkable level of genetic diversity among studied Iranian T. boeoticum accessions; especially accessions collected from Kermanshah and Lorestan provinces, which can be of interest for future breeding programs. So, conservation of germplasm of these areas is recommended.     

Characterisation of agro-morphological traits of corchorus accessions

The genus Corchorus includes nutrient-rich indigenous leafy vegetables often grown or harvested in the wild in Africa. It has potential to contribute to food security, but there is need to improve it as a crop through plant breeding. However, not much is known about the genetic variability among Corchorus species. The aim of this study was thus to characterise the available germplasm of Corchorus accessions and investigate heritability of their agro-morphological traits. Eleven Corchorus accessions (4 South African and 7 from the World Vegetable Center) were evaluated in a field study at Roodeplaat, South Africa, for their morpho-agronomic traits using a randomised complete block design with three replications across two seasons (2015/2016 and 2016/2017). Data were subjected to ANOVA, principal component analysis and cluster analysis. Broad sense heritability, genetic advance, genetic parameters and correlations were determined among the accessions and traits. The Corchorus accessions showed significant (P < .05) differences in all the quantitative traits evaluated. The data showed significant variability among the studied Corchorus accessions in their agro-morphological traits for exploitation in future breeding programmes that in turn can contribute to the improvement of this crop.     

Collection of Lupinus angustifolius L. Germplasm and Characterisation of Morphological and Molecular Diversity

Lupinus angustifolius L. is a Mediterranean species, domesticated in the 20th century, representing an important grain legume crop in Australia and other countries. This work is focused on the collection of wild germplasm and on the characterisation of morphological and molecular diversity of germplasm accessions. It reports the collection of 81 wild L. angustifolius accessions from the South and Centre of Portugal, available at the ‘Instituto Superior de Agronomia Gene Bank’, with subsequent morphological and molecular characterisation of a selection of these and other accessions. A multivariate analysis of morphological traits on 88 L. angustifolius accessions (including 59 wild Portuguese accessions, 15 cultivars and 14 breeding lines) showed a cline of variation on wild germplasm, with plants from Southern Portugal characterised by earlier flowering, higher vegetative development and larger seeds. AFLP and ISSR molecular markers grouped modern cultivars as sub-clusters within the wider diversity of wild germplasm, revealing the narrow pool of genetic diversity on which domesticated accessions are based. The importance of preserving, characterising and using wild genetic resources for L. angustifolius crop improvement is outlined by the results obtained.     

Agro-morphological traits of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Cicer reticulatum</Emphasis> Ladizinsky in comparison to <Emphasis Type="Italic">C. echinospermum</Emphasis> P.H. Davis in terms of potential to improve cultivated chickpea (<Emphasis Type="Italic">C. arietinum</Emphasis> L.)

Germplasm collections of C. reticulatum and C. echinospermum are limited, while both species face threats from over-grazing and habitat change in their natural environments. Recently many new accessions of C. reticulatum and C. echinospermum were collected in east and south-east Anatolia (Turkey) but they have not yet been evaluated for agro-morphological traits. Therefore, the current study investigated agro-morphological traits of new germplasm sources of C. reticulatum and C. echinospermum and evaluated resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses for chickpea improvement. The most attractive agro-morphological traits were canopy width, number of stems and pods per plant and biological yield. The most productive accessions of C. reticulatum and C. echinospermum had 712 and 625 pods per plant, respectively. Two distinct seed, flower and leaf shapes were found in accessions of C. echinospermum. Path analyses indicated that biological yield and harvest index had the most direct influence on seed yield in both species. Factor analyses showed that high seed yield in C. reticulatum depended on high biological yield and number of pods per plant, whereas high seed yield in C. echinospermum depended on harvest index. It was concluded that most accessions of C. reticulatum and C. echinospermum were not only resistant to some biotic and abiotic stresses but also had hidden alleles that could produce transgressive segregation in crosses to cultivated material.