Transgressive segregation for reduced glucosinolate content in Brassica carinata A. Braun

Successful commercial utilization of the meal by‐product of Brassica oilseed crops requires the cultivation of cultivars with low glucosinolate (GSL) content in the seeds; however, such cultivars are not yet available in Brassica carinata. The objective of the present research was to search for transgressive segregants with further‐reduced GSL content in the progeny of crosses involving four B. carinata lines with reduced GSL content (90 compared with 120 μmol/g seed in standard germplasm). The four lines were crossed following a diallel design and F₂ phenotypes (F₃ seed bulked) were analysed for GSL content. F₂ phenotypes with a transgressive GSL content lower than the parents were identified in all crosses involving the line S2–1241, suggesting that this line carries alleles for reduced GSL content not present in the other lines. F_{3 : 4} lines from transgressive F₂ phenotypes were evaluated for 2 years, which resulted in the selection of an F_{3 : 4} line with an average GSL content of 58 and 46 μmol/g seed, respectively compared with 84 and 62 μmol/g seed, respectively in S2–1241.