Validation of reported markers for seed dormancy and pre-harvest sprouting resistance in rice (Oryza sativa. L)

Not AvailableDNA markers have enormous potential to improve efficiency and precision of conventional plant breeding via marker assisted selection. To test the usefulness of microsatellite markers associated with pre-harvest sprouting resistance QTLs in rice, 32 diverse rice genotypes and two F2 populations were used. A total of 24 reported SSR markers were used to reveal polymorphism between dormant and non-dormant rice genotypes. Among the 24 tested SSR primers five markers viz., RM252, RM17, RM564, RM480 and RM346 showed polymorphism for pre-harvest sprouting resistance among 32 genotypes. The phenotyping results revealed that MTU 1075, MTU 3626, MTU 5293, MTU 1010, BPT 2658, BPT 2741, BPT 2411, RGL 1414 and BPT 3291 possess moderate dormancy for 12 DAH while MTU 1001 exhibited strong dormancy. The phenotypic germination patterns of 32 genotypes at different intervals were compared with the genotyping results using Map Disto method of analysis. The test of goodness of fit χ2 test was conducted for phenotypic germination patterns of 32 genotypes and genotypic data developed by five polymorphic markers and the results revealed that two markers i.e., RM252 and RM17 exhibited significance. Among the 6 markers studied, the primers RM21 and RM252 were able to show distinct polymorphism between dormant and non-dormant genotypes among the individuals selected from BPT 5204/ MTU 1001 F2 population while RM480 and RM235 showed a good characteristic polymorphism among the selected individuals of BPT 2231/MTU 1001 F2 population.Not Availabl

Chitin Binding Proteins Act Synergistically with Chitinases in Serratia proteamaculans 568

Genome sequence of Serratia proteamaculans 568 revealed the presence of three family 33 chitin binding proteins (CBPs). The three Sp CBPs (Sp CBP21, Sp CBP28 and Sp CBP50) were heterologously expressed and purified. Sp CBP21 and Sp CBP50 showed binding preference to β-chitin, while Sp CBP28 did not bind to chitin and cellulose substrates. Both Sp CBP21 and Sp CBP50 were synergistic with four chitinases from S. proteamaculans 568 (Sp ChiA, Sp ChiB, Sp ChiC and Sp ChiD) in degradation of α- and β-chitin, especially in the presence of external electron donor (reduced glutathione). Sp ChiD benefited most from Sp CBP21 or Sp CBP50 on α-chitin, while Sp ChiB and Sp ChiD had major advantage with these Sp CBPs on β-chitin. Dose responsive studies indicated that both the Sp CBPs exhibit synergism ≥0.2 µM. The addition of both Sp CBP21 and Sp CBP50 in different ratios to a synergistic mixture did not significantly increase the activity. Highly conserved polar residues, important in binding and activity of CBP21 from S. marcescens (Sm CBP21), were present in Sp CBP21 and Sp CBP50, while Sp CBP28 had only one such polar residue. The inability of Sp CBP28 to bind to the test substrates could be attributed to the absence of important polar residues

Rice biofortification: breeding and genomic approaches for genetic enhancement of grain zinc and iron contents

Rice is a highly consumed staple cereal cultivated predominantly in Asian countries, which share 90% of global rice production. Rice is a primary calorie provider for more than 3.5 billion people across the world. Preference and consumption of polished rice have increased manifold, which resulted in the loss of inherent nutrition. The prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies (Zn and Fe) are major human health challenges in the 21st century. Biofortification of staples is a sustainable approach to alleviating malnutrition. Globally, significant progress has been made in rice for enhancing grain Zn, Fe, and protein. To date, 37 biofortified Fe, Zn, Protein and Provitamin A rich rice varieties are available for commercial cultivation (16 from India and 21 from the rest of the world; Fe > 10 mg/kg, Zn > 24 mg/kg, protein > 10% in polished rice as India target while Zn > 28 mg/kg in polished rice as international target). However, understanding the micronutrient genetics, mechanisms of uptake, translocation, and bioavailability are the prime areas that need to be strengthened. The successful development of these lines through integrated-genomic technologies can accelerate deployment and scaling in future breeding programs to address the key challenges of malnutrition and hidden hunger

From Mendel’s discovery on pea to today’s plant genetics and breeding

In 2015, we celebrated the 150th anniversary of the presentation of the seminal work of Gregor Johann Mendel. While Darwin’s theory of evolution was based on differential survival and differential reproductive success, Mendel’s theory of heredity relies on equality and stability throughout all stages of the life cycle. Darwin’s concepts were continuous variation and “soft” heredity; Mendel espoused discontinuous variation and “hard” heredity. Thus, the combination of Mendelian genetics with Darwin’s theory of natural selection was the process that resulted in the modern synthesis of evolutionary biology. Although biology, genetics, and genomics have been revolutionized in recent years, modern genetics will forever rely on simple principles founded on pea breeding using seven single gene characters. Purposeful use of mutants to study gene function is one of the essential tools of modern genetics. Today, over 100 plant species genomes have been sequenced. Mapping populations and their use in segregation of molecular markers and marker–trait association to map and isolate genes, were developed on the basis of Mendel's work. Genome-wide or genomic selection is a recent approach for the development of improved breeding lines. The analysis of complex traits has been enhanced by high-throughput phenotyping and developments in statistical and modeling methods for the analysis of phenotypic data. Introgression of novel alleles from landraces and wild relatives widens genetic diversity and improves traits; transgenic methodologies allow for the introduction of novel genes from diverse sources, and gene editing approaches offer possibilities to manipulate gene in a precise manner

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Not AvailableMilled rice, though a good source of energy, is poor source of micronutrients. Where rice is a staple food, fortification with essential vitamins and minerals would make it more nutritious, which can fetch premium price. This study used the contingent valuation method (CVM) to estimate the farm women's willingness to pay (WTP) for DRR Dhan 45, the bio-fortified (with zinc) rice variety developed by ICAR-Indian Institute of Rice Research, Hyderabad. Correlation analysis was carried out to ascertain the significant relationships of WTP with socioeconomic variables. The farm women were willing to pay an average premium of about 26% over the prevailing price of non-bio-fortified rice. The results also showed that young and educated farm women are willing to pay higher price, who in turn could be the potential target group for creating awareness and promotion of bio-fortified rice varieties to address the micronutrient deficiencies among malnourished massesNot Availabl

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Not AvailableMilled rice, a good source of energy, is a poor source of micronutrients. Therefore, where rice is a staple food, making it more nutritious through fortification with essential vitamins and minerals is being considered as a proven and cost-effective intervention for making it more nutritious. The study used the contingent valuation method (CVM) to estimate the farm women’s willingness to pay (WTP) for DRR Dhan 45 the bio-fortified high zinc rice variety developed by ICAR-Indian Institute of Rice Research. Correlation analysis was carried out to ascertain the significant relationships of WTP with relevant variables. The farm women were willing to pay an average premium of about 26% over the prevailing price of non bio-fortified rice. The results of correlation analysis revealed that while education was significantly and positively related to WTP, age was negatively related. Thus, young and educated farm women could be the potential target group for creating awareness and promotion of bio-fortified rice varieties to address the micronutrient deficiencies among children.Not Availabl

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Not AvailableBackground: A major pest of rice, the Asian rice gall midge (Orseolia oryzae Wood-Mason), causes significant yield losses in the rice growing regions throughout Asia. Feeding by the larvae induces susceptible plants to produce nutritive tissue to support growth and development. In order to identify molecular signatures during compatible interactions, genome wide transcriptional profiling was performed using SSH library and microarray technology. Results: Results revealed up-regulation of genes related to primary metabolism, nutrient relocation, cell organization and DNA synthesis. Concomitantly, defense, secondary metabolism and signaling genes were suppressed. Further, real-time PCR validation of a selected set of 20 genes, in three susceptible rice varieties (TN1, Kavya and Suraksha) during the interaction with the respective virulent gall midge biotypes, also revealed variation in gene expression in Kavya as compared to TN1 and Suraksha. Conclusions: These studies showed that virulent insects induced the plants to step up metabolism and transport nutrients to their feeding site and suppressed defense responses. But Kavya rice mounted an elevated defense response during early hours of virulent gall midge infestation, which was over-powered later, resulting in host plant susceptibilityNot Availabl

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Not AvailableWe report here on the phylogenetic analysis, population substructure, and identification of molecular tags of 25 popular rice varieties and four landraces from different ecological belts of India employing a set of 52 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. Genetic analysis using the SSR markers categorized the genotypes into two major clusters, distributed according to their pedigree. Population structure analysis suggested that the optimum number of subpopulations was three (K = 3) in the popular varieties and landraces. At K = 5 the allelic distribution was much more similar to the phylogenetic dendrogram. The molecular diversity and population structure analysis indicated that there is not much variation among the popular rice cultivars of India. The study has identified SSR markers producing unique alleles, which should aid in the precise identification, maintenance, and genetic purity analysis of rice varieties.Not Availabl