Identification of plant architecture and yield-related QTL in Vicia faba L.

Low and unstable yields across seasons and environments are among the main reasons which make profitability for farmers too low. Along with resistance/tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses, plant architecture and yield-related traits are the main determinants of yield stability. The current study was conducted to identify and validate quantitative trait loci (QTL) for plant architecture and yield-related traits in faba bean; our results provide novel information about the genetics of plant architecture traits in this crop. An equina × paucijuga recombinant inbred line population was derived and submitted to field experiments at Córdoba (Spain) over a period of four seasons. Stable QTL were identified for eight of the traits evaluated. QTL clusters were identified on almost each chromosome. The high inter-trait correlations between some of the traits controlled by a cluster of QTL might reflect either a set of closely linked loci or, more likely, pleiotropic effects. The stability of many of these major QTL in different years offers the possibility of exploiting them via marker-assisted selection. Further fine mapping of these target regions will help to identify potential candidate genes using synteny.This work was financed by the Spanish Ministerio de Innovación y Ciencia (MICINN) grant AGL2008-02305 and the Instituto Nacional de Investigación Agraria (INIA) grant RTA2013-00025, both cofinanced with FEDER. M.D. Ruiz-Rodríguez was recipient of a predoctoral fellowship associated to AGL2008-02305.Peer reviewe

Validation of quantitative trait loci for height-related traits in faba bean

Trabajo presentado en el Second International Legume Society Conference "Legumes for a sustainable world" (ILS2), celebrado en Tróia (Portugal) del 11 al 14 de octubre de 2016.Most faba bean genotypes show indeterminate growth habit. These genotypes may become very tall when water is available. Indeed faba bean crops may grow to a height of 2 m at maturity although faba bean crops are not usually that tall. Excessive plant height (PH) may result in plant lodging. Besides, the crop may result in poor pod set due to predominant vegetative growth, uneven maturity. Accordingly shorter genotypes are imp ortant in faba bean breeding. Other height-related traits are also important. The height of the lower flower (HLF) and the height of the lower pod (HLP) are important agronomic traits. Pods located near ground may remain unharvested and they may be more af fected by disease incidence. Previous studies in our group identified preliminary quantitative trait loci (QTL) for these traits in the population derived from the cross VF6 x Vf27. In this work we have validated QTL for PH, HLP and HLF at field conditions. Besides, the role of candidate genes for height-related traits in model species was investigated in relation with these QTL.This work was financed by the Ministerio de Innovación y Ciencia (MICINN) grant AGL2008-02305 and FEDER. MDR was recipient of a pre-doctoral FPI fellowship associated to this research grant.N

INDUCTION OF VARIABILITY IN SEEDLING VIGOR, MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS AND SELF-INCOMPATIBILITY OF M1 PLANTS OF THREE VARIETIES OF Physalis ixocarpa Brot. THROUGH 60Co GAMMA RAYS

Background. The husk tomato (Physalis ixocarpa Brot. ex Horm.) is an obligated allogam species with gametophyte auto-incompatibility, which impedes the generation of endogamic lines by auto-fecundation to obtain hybrids. Objective. To evaluate the effect of six doses of 60Co gamma rays (from 0 to 300 Gy) applied to seeds, over seedling vigor, growth and reproductive features of M1 plants of three husk tomato varieties (Manzano, Verde Puebla, and San Miguel). Methodology. The 18 treatments were distributed in a completely randomized design with five replications for the variables related to seedling vigor and 10 replications for the morphological and reproductive plant variables. Results. The radiation decreased emergency and survival of seedlings, height, and length of roots of M1 seedling. Regarding the growth of M1 plants, the doses of 100 and 300 Gy stimulated only height, the other doses had the same response as the control. Irradiation did not change self-incompatibility, as no fruit produced seed. Implications. The study allows to determine the sensitivity of the peel tomato to irradiation, by subjecting seeds to different doses of gamma rays and assess whether it is possible to obtain outstanding individuals in force and flowers that present self-fertilization, considering all the advantages of this type of pollination (form lines, to generate hybrids). Conclusions. The M1 plants of the varieties Manzano and Verde Puebla excelled in growth; but those of San Miguel presented more self-pollinated flowers. The three varieties resulted sensitive to radiation; but growth variables varied depending on the variety and dose of radiation

Comparative genomics to bridge Vicia faba with model and closely-related legume species: Stability of QTLs for flowering and yield-related traits

This study presents the development of an enhanced map in faba bean. The map contains 258 loci, mostly gene-based markers, organized in 16 linkage groups that expand 1,875 cM, with an average inter-marker distance of 7.26 cM. The combination of EST-derived markers with a number of markers physically located or previously ascribed to chromosomes by trisomic segregation, allowed the allocation of eight linkage groups (229 markers), to specific chromosomes. Moreover, this approach provided anchor points to establish a global homology among the faba bean chromosomes and those of closely-related legumes species. The map was used to identify and validate, for the first time, QTLs controlling five flowering and reproductive traits: days to flowering, flowering length, pod length, number of seeds per pod and number of ovules per pod. Twelve QTLs stable in the 2 years of evaluation were identified in chromosomes II, V and VI. Comparative mapping suggested the conservation of one of the faba bean genomic regions controlling the character days to flowering in other five legume species (Medicago, Lotus, pea, lupine, chickpea). Additional syntenic co-localizations of QTLs controlling pod length and number of seeds per pod between faba bean and Lotus japonicus are likely. The new genetic map opens the way for further translational studies between faba bean and related legume species, and provides an efficient tool for breeding applications such as QTL analysis and marker-assisted selection. © 2012 Springer-Verlag.This research was developed at the Instituto de Investigación y For- mación Agraria y Pesquera (IFAPA) Córdoba, Spain belonging to the Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario (ceiA3) and supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MIC- INN) projects RTA-2007-00030, AGL-2008-02305 and RTA2010-00059, co-financed with FEDER.Peer Reviewe

CARACTERIZAÇÃO DA PAISAGEM CÁRSTICA DO PARQUE ESTADUAL DE CAMPINHOS

Abstract Background Faba bean (Vicia faba L.) is among the earliest domesticated crops from the Near East. Today this legume is a key protein feed and food worldwide and continues to serve an important role in culinary traditions throughout Middle East, Mediterranean region, China and Ethiopia. Adapted to a wide range of soil types, the main faba bean breeding objectives are to improve yield, resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses, seed quality and other agronomic traits. Genomic approaches aimed at enhancing faba bean breeding programs require high-quality genetic linkage maps to facilitate quantitative trait locus analysis and gene tagging for use in a marker-assisted selection. The objective of this study was to construct a reference consensus map in faba bean by joining the information from the most relevant maps reported so far in this crop. Results A combination of two approaches, increasing the number of anchor loci in diverse mapping populations and joining the corresponding genetic maps, was used to develop a reference consensus map in faba bean. The map was constructed from three main recombinant inbreed populations derived from four parental lines, incorporates 729 markers and is based on 69 common loci. It spans 4,602 cM with a range from 323 to 1041 loci in six main linkage groups or chromosomes, and an average marker density of one locus every 6 cM. Locus order is generally well maintained between the consensus map and the individual maps. Conclusion We have constructed a reliable and fairly dense consensus genetic linkage map that will serve as a basis for genomic approaches in faba bean research and breeding. The core map contains a larger number of markers than any previous individual map, covers existing gaps and achieves a wider coverage of the large faba bean genome as a whole. This tool can be used as a reference resource for studies in different genetic backgrounds, and provides a framework for transferring genetic information when using different marker technologies. Combined with syntenic approaches, the consensus map will increase marker density in selected genomic regions and will be useful for future faba bean molecular breeding applications.This research has been funded by the Spanish projects AGL2008-02305/AGR, RTA2010-00059 and IPT-2011-1259-010000, co-financed by FEDER, and by the EU project GLIP (FP6- FOOD-CT-2004-506223). The authors thank Juan Prieto, Gloria de Lara and Ana Pozo for excellent technical assistance in the laboratory, greenhouse and field. We are grateful to A. Di Pietro for carefully reading the manuscriptPeer Reviewe