Morphological evaluation of common bean diversity on the Island of Madeira

The variability of fifty populations of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), representing a wide range of ecological conditions on the Island of Madeira, was evaluated based on morphological and reproductive traits. Individual data of 58 traits related to earliness, plant and tassel structure and the shape of the ear and grain were analysed using multivariate analysis. The populations belonging to two major common varieties were clustered into fifteen groups by their degree of dissimilarity, based on discriminant analysis. The dissimilarity of these groups was con- firmed by one way ANOVA. The racial rank of these groups was proposed and a brief description of the common bean landraces was presented. This work represents the first morphological characterization and analysis of diversity of bean germplasm from the Archipelago of Madeira, where the traditional agricultural practices are still keeping this Portuguese region free from improved bean varieties. The description of the Madeiran bean landraces allows the preservation of the existing bean biodiversity and could be used for their registration as conservation landraces, or for conservation and breeding purposes worldwide.The European Union has sponsored this work through the INTERREG IIIB programme, through the project Germobanco Agrı´cola da Macarone´sia, 05/MAC/4.1/ C15. The Authors are grateful to the Madeiran farmers who assisted with collection of bean samples.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Evidences of organic acids exudation in aluminium stress responses of two Madeiran wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) landraces

Two wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Madeiran landraces were subjected to 100 μM and 200 μM of aluminium (Al) in hydroponic culture, assessing the organic acid exudation role in plant’s responses to this metal. Samples of initial landrace populations (F0), F3 and haplodiploid lines (DH) were evaluated using standard tests: eriochrome cyanine R staining, root elongation and callose accumulation in roots. Root exudates were obtained to determine if the accumulation of malic and citric acids in hydroponic medium was a response to Al exposure. Additionally, the presence of ALMT1 gene was determined using five microsatellite markers. Standard tests confirmed that ISOP 76 was Al tolerant and ISOP 239, Al susceptible. ISOP 76, in the presence of 100 μM Al, exuded substantially more malic acid (12.87 to 43.33 mg/L), than ISOP 239 (3.65 to 7.72 mg/L). The levels of both organic acid exudation were substantially lower in ISOP 239 than in the ISOP 76. In the presence of 200 μM Al, ISOP 76 F0 shows a higher root elongation ratio (better tolerates Al), but the DH line was the one that exuded higher content of malic acid. Different gene alleles and promoters were detected in both landraces. Molecular differences could explain the observed dissimilarity in organic acid exudation response to Al stress.The authors are grateful to the Madeiran farmers providing samples of wheat landraces, and to all staff of CGR ISOPlexis Gene bank and of the Department of Biological Sciences of Alberta University for support and access to laboratory facilities. This work got the funding support from the programs INTERREG III-B, contract 05/MAC/4.1/C15 and Madeira PO 14-20, contract CASBio, refª. M1420-01-0145-FEDER-000011.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio