Exploiting genomic resources for efficient conservation and utilization of chickpea, groundnut, and pigeonpea collections for crop improvement

Both chickpea and pigeonpea are important dietary source of protein, while groundnut is one of the major oil crops. Globally, ~1.1 million grain legume accessions are conserved in genebanks, of which, ICRISAT genebank holds ~50,000 accessions of cultivated species and wild relatives of chickpea, pigeonpea, and groundnut from 133 countries. These genetic resources are reservoirs of many useful genes for the present and future crop improvement programs. Representative subsets in the form of core and mini core collections have been used to identify trait-specific genetically diverse germplasm for use in breeding and genomic studies in these crops. Chickpea, groundnut and pigeonpea have moved from ‘orphan’ to ‘genomic resources rich crops’. The chickpea and pigeonpea genomes have been decoded, and the sequences of groundnut genome will soon be available. With the availability of these genomic resources, the germplasm curators, breeders and molecular biologists will have abundant opportunities to enhance the efficiency of genebank operations, mine allelic variations in germplasm collection, identify genetically diverse germplasm with beneficial traits, broaden the cultigen’s genepool, and accelerate the cultivar development to address new challenges to production, particularly with respect to climate change and variability. Marker-assisted breeding approaches have already been initiated for some traits in chickpea and groundnut, which should lead to enhanced efficiency and efficacy of crop improvement. Resistance to some pests and diseases has been successfully transferred from wild relatives to cultivated species

Variability and trait‐specific accessions for grain yield and nutritional traits in germplasm of little millet ( Panicum sumatrense Roth. Ex. Roem. & Schult.)

Little millet (Panicum sumatrense Roth. Ex. Roem. & Schult.), a member of the grass family Poaceae, is native to India. It is nutritionally superior to major cereals, grows well on marginal lands, and can withstand drought and waterlogging conditions. Two-hundred diverse little millet landraces were characterized to assess variability for agronomic and nutritional traits and identify promising accessions. Highly significant variabilitywas found for all the agronomic and grain nutrient traits. Accessions of robusta were high yielding whereas those of nana were rich in grain nutrients. About 80% of the accessions showed consistent protein and zinc (Zn) contents whereas iron (Fe) and calcium (Ca) contents were less consistent (29.5 and 63.5%, respectively) over 2 yr. Promising trait-specific accessions were identified for greater seed weight (10 accessions), high grain yield (15), high biomass yield (15), and consistently high grain nutrients (30) over 2 yr (R2 = .69–.74, P ≤ .0001). A few accessions showed consistently high for two or more nutrients (IPmr 449 for Fe, Zn, Ca, and protein; IPmr 981 for Zn and protein). Five accessions (IPmr 855, 974, 877, 897, 767) were high yielding and also rich in Ca. Consumption of 100 g of little millet grains can potentially contribute to the recommended dietary allowance of up to 28% Fe, 37% Zn, and 27% protein. Multilocation evaluation of the promising accessions across different soil types, fertility levels, and climatic conditions would help to identify valuable accessions for direct release as a cultivar or use in little millet improvement

Association between morphological traits and yield components in the durra sorghums of Ethiopia

Citation: Tesso, Tesfaye, Alemu Tirfessa, and Hussein Mohammed. “Association between Morphological Traits and Yield Components in the Durra Sorghums of Ethiopia.” Hereditas 148, no. 3 (2011): 98–109. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1601-5223.2011.02229.x.The Ethio-Sudan region is recognized as the center of origin and diversity for cultivated sorghum. All major races of the crop are widely grown in Ethiopia with durras being dominant. The objective of the present study was to determine the extent of morphological variability among the Ethiopian durras and examine the pattern of relationships among these traits and their association with yield and yield components. Two hundred accessions collected from major sorghum-growing regions of the country were evaluated during the 2007 season at two locations representing hot and dry low land and mild mid-altitude environments. A randomized complete block design with three replications was used. Data were collected on phenology, plant height, a range of leaf traits and yield components. Significant variation was observed among all traits measured. Phenological traits and plant height were significantly correlated with each other and with all leaf traits. There was positive correlation among leaf traits, and between leaf traits and yield components except thousand kernel weight (TKW) and panicle length (PL). Grain fi ll duration was negatively correlated with all traits except days to maturity, TKW, and leaf length. Yield components except PL and TKW were positively correlated with each other. Selection that focuses on key yield components, larger leaf area, and on enhancing the grain filling rate by reducing excessive grain fill duration may contribute to yield improvement