Identification and expression analysis of candidate genes involved in carotenoid biosynthesis in chickpea seeds

Plant carotenoids have a key role in preventing various diseases in human because of their antioxidant and provitamin A properties. Chickpea is a good source of carotenoid among legumes and its diverse germplasm and genome accessibility makes it a good model for carotenogenesis studies. The structure, location and copy numbers of genes involved in carotenoid biosynthesis were retrieved from the chickpea genome. The majority of the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) within these genes across five diverse chickpea cultivars was synonymous mutation. We examined the expression of the carotenogenesis genes and their association with carotenoid concentration at different seed development stages of five chickpea cultivars. Total carotenoid concentration ranged from 22 μg g-1 in yellow cotyledon kabuli to 44 μg g-1 in green cotyledon desi at 32 days post anthesis (DPA). The majority of carotenoids in chickpea seeds consists of lutein and zeaxanthin. The expression of the selected 19 genes involved in carotenoid biosynthesis pathway showed common pattern across five cultivars with higher expression at 8 and/or 16 DPA then dropped considerably at 24 and 32 DPA. Almost all genes were up-regulated in CDC Jade cultivar. Correlation analysis between gene expression and carotenoid concentration showed that the genes involved in the primary step of carotenoid biosynthesis pathway including carotenoid desaturase and isomerase positively correlated with various carotenoid components in chickpea seeds. A negative correlation was found between hydroxylation activity and provitamin A concentration in the seeds. The highest provitamin A concentration including β-carotene and β-cryptoxanthin were found in green cotyledon chickpea cultivars

Response of Snap Bean Cultivars to Rhizobium Inoculation under Dryland Agriculture in Ethiopia

High yield in snap bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) production requires relatively high nitrogen (N) inputs. However, little information is available on whether the use of rhizobial inoculants for enhanced biological dinitrogen fixation can provide adequate N to support green pod yield. The objectives of this study were to test the use of rhizobia inoculation as an alternative N source for snap bean production under rain fed conditions, and to identify suitable cultivars and appropriate agro-ecology for high pod yield and N2 fixation in Ethiopia. The study was conducted in 2011 and 2012 during the main rainy season at three locations. The treatments were factorial combinations of three N treatments (0 and 100 kg·N·ha−1, and Rhizobium etli (HB 429)) and eight snap bean cultivars. Rhizobial inoculation and applied N increased the total yield of snap bean pod by 18% and 42%, respectively. Cultivar Melkassa 1 was the most suitable for a reduced input production system due to its greatest N2 fixation and high pod yield. The greatest amount of fixed N was found at Debre Zeit location. We concluded that N2 fixation achieved through rhizobial inoculation can support the production of snap bean under rain fed conditions in Ethiopia

Genotypic variation in the response of chickpea to arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and non-mycorrhizal fungal endophytes

Plant roots host symbiotic arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and other fungal endophytes that can impact plant growth and health. The impact of microbial interactions in roots may depend on the genetic properties of the host plant and its interactions with root-associated fungi. We conducted a controlled condition experiment to investigate the effect of several chickpea genotypes (Cicer arietinum L.) on the efficiency of the symbiosis with AM fungi and non-AM fungal endophytes. Whereas the AM symbiosis increased the biomass of most of the chickpea cultivars, inoculation with non-AM fungal endophytes had a neutral effect. The chickpea cultivars responded differently to co-inoculation with AM fungi and non-AM fungal endophytes. Co-inoculation had additive effects on the biomass of some cultivars (CDC Corrine, CDC Anna, and CDC Cory), but non-AM fungal endophytes reduced the positive effect of AM fungi on Amit and CDC Vanguard. This study demonstrated that the response of plant genotypes to an AM symbiosis can be modified by the simultaneous colonization of the roots by non-AM fungal endophytes. Intraspecific variations in the response of chickpea to AM fungi and non-AM fungal endophytes indicate that the selection of suitable genotypes may improve the ability of crop plants to take advantage of soil ecosystem services.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author

Thermal processing methods differentially affect the protein quality of Chickpea (Cicer arietinum)

Chickpea is a widely produced pulse crop, but requires processing prior to human consumption. Protein bioavailability and amino acid quantity of chickpea flour can be altered by multiple factors including processing method. For this reason, the protein quality of processed chickpea flour was determined using in vivo and in vitro analyses for processed chickpeas. Processing differentially affected the protein digestibility-corrected amino acid score (PDCAAS) of chickpeas with extruded chickpea (83.8) having a higher PDCAAS score than both cooked (75.2) and baked (80.03). Interestingly, the digestible indispensable amino acid score (DIAAS) value of baked chickpea (0.84) was higher compared to both extruded (0.82) and cooked (0.78). The protein efficiency ratio, another measure of protein quality, was significantly higher for extruded chickpea than baked chickpea (p < .01). In vivo and in vitro analysis of protein quality were well correlated (R2 = .9339). These results demonstrated that under certain circumstances in vitro methods could replace the use of animals to determine protein quality

Genetic dissection of seed protein concentration in pea using multiple diverse mapping populations

International audienceImproving the seed protein concentration (SPC) of pea is an important breeding objective because of its underlying nutritional value and the demand from the international processing industries. To understand the genetic control ofSPC and support the marker-assisted selection (MAS), we explored three recombinant inbred line (RIL) populations and a genome-wide association study panel (GWAS-2) to identify the quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with protein content. The RIL populations used, CDC Amarillo x CDC Limerick (PR-25), MP 1918 x P0540-91 (PR-30), and Ballet x Cameor (PR-31), represent moderate SPC x high SPC crosses. The GWAS-2 panel comprised of representative accessions from global pea breeding programs, pea core germplasm, and commercial cultivars released in Canada. One hundred and ten, and 169 RILs of PR-25 and PR-30, and 233 accessions of GWAS panel were genotyped using a Axiom® 90KSNP array. PR-31 was earlier genotyped using the Genopea 13.2K SNP array [1], and the reported linkage map was used in the current study. Individuals of each mapping population were grown in replicated trials at two to three locationsin Saskatchewan between 2019 and 2021. All mapping populations were tested in 5 to 7 station-years. Seed samples harvested from each plot were used for the determination of SPC using near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. We identifiedthree QTLs each in PR-25 [2] and PR-30, and five QTLs in PR-31 associated with SPC. The LOD value of the identified QTLs ranged from 3.0 – 11.0. The QTLs from the biparental populations will be compared with those identified in theGWAS and with the published literatures. The highly significant QTLs identified in this study are useful for MAS of pea breeding lines for SP

CDC Spectrum yellow field pea

CDC Spectrum, a yellow cotyledon field pea (Pisum sativum L.) cultivar, was released in 2016 by the Crop Development Centre, University of Saskatchewan for distribution to Select seed growers through the Variety Release Committee of the Saskatchewan Pulse Growers. CDC Spectrum has good lodging resistance, medium-sized, round seeds, and good yielding ability. CDC Spectrum is adapted to the field pea growing regions of western Canada.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author

CDC Spruce green field pea

CDC Spruce, a green cotyledon field pea (Pisum sativum L.) cultivar, was released in 2016 by the Crop Development Centre, University of Saskatchewan for distribution to Select seed growers through the Variety Release Committee of the Saskatchewan Pulse Growers. CDC Spruce has good lodging resistance, medium-sized, round seeds, and good yielding ability. CDC Spruce is adapted to the field pea growing regions of western Canada.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author

CDC Canary yellow field pea

CDC Canary, a yellow cotyledon field pea (Pisum sativum L.) cultivar, was released in 2017 by the Crop Development Centre, University of Saskatchewan for distribution to Select seed growers through the Variety Release Committee of the Saskatchewan Pulse Growers. CDC Canary has good lodging resistance, medium-sized, round seeds, early maturity, and good yielding ability. CDC Canary is adapted to the field pea growing regions of western Canada.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author