Broadening and exploiting the genetic base of white lupin

White lupin is a European crop with a long history of domestication and high potential interest for high-protein food or feedstuff. This report aims to summarize the research steps that were undertaken to (i) verify the extent of genetic diversity exploited by modern breeding, (ii) identify elite bitter-seed landraces and sweet-seed germplasm aimed to broaden the genetic base for European breeding, (iii) assess the genetic variation for tolerance to key abiotic stresses in the germplasm of the novel genetic base, and (iv) verify the potential of genomic models based on genotyping-bysequencing (GBS) SNP data to select simultaneously and cost-efficiently for some complex traits. Molecular diversity patterns of 83 landraces from nine major historical cropping regions and 15 commercial varieties confirmed that modern plant breeding exploited only a modest part of the crop genetic variation. Germplasm evaluation experiments for adaptation to severe drought or calcareous soil revealed substantial genetic variation (Annicchiarico and Thami-Alami, 2012; Annicchiarico et al., 2018), which, along with other information, was exploited to identify four elite landraces and four elite, sweet-seed lines that acted as parents of a broadly-based population. Some 144 sweet-seed lines extracted from this population were evaluated for grain yield under severe drought in a managed environment of Italy and for adaptation to moderately calcareous soil in a spring-sown environment of the Netherlands and an autumn-sown environment of Greece. We report on the observed line variation for these traits, and on the construction of genomic selection models and their ability to predict the line adaptation to drought or lime soil based on cross validations. Genome-enabled models may be used also to select for tolerance to anthracnose and the sweet-seed trait

Effect of storage conditions on seed quality of soybean (Glycine max L.) germplasm

Soybean is one of the most important oil seed crops. However, soybean seed is structurally weak and inherently short-lived, making the crop vulnerable to long period storage. Thus, it is crucial to study the effect of storage conditions on the quality of soybean seeds (Glycine max L.). The genetic material consisted of 10 soybean varieties, whose seeds were stored under both cooling (refrigerator) and room temperature conditions and were subsequently subjected to germination test, electric conductivity test and estimation of free fatty acids percentage. In order to determinethe long-term effects of storage on seed quality, all genotypes were subjected to accelerated ageing at 40°C up to 48 days and viability equation was used to determine the Ki value. Overall findings revealed the significant effect of storage conditions on seed quality and, at the same time, underlined the beneficial effect of storage under cooling conditions, which is expressed as higher germination percentage, reduced electric conductivity and free fatty acids percentage and improved storage longevity. Further, our data provide conclusive evidence for the qualitative superiority of the varieties Adonai, Celina and Neoplanta, especially upon storage under cooling conditions, as they were characterized by higher germination percentage and improved tolerance to storage (storage potential) © 2022. the Author(s), licensee AIMS Press. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

Effect of Genotype and Sowing Period on Chickpea Quality, Bioactive and Antioxidant Traits

Background: Climate change is expected to be a major constraint for chickpea as it increases the frequency of drought and temperature extremes. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of drought and heat stress conditions on chickpeas’ physical, quality and bioactive traits, along with antioxidant activity of five chickpea genotypes in normal and late sowning conditions. Methods: Field trials were carried out at Institute of Industrial and Forage Crops. All the five genotypes were planted at two different sowing dates, one during the normal sowing period (February 28, 2019) and one off-season (April 1, 2019) in order to achieve dry-heat conditions during the chickpea’s critical stages of off-season sowing. Result: Sowing period significantly affected cooking time and bioactive traits, resulted in decreased cooking time and increased bioactive traits values, in the later sowing period. Genotype’s effects were significant for all the traits studied. Amorgos appeared to be a promising variety with high nutritive value as it showed the highest values in terms of bioactive traits and antioxidant activity in both sowing periods, combined with low cooking time and high protein content at the off-season sowing. © 2021, Agricultural Research Communication Centre. All rights reserved

Effect of PEG-induced drought stress on germination of ten chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) genotypes

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is one of the most important legume crops worldwide, with its importance mainly relying on its high protein content. Chickpea productivity is strictly threatened by abiotic stresses, of which drought exerts the most crucial role in terms of growth inhibition and yield losses encountered. Given that germination is a critical stage that is negatively affected by drought, the aim of this study was to estimate the genotypic variability among ten chickpea genotypes and to determine the seed germination and seedling growth ability under drought stress conditions. Seeds were subjected to water stress by polyethylene glycol (PEG-6000) at five stress levels (0, 5, 10, 20, 30 and 50% PEG). Germination percentage, seed water content, seed water absorbance, root and shoot development and seedling vigour index were evaluated. The analyses revealed significant genetic variability in relation to genotypic performance under drought stress. Drought significantly affected germination as well as all other associated traits, with the effects of stress being analogous to the stress level applied. Findings point to the fact that seedling vigour index is a suitable selection criterion for drought tolerance as it allowed the classification of genotypes as tolerant, moderately tolerant, moderately susceptible and susceptible. Taken together, the commercial varieties 'Thiva', 'Keryneia' and 'Gavdos' as well as the landrace 'Lemnos' showed an increased drought tolerance at high stress level, indicating their possible exploitation as valuable genetic material for breeding programs or for commercial use. © 2020 Articles by the authors

Response of early maturity soybean cultivars to row spacing in full-season crop and double-crop systems

Cultivar selection and crop systems are important factors for maximising soybean seed yield. The effect of row spacing (RS1 = 75 cm, RS2 = 25 cm) on the performance of 10 early maturity soybean cultivars grown in full-season and double-crop system for two consecutive years was studied. The agronomic traits measured were seed yield (SY), plant height (PH), pods per plant (PP), first pod height (FPH), crude protein. RS had a significant effect on SY, PH, PP and FPH. Higher SY (P 5.67 t/ha); cv. Sphera was the most productive in the double-crop system (4.66 t/ha); cv. PR92M22 showed good adaptability to both cropping systems. In conclusion, the significant effect of RS and crop system on SY was observed, whereas different high yielding cultivars were identified as suitable for full-season and double-crop system. © 2021, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences. All rights reserved

Spectral Reflectance Indices as a High Throughput Selection Tool in a Sesame Breeding Scheme

On-farm genotype screening is at the core of every breeding scheme, but it comes with a high cost and often high degree of uncertainty. Phenomics is a new approach by plant breeders, who use optical sensors for accurate germplasm phenotyping, selection and enhancement of the genetic gain. The objectives of this study were to: (1) develop a high-throughput phenotyping workflow to estimate the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and the Normalized Difference Red Edge index (NDRE) at the plot-level through an active crop canopy sensor; (2) test the ability of spectral reflectance indices (SRIs) to distinguish between sesame genotypes throughout the crop growth period; and (3) identify specific stages in the sesame growth cycle that contribute to phenotyping accuracy and functionality and evaluate the efficiency of SRIs as a selection tool. A diversity panel of 24 sesame genotypes was grown at normal and late planting dates in 2020 and 2021. To determine the SRIs the Crop Circle ACS-430 active crop canopy sensor was used from the beginning of the sesame reproductive stage to the end of the ripening stage. NDVI and NDRE reached about the same high accuracy in genotype phenotyping, even under dense biomass conditions where “saturation” problems were expected. NDVI produced higher broad-sense heritability (max 0.928) and NDRE higher phenotypic and genotypic correlation with the yield (max 0.593 and 0.748, respectively). NDRE had the highest relative efficiency (61%) as an indirect selection index to yield direct selection. Both SRIs had optimal results when the monitoring took place at the end of the reproductive stage and the beginning of the ripening stage. Thus, an active canopy sensor as this study demonstrated can assist breeders to differentiate and classify sesame genotypes. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

The Evaluation of Common Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) Genotypes under Water Stress Based on Physiological and Agronomic Parameters

Drought affects common bean productivity, and the severity of its impact is expected to increase due to climate change. The use of versatile genotypes could contribute to securing future bean production. This study investigates the adaptability of 10 common bean genotypes of indeterminate growth type under water scarcity conditions by measuring agronomic and physiological parameters. The evaluation occurs under irrigation treatments applied at two different phenological stages (anthesis (WDA) and seed filling initiation (WDSF)). The recorded adaptabilities of the genotypes (G) showed that G10 produced the highest overall seed yield in the normal irrigation (NI) (197.22 g plant−1) and WDA (192.78 g plant−1), while the G6 had the highest yield at WDSF (196.71 g plant−1). For the genotype’s average mean, chlorophyll content decreased by 10.5% under drought at WDSF. Net photosynthetic rate (Pn), stomatal conductance (gs), and transpiration rate (E) were reduced at WDA by 53%, 80.8%, and 61.4% and at WDSF by 43.75%, 57.7%, and 36%, respectively, while relative water content (RWC) reduced by 16.48%, on average, for both stages. G10 and G6 showed adaptability when water scarcity occurred at an early (WDA) or later stage (WDSF), respectively, providing insights into using germplasm resources to cope with the drought effect. © 2022 by the authors