In order to feed an ever-increasing population, it is essential to deal yield reducing factors. Climate smart crop varieties that yield more with fewer inputs will be required to achieve the success. In this scenario pigeonpea plays an important role as it can stand in relatively harsh environmental conditions. Hybrid breeding along with the pure line breeding, genetic resources and genomics advances are enriching this crop. However, the pigeonpea improvement program must be re-oriented in order to deal with the yield-reducing factors and to break the yield plateau

Sameer Kumar, C.V.

Saxena, K.B.

Saxena, R.K.

Singh, N.P.

Varshney, R.K.

English

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In this article we are sharing experiencesand ideas to improve pigeonpea research forresource poor farmers in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.Integration R & D for hybrid and inbred cultivarsIn a dynamic breeding program it isimportant that cultivars are released fromtime to time to cater the changing needs offarmers and market. In pigeonpea thetechnologies for breeding both hybrids andpure line cultivars are available and bothtypes of products are in demand now.Considering the cost and resources involvedin breeding, it is logical to integrate these twotypes of breeding programs. It should bedone in such a way that the objectives andprimary activities in either program are notcompromised. For example breeding ofinbred lines for variety development andbreeding of new testers for hybrid programAbstract: In order to feed an ever-increasingpopulation, it is essential to deal yield-reducing factors. Climate smart crop varietiesthat yield more with fewer inputs will berequired to achieve the success. In thisscenario pigeonpea plays an important roleas it can stand in relatively harshenvironmental conditions. Hybrid breedingalong with the pure line breeding, geneticresources and genomics advances areenriching this crop. However, the pigeonpeaimprovement program must be re-orientedin order to deal with the yield-reducingfactors and to break the yield plateau.Key words: genomics assisted breeding,pigeonpea, quality control, value chainIntroductionPigeonpea (Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.) is richin seed protein (20% - 22%) and its de-hulled split grains (dal) constitute a majorsupplement in the diets of most vegetarianfamilies around the globe (5). In spite ofextensive research and developmentactivities in the last four decades, the yieldlevels remain stagnated in pigeonpea. Thedevelopment of hybrid technology (6) hasshown promise in this direction but itsadoption is below the expectations due tosome production and marketing reasons.Now the time has come to move forwardmore vigorously with backing of newtechnologies to overcome the presentconstraints and breed new cultivars at a rapidpace (4)._________________________________________________________________________________________________________1International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, Patancheru, India (R.Saxena@cgiar.org, r.k.varshney@cgiar.org)2Indian Institute of Pulses Research, Kanpur, Indiashould go hand in hand. Selection of parentsto develop breeding populations can be donetogether by considering their combiningability, genetic diversity, and market traits.Similarly screening of selections for bioticand abiotic stresses, their evaluation andmaintenance for the two programs can beintegrated together. In advance stages ofpedigree selection, a set of high yieldinginbreds can be picked to identify cultivars fora given region. On the other hand, a greaterearly generation selections from the same lotcan be used as testers for hybrid breedingprogram to select potential fertility restorersand maintainers. The other research anddevelopment areas that would require seriousattention are: exploitation of photo thermosensitivity in hybrid breeding, diversificationof hybrid parents, development of heteroticgroups, refining seed technology andtechnology transfer to the farmers (Fig. 1).RESEARCH50Legume Perspectives                                         Issue 11 • January 2016Strategies for pigeonpea improvement by Rachit K. SAXENA1*, Kulbhushan B. SAXENA1, Chanda V. SAMEER KUMAR1, Narendra P. SINGH2 and Rajeev K. VARSHNEY1*Figure 1. A schematic diagram representing different components for pigeonpea (hybrids and varieties) value chainRESEARCHGermplasm resource is very rich andcontains a large variability with respect tovarious morphological traits. Howeverlimited resources from germplasm have beenused in breeding programs. For continuousinduction of new allelic combinations fromgermplasm in ongoing breeding programs,efforts have to be made to evaluate thesituation and their systematic use. Genomicscan play a major role in deployment ofgermplasm resources in breeding programsby fingerprinting and cataloging the desirablegenes/genomic segments. Genomics datawill be helpful in avoiding the linkage dragand the generation of well-planned breedingmaterials in collaboration with majordisciplines involved in improving pigeonpea.OutlookIn view of above it is evident thatfollowing are required to enhance thepigeonpea improvement program 1) researchshould be guided by farmers’ needs, 2)advance breeding methodologies should bedeployed by integrating genomics, genetictransformation for insect resistance andgenome editing such as CRISPR/Cas9multiplex editing for desirable traits, 3)improved seeds should be developed andseed delivery system should be strengthenedand 4) agronomy and integrated cropmanagement practices should be refined toachieve maximum yield potential of varietiesor hybrids.Breeding high-yielding second-generation hybridsThe present set of hybrid parental lines hasproduced several good hybrids and showedhigh productivity in farmers’ fields. In mostplaces the hybrids have recorded theproductivity between 2,500 kg ha-1 -3,500 kg ha-1 with a yield advantage of 35% -45% over ruling cultivars (6). This can beconsidered a good start to break the decades-old yield barrier, however, considering thepotential of hybrid technology and realizedyields from hybrids in other field crops, it isreasonable to believe that pigeonpeabreeders would be aiming to produce newgeneration hybrids with yields of over5,000 kg ha-1. To achieve this, however,concerted efforts will be made to breed newhybrid parents using modern resourcesavailable in germplasm and genomics.Enhanced participation of genomics and germplasm resourcesFor sustainable and rapid development inpigeonpea it is highly imperative to usegenomics and germplasm resources in allpossible breeding programs. In the case ofgenomics starting from markers basedselection for key traits (biotic and abioticstresses, fertility restoring genes, etc.),markers based purity testing of hybrids andparental lines, characterization anddocumentation of elite genotypes,understanding molecular basis of CMSsystems and defining the heterotic groups arethe prime targets. Recent advances inpigeonpea genomics have created anopportunity where we can deploy genomicsin all above mentioned areas (4). Forinstance markers have been identified forfusarium wilt (7), sterility mosaic diseases (3),fertility restoration (2), and hybridity testing(1). Efforts are underway to detect markersfor key agronomic traits. This will certainlyenhanced the capacity of pigeonpea breedingprograms. On the other hand initiatives todefine heterotic groups and exploiting photothermo sensitivity will certainly enrich thehybrid breeding.51Legume Perspectives                                         Issue 11 • January 2016References(1) Bohra A, Dubey A, Saxena RK, Penmetsa RV, Poornima KN, Kumar N, Farmer AD, Srivani G, Upadhyaya HD, Gothalwal R, Ramesh S, Singh D, Saxena K, Kavi Kishor PB, Singh NK, Town CD, May GD, Cook DR, Varshney RK (2011) Analysis of BAC-end sequences (BESs) and development of BES-SSR markers for genetic mapping and hybrid purity assessment in pigeonpea (Cajanusspp.). BMC Plant Biol 11:56(2) Bohra A, Saxena RK, Gnanesh BN, Saxena KB, Byregowda M, Rathore A, KaviKishor PB, Cook DR, Varshney RK (2012) An intra-specific consensus genetic map of pigeonpea [Cajanus cajan(L.) Millspaugh] derived from six mapping populations. Theor Appl Genet 125:1325-1338(3) Gnanesh BN, Bohra A, Sharma M, Byregowda M, Pande S, Wesley V, Saxena RK, Saxena KB, Kavi Kishor PB, Varshney RK (2011) Genetic mapping and quantitative trait locus analysis of resistance to sterility mosaic disease in pigeonpea [Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.]. Field Crop Res 123:56-61(4) Pazhamala L, Saxena RK, Singh VK, Sameerkumar CV, Kumar, V Sinha P, Patel K, Obala J, Kaoneka SR, Tongoona P, Shimelis HA, Gangarao NVPR, Odeny D, Rathore A, Dharmaraj PS, Yamini KN, Varshney RK (2015) Genomics-assisted breeding for boosting crop improvement in pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L.). Front Plant Sci 6:50(5) Saxena KB, Vijayakumar R, Sultana R (2010) Quality nutrition through pigeonpea - a review. Health 2:1335(6) Saxena KB, Kumar RV, Tikle AN, Saxena MK, Gautam VS, Rao SK, Khare DK, Chauhan YS, Saxena RK, Reddy BVS, Sharma D, Reddy LJ, Green JM, Faris DG, Nene YL, Mula M, Sultana R, Srivastava RK, Gowda CLL, Sawargaonkar SL, Varshney RK (2013) ICPH 2671–the world's first commercial food legume hybrid. Plant Breed 132:479-485(7) Singh VK, Khan AW, Saxena RK, Kumar V, Kale SM, Sinha P, Chitikineni A, Pazhamala LT, Garg V, Sharma M, Sameerkumar CV, Parupalli S, Suryanarayana V, Patil S, Muniswamy S, Ghanta A, Yamini KN, Dharmaraj PS, Varshney RK (2015) Next generation sequencing for identification of candidate genes for fusarium wilt and sterility mosaic disease in pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan). Plant Biotechnol J DOI 10.1111/pbi.12470.

Strategies for pigeonpea improvement

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Strategies for pigeonpea improvement

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