Contribution of morphoagronomic traits to grain yield and earliness in grain sorghum

Given the importance of selecting lines to obtain hybrids, we aimed to verify the relationship between morphological traits that can be used as the criteria for the selection of sorghum lines with high grain yield and earliness. A total of 18 traits were evaluated in 160 sorghum elite lines, in an incomplete block design with two replicates. A correlation network was used to graphically express the estimates of phenotypic and genotypic correlations between the traits. Two path analyses were processed, the first considering grain yield and the second considering flowering as the principle dependent variable. In general, most of the variation in the grain yield and flowering of sorghum lines was explained by the traits evaluated. Selecting sorghum lines with greater width of the third leaf blade from flag leaf, panicle weight, and panicle harvest index might lead to increased grain yield, and selecting sorghum genotypes with higher plant height might lead to reduced earliness and increased grain yield. Thus, the results suggest the establishment of selection indices aiming at simultaneously increasing the grain yield and earliness in sorghum genotypes.

Genome wide selection in Citrus breeding

Genome wide selection (GWS) is essential for the genetic improvement of perennial species such as Citrus because of its ability to increase gain per unit time and to enable the efficient selection of characteristics with low heritability. This study assessed GWS efficiency in a population of Citrus and compared it with selection based on phenotypic data. A total of 180 individual trees from a cross between Pera sweet orange (Citrus sinensis Osbeck) and Murcott tangor (Citrus sinensis Osbeck x Citrus reticulata Blanco) were evaluated for 10 characteristics related to fruit quality. The hybrids were genotyped using 5287 DArT_seq^TM (diversity arrays technology) molecular markers and their effects on phenotypes were predicted using the random regression - best linear unbiased predictor (rr-BLUP) method. The predictive ability, prediction bias, and accuracy of GWS were estimated to verify its effectiveness for phenotype prediction. The proportion of genetic variance explained by the markers was also computed. The heritability of the traits, as determined by markers, was 16-28%. The predictive ability of these markers ranged from 0.53 to 0.64, and the regression coefficients between predicted and observed phenotypes were close to unity. Over 35% of the genetic variance was accounted for by the markers. Accuracy estimates with GWS were lower than those obtained by phenotypic analysis; however, GWS was superior in terms of genetic gain per unit time. Thus, GWS may be useful for Citrus breeding as it can predict phenotypes early and accurately, and reduce the length of the selection cycle. This study demonstrates the feasibility of genomic selection in Citrus.

Genetic dissimilarity and selection of putative mutants of Terra Maranhão plantain cultivar using the Ward-MLM strategy

The objective of this study was to evaluate genetic variability and select putative mutants of Terra Maranhão plantain cultivar (AAB genome) subjected to gamma radiation based on agronomic data and inter simple sequence repeat molecular marker profiles using the Ward-MLM strategy. A total of 233 irradiated plants and 41 controls were assessed. The agronomic and molecular data were subjected to the Ward-MLM statistical algorithm in the SAS program. Cluster analysis was performed by the average distance method (UPGMA), based on the distance matrix of the Gower algorithm, and the cophenetic correlation coefficient calculated using the R software. The distance between the putative mutants ranged from 0.321 to 0.524, with an average distance of 0.426, and a cophenetic correlation coefficient of 0.79. Three putative mutants, which were selected based on the best agronomic traits and low height, will undergo further evaluation in the next stages of the banana breeding program at Embrapa. These results describe the first attempt of using combined data of Terra Maranhão plantain cultivar for the purpose of selecting mutants and assessing genetic variability.

Selection of putative Terra Maranhão plantain cultivar mutants obtained by gamma radiation

The aim of this study was to select putative Terra Maranhão plantain cultivar mutants obtained by gamma radiation, with good agronomic traits and short height. A total of 315 buds were irradiated in vitro with gamma rays in doses of 20 Gy and were subcultivated and evaluated in the field over 2 production cycles. The clones were evaluated to select the best 10% of the plants. Cultivation was undertaken at a spacing of 3 x 4 m, and fertilization was carried out according to the technical recommendations for the crop. A total of 111 irradiated plants and 41 controls were evaluated in the field. Among the irradiated plants selected, genotypes that exhibited reduced height were observed. The genotypes Irra 04, Irra 13, Irra 19, and Irra 21 exhibited a height of 3.6 m, which was below the mean value of the controls selected. Other irradiated genotypes selected such as Irra 14 and Irra 16, with a height of 3.65 m, are promising because, in addition to reduced height, they exhibited good bunch weight and shorter period to flowering in relation to the mean value of the controls, which is a significant factor for the next stages in breeding. These results confirm the possibility of inducing mutations in Terra type banana plants to obtain desirable agronomic traits and short height.

Epistasis and inheritance of plant habit and fruit quality traits in ornamental pepper (Capsicum annuum L.)

Two accessions of ornamental pepper Capsicum annuum L., differing in most of the characters studied, were crossed, resulting in the F1 generation, and the F2 generation was obtained through self-fertilization of the F1 generation. The backcross generations RC1 and RC2 were obtained through crossing between F1 and the parents P1 and P2, respectively. Morpho-agronomic characterization was performed based on the 19 quantitative descriptors of Capsicum. The data obtained were subjected to generation analysis, in which the means and additive variance (σa(2)), variance due to dominance deviation (σd(2)), phenotypic variance (σf(2)), genetic variance (σg(2)) and environmental variance (σm(2)) were calculated. For the full model, we estimated the mean effects of all possible homozygotes, additives, dominants, and epistatics: additive-additive, additive-dominant, and dominant-dominant. For the additive-dominant model, we estimated the additive effects, dominant effects and mean effects of possible homozygotes. The character fruit dry matter had the lowest value for broad sense heritability (0.42), and the highest values were found for fresh matter and fruit weight, 0.91 and 0.92, respectively. The lowest value for narrow sense heritability was for the minor fruit diameter character (0.33), and the highest values were found for seed yield per fruit and fresh matter, 0.87 and 0.84, respectively. The additive-dominant model explained only the variation found in plant height, canopy width, stem length, corolla diameter, leaf width, and pedicel length, but in the other characters, the epistatic effects showed significant values.

Reference genes for quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction studies in soybean plants under hypoxic conditions

Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) is a powerful tool used to measure gene expression. However, because of its high sensitivity, the method is strongly influenced by the quality and concentration of the template cDNA and by the amplification efficiency. Relative quantification is an effective strategy for correcting random and systematic errors by using the expression level of reference gene(s) to normalize the expression level of the genes of interest. To identify soybean reference genes for use in studies of flooding stress, we compared 5 candidate reference genes (CRGs) with the NormFinder and GeNorm programs to select the best internal control. The expression stability of the CRGs was evaluated in root tissues from soybean plants subjected to hypoxic conditions. Elongation factor 1-beta and actin-11 were identified as the most appropriate genes for RT-qPCR normalization by both the NormFinder and GeNorm analyses. The expression profiles of the genes for alcohol dehydrogenase 1, sucrose synthase 4, and ascorbate peroxidase 2 were analyzed by comparing different normalizing combinations (including no normalization) of the selected reference genes. Here, we have identified potential genes for use as references for RT-qPCR normalization in experiments with soybean roots growing in O2-depleted environments, such as flooding-stressed plants.

Genetic diversity of Brazilian and introduced olive germplasms based on microsatellite markers

Olive trees have been grown since the beginning of civilization, and the consumption of olives and olive products is increasing worldwide, due to their health benefits and organoleptic qualities. To meet the growing market for olives, commercial cultivation of this species is expanding from traditional areas to new regions. Although the Brazilian olive industry has just begun to be established, breeding programs are already developing cultivars that are more adapted to local conditions. We used 12 microsatellite markers to evaluate 60 olive accessions, including several cultivars that were developed in Brazil. The analyses identified 72 distinct alleles; the largest number of alleles per locus were at the markers GAPU 101 and GAPU 71B, which contained 10 and 9 alleles, respectively. The largest allelic diversity and polymorphic information contents were also found at the GAPU 101 and GAPU 71B markers, with values of 0.8399/0.8203 and 0.8117/0.7863, respectively. Additionally, the 12 microsatellite markers generated a cumulative identity probability of 1.51 x 10(-10), indicating a high level of accuracy of accession identification. The set of markers that we used allowed the identification of 52 of the 60 olive genotypes, in addition to the recognition of several varietal synonyms. The components of a two-dimensional principal coordinate analysis explained 48.6% of the total genetic variation. The results obtained from the microsatellite markers showed a substantial degree of genetic diversity in the olive tree accessions used in Brazil.

Genetic diversity for aluminum tolerance in sorghum

Genetic variation for aluminum (Al) tolerance in plants has allowed the development of cultivars that are high yielding on acidic, Al toxic soils. However, knowledge of intraspecific variation for Al tolerance control is needed in order to assess the potential for further Al tolerance improvement. Here we focused on the major sorghum Al tolerance gene, Alt ( SB ), from the highly Al tolerant standard SC283 to investigate the range of genetic diversity for Al tolerance control in sorghum accessions from diverse origins. Two tightly linked STS markers flanking Alt ( SB ) were used to study the role of this locus in the segregation for Al tolerance in mapping populations derived from different sources of Al tolerance crossed with a common Al sensitive tester, BR012, as well as to isolate the allelic effects of Alt ( SB ) in near-isogenic lines. The results indicated the existence not only of multiple alleles at the Alt ( SB ) locus, which conditioned a wide range of tolerance levels, but also of novel sorghum Al tolerance genes. Transgressive segregation was observed in a highly Al tolerant breeding line, indicating that potential exists to exploit the additive or codominant effects of distinct Al tolerance loci. A global, SSR-based, genetic diversity analysis using a broader sorghum set revealed the presence of both multiple Alt ( SB ) alleles and different Al tolerance genes within highly related accessions. This suggests that efforts toward broadening the genetic basis for Al tolerance in sorghum may benefit from a detailed analysis of Al tolerance gene diversity within subgroups across a target population.

Self-incompatibility in passionfruit: evidence of gametophytic-sporophytic control

Self-incompatibility in passionfruit was studied in families originated from crosses among plants that presented differences in reciprocal crosses. The three families, obtained by crossing S(3) plants, exhibited one incompatible group; no reciprocal differences were observed. The phenotype of the families was the same as the parent plants, S(3). These results suggest the presence of a gene ( G), gametophytic in its action, associated to the sporophytic gene S, modifying the incompatibility reaction in passionfruit. The reciprocal difference exhibited in the crosses among the parents could be explained as a matching between plants homozygous for S, but homozygous and heterozygous for G. Actually this would be a partially compatible cross, not detectable when the evaluation is done based on fruit set data. As the family originated from this kind of cross is homozygous for S and heterozygous for G, no reciprocal differences are expected, and the phenotype should be the same as the parental plants, as observed in the present work.