Inhibition of α-glucosidase activity is considered an effective means for controlling diabetes by regulating glucose uptake, and blueberries have been shown to possess high levels of inhibitory activity. In the present study, we examined the variations in α-glucosidase inhibition, phenolic and anthocyanin levels, and antioxidant capacity in the peel and pulp of 16 mixed-species rabbiteye hybrids (Vaccinium ashei Reade × Vaccinium spp.), one rabbiteye cultivar (V. ashei) and two highbush hybrids (Vaccinium corymbosum). Peel tissue had, on average, about four times higher levels of α-glucosidase inhibitory activity than pulp, and exhibited significantly higher levels of all other measured activities, even though the peel comprised only a small portion of the fruit. Significant variations in the levels of antioxidant activity were observed; however, no consistent differences were observed between the hybrids with various species composition. Significant positive correlations (r≥ 0.84) were found among α-glucosidase inhibitory activity, total anthocyanin (TA) and phenolic levels, and scavenging activity against ROO∙, ∙OH, 1O2 and H2O2 radicals in the extracts from the peel and pulp. There was a high correlation observed between α-glucosidase inhibitory activity levels and ROO∙(ORAC)peel (r= 0.95). A similarly high correlation with TApeel (r= 0.93) suggests that TA would be a suitable assay proxy if a broader genotypic evaluation of blueberry genotypes is desired.

Emmer wheat (Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccum) is one of the most promising gene sources for drought tolerance improvement of durum wheat (Triticum turgidum ssp. durum). Achieving desired results requires a conscious choice of crossing parents based on general and specific combining ability (GCA and SCA) and also understanding the genes action involved in controlling the desired traits. In this study a 12 × 12 full diallel cross was performed using four emmer and eight durum wheats. The 132 hybrid progenies along with their parental lines were field evaluated under water-stressed and non-stressed conditions. Based on the Griffing diallel analysis both GCA and SCA effects were highly significant for all measured traits under both water treatments indicating possibility of improvement for drought tolerance. In this respect, the amount of additive effect was higher than the non-additive suggesting the chance for genetic advancement through selection. Based on Hayman's graphical analyses under the two water conditions it was revealed that several grain yield component traits were under the control of partial dominance. In contrary, grain yield and most morphological traits showed either dominance or over-dominance gene action. Grain yield had a significant positive correlation with the number of kernels per spike, kernel diameter, grain weight per spike and harvest index. These traits also had greater share of additive effects, relatively high narrow-sense heritability and high Baker ratio suggesting effective indirect selection for grain yield. Most durum × emmer hybrids had grain yield and drought tolerance indices better than the parents indicating that Iranian emmer wheats have a great genetic potential for drought tolerance improvement of durum wheat.

Ever increasing global population necessitates the need to increase availability of affordable foods with high nutritional quality. Chickpea being the second most important grain legume cultivated worldwide has the great potential to alleviate problems of protein malnutrition and hidden hunger. The objective of the present investigation was to characterize a diverse set of 402 germplasm comprising of more than 100 commercial cultivars widely cultivated and utilized by breeders for grain protein in two contrasting environments to explore the magnitude of natural genotypic diversity present in the cultivated chickpea and the scope for enhancing it and its quality through breeding. The cultivars containing more than 25 to 30.44% grain protein have been found in the study and large scale production of such protein rich cultivars is expected to increase availability as well as consumption of high quality chickpea necessary to overcome all forms of malnutrition. Trait specific germplasm containing grain protein up to 33.56% are also identified for their further utilization as potential donors in the chickpea improvement programme. The amino acid profiling of selected high and low protein containing genotypes showed considerably greater average amino acid score for all the essential amino acids than the WHO recommended requirement values and is comparable to those of the ‘complete protein’ sources of food suggesting that chickpea deserves to be considered as a ‘complete protein’ source.

Sweet sorghum is highly coveted to contribute and take up food and energy challenges. A collection of 84 West Africa landraces mostly from Senegal and four control cultivars were screened to identify relevant accessions and trait combination for multi-purpose (sugar/grain/biomass). The implication of photoperiod sensitivity was particularly addressed. A total of 20 traits related to phenology, morphology, grain and sugar production were assessed in two sowing dates (July and August) at CNRA Bambey in Senegal. Late sowing resulted in shortened vegetative phase and a significant decrease in traits related to plant size, stem sugar, biomass and grain productions. Broad-sense heritability was moderate to high for most of the phenology, morphology, grain and sugar-related traits, suggesting their interest for breeding. All the traits related to plant size were positively correlated with plant sugar production except plant height. A cluster analysis identified three groups contrasting in their ability to combine sugar, grain or fodder production based on 18 traits measured for the early sowing. Clusters I and III were suitable for one purpose: grain and sugar, respectively. Cluster II was the most suitable for multi-purpose, showing the best trade-off among grain, sugar and vegetative biomass production. The best accessions for stem sugar yield belonged to durra, caudatum and their intermediate types. The relationship between internode size and sweetness should be further studied, in particular exploring their relationship with internode tissue anatomy. Further studies are also needed to evaluate the role that stay-green can play in sugar yield maintenance under post-flowering drought.

Wild relatives of crop species are known to be sources of genetic diversity that can be used in crop improvement. However, they have not always been studied adequately for the variation that may exist within them, for traits which may have important implications from an evolutionary point of view and their use in breeding programmes. In the present study, a wild groundnut species, Arachis stenosperma, has been studied for variation between accessions collected from different sites in Brazil for morphological and certain nutritional traits, and for disease resistance. Multivariate analysis of 23 characters grouped 18 accessions into two clusters, while one accession, ICG 14927, was distinct from these. However, in protein profile they all appear identical. Hence, the variation appears to have arisen in response to the climatic conditions of their habitat, which has implications for use of these accessions in breeding programmes. The variation in these traits could not be associated with any phytogeographical regions. The dispersal of this species from its centre of origin and diversity to other parts of Brazil appears to be recent and without any identifiable selection pressures having operated.

Kenya lies within sorghum centre of diversity. However, information on the relative extent of diversity patterns within and among genetically defined groups of distinct ecosystems is lacking. The objective was to assess the structure and phenotypic diversity of wild sorghum populations across a range of geographical and ecological conditions in the country. Sixty-two wild sorghum populations (30 individuals per population) sampled from four distinct sorghum growing regions of Kenya and covering different agroecologies were characterized for ten qualitative traits. Plant height, number of tillers, panicle sizes and flag leaf dimensions were also recorded. Frequencies of the phenotypic classes of each character were calculated. The Shannon diversity index (H′) was used to estimate the magnitude of diversity. Principal component analysis was used to differentiate populations within and between regions. Wild sorghum is widely distributed in Kenya, occurring in sympatric ranges with cultivated sorghum, and both have overlapping flowering windows. All characters considered displayed great phenotypic diversity. Pooled over characters within regions, the mean H′ ranged between 0.60 and 0.93 in Western and Coast regions, respectively. Wild sorghum was found to show a weak regional differentiation, probably reflecting the importance of seed-mediated gene flow in shaping the wild sorghum population structure. Trait distribution was variable among regions, but there was no conspicuous distribution of the traits studied in any given region. Spontaneous hybridization and introgression of genes from cultivated to wild sorghum seems to be likely, and may already have occurred for a long time, although undocumented. Implications for in situ and ex situ genetic resources conservation are discussed.

In this study, the genetic variability among 130 accessions of the Portuguese germplasm collection of Cucurbita pepo L. maintained at the Banco Português de Germoplasma Vegetal was assessed using AFLP (amplified fragment length polymorphism) and RAPD (random amplified polymorphic DNA) techniques for the identification of a genetically diverse core group of accessions for field phenotypic analysis. The surprisingly completely different molecular patterns exhibited by multiple accessions was later confirmed in the distribution of the putative C. pepo plants into two clusters drastically separated at a very low level of genetic similarity (DICE coefficient = 0.37). Additional analyses with RAPD and ISSR (inter single sequence repeat) markers and the introduction of standard genotypes of C. maxima L. and C. moschata L. into the analyses allowed the identification of multiple accessions of the last species wrongly included in the C. pepo collection. This study is a good example of the usefulness of DNA markers in the establishment and management of plant germplasm collections.

Since the immediate wild relatives of Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench are indigenous to Ethiopia, studying their population biology is timely for undertaking conservation measures. A study was conducted to investigate the occurrence of population bottlenecks and to estimate the long-term effective population size (Ne) in wild relatives of sorghum. For this, 40 samples of wild sorghum were collected from two remotely located populations that were allopatric to the cultivated sorghum. The presence of bottlenecks was investigated using heterozygosity excess/deficiency, mode shift and allelic diversity based on nine polymorphic simple sequence repeat (SSR) loci. We also estimated the Ne of the studied populations using two different methods employing SSR mutation models. The expected heterozygosity was found to be 0.41 and 0.71 and allelic richness was 3.0 and 4.9, in Awash and Gibe populations, respectively. Neither the heterozygosity excess nor the mode-shift methods detected signatures of bottlenecks in the studied populations. The effective size of the two wild sorghum populations studied also showed no risk of population reduction in these regions of Ethiopia. Therefore, these allopatric wild sorghum populations can survive by occupying patches by the roadsides and fences, areas within abandoned farm lands, forests, etc., which shows that their wild characteristics of adaptation have been adequate for them to survive from extinction despite extensive deforestation of their habitat for modern agriculture and frequent grazing by livestock. However, this does not guarantee the survival of these species for the future and ex situ conservation measures or policies could help maintain their diversity.

Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam.) is a nutritious crop from the Moraceae family. The current study was undertaken to evaluate the phenotypic diversity of fruit characteristics using a set of 27 standardized fruit descriptors to describe 28 jackfruit genotypes. These data were used to identify the superior jackfruit genotype that could be used for commercial cultivation. The data revealed a wide range of differences among the genotypes for all the traits studied. Cluster analysis classified the genotypes into four major groups that confirmed the wide diversity among them. Principal component analysis (PCA) also revealed that 80.22% of the variability among the jackfruit genotypes was explained by the first five principal components (PCs). Based on the overall results, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Research Complex for Eastern Region (ICAR-RCER) JS 6/3 and 10/3 genotypes were found to be the most promising for table purposes (medium fruit size, pulp percentage >50 and total soluble solid (TSS) >20°Brix), whereas the ICAR-RCER JS 7/7 genotype with large fruit size, pulp percentage >50 and TSS >20°Brix was found to be suitable for processing. The coefficient of variation was the least for traits such as TSS (12.56%) and average seed length (13.56%). Hence, priority may also be given to the TSS and seed size when exploring promising genotypes and operating a selection procedure for crop improvement in jackfruit. The information generated under the study forms a potential baseline for fruit breeders to use in selecting genotypes with superior fruit qualities for jackfruit crop improvement programmes in the future.

Chinese Spring (CS) wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is commonly used in genetic research including cytogenetic analysis, molecular mapping and germplasm development. Aneuploid lines of alien chromosomes in the CS background have been used in studies with diverse objectives. Thousands of genomic and complementary DNA sequences from expressed sequence tag (EST) libraries of biotic- and abiotic-stressed tissues are publicly available from CS. Gene expression analysis of salt-tolerant wheat lines, W4909 and W4910, compared with the CS common wheat background led to the discovery of several expressed sequences that were absent in the CS accession held in our laboratory. A survey of 20 CS accessions from 13 laboratories using the polymerase chain reaction with gene-specific primers for eight salt-responsive genes resulted in amplification success ranging from 15 to 100%. Amplified fragment length polymorphism analysis showed that 99% of the genetic variation was among the accessions while the remaining 1% was within the accessions. A neighbour-joining phylogram showed that four of the five CS accessions from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) grouped with the salt-tolerant wheat cultivar Yecora Rojo while the remaining 16 CS accessions had limited genetic differences. Thus, variation exists among these highly self-pollinating CS sources, suggesting that appropriate consideration should be taken when using CS accessions to conduct molecular and genetic analyses.

Only a little information is available on the genetic association of basic within-boll yield components of segregating populations. A total of 25 genotypes were evaluated for genetic diversity using SSR markers in 2012; of these, eight diverse genotypes were selected to attempt the generation of five crosses. From the progeny of these five crosses, five F3 populations were developed. Data for within-boll yield components were recorded by taking 30 observations (one observation average of five bolls) from each population, and analysed for genotypic and phenotypic correlations followed by the path coefficient analysis from the genotypic correlation. The highest genotypic correlation was observed between seed cotton yield per locule and number of seeds per boll (ranging from 0.654 to 0.972 for different crosses). Except number of seeds per locule and lint percentage, all the other within-boll yield components had a highly significant positive correlation with seed cotton yield, whereas the former two had a negative correlation. Path coefficient analysis revealed that number of seeds per boll had a maximum direct effect on yield (ranging from 0.776 to 0.895 for different crosses), and also had a relatively high magnitude of the indirect effect via other traits. Differences were observed in the magnitude of correlation coefficients and direct/indirect effects for different populations, but the direction of genetic association always remained the same. The present study showed that number of locules per boll, seed cotton yield per locule, number of seeds per boll and seed cotton yield per boll can be used as efficient selection criteria for the improvement in seed cotton yield.

Sweet cherries can be grafted on a wide range of rootstocks belonging to Prunus avium, Prunus cerasus, Prunus mahaleb, Prunus angustifolia or hybrids of different Prunus species. Identification of Prunus rootstocks using morphological traits is almost impossible particularly during the dormant season. However, molecular analysis carried out on actively growing shoot tips, leaves or dormant buds provides good opportunity to reliably distinguish rootstocks. In this study, DNA was extracted from the leaves of a total of 184 sweet cherry rootstock candidates belonging to P. avium L., P. cerasus L., P. mahaleb L. and P. angustifolia L. previously selected from the north-western part of Turkey. The rootstock candidates were tested with ten simple sequence repeat (SSR) primers, developed for the Prunus genus. The primers successfully identified all rootstock candidates. The results showed that the number of alleles per locus ranged from 10 (UDAp-401, UCD-CH21 and CPSCT010) to 20 (UCD-CH31) with an average of 13.3 alleles per locus, indicating that the SSRs were highly informative. Unweighted Pair-Group Method with Arithmetic mean analysis demonstrated that P. avium accessions are closely related to P. cerasus. The reference rootstocks were clustered with their associated botanical species.

Lepidium latifolium L. (Brassicaceae) grows successfully in a high-altitude cold arid environment. Little molecular data are available for this plant despite its immense ecological importance as a cold- and drought-adapted species. We used a novel approach to identify microsatellite regions using genome walker libraries, called as Random Scans at Microsatellite Regions (RaSMiR), and implemented them on genotypes collected from relatively different topographical conditions within a small geographical area. The success rate of finding a microsatellite sequence using this methodology was 100%, and on developing the RaSMiR technique itself as a molecular marker, 230 electrophoretic bands were obtained using 13 different RaSMiR primers in combination with a microsatellite sequence primer. On an average, 17 bands were obtained for each primer. The electrophoretic profiles generated by RaSMiR markers were distinct from those produced by inter-simple sequence repeat markers. This information has been documented as a dominant marker data, and has been used to construct a neighbour-joining tree that successfully distinguished all genotypes. RaSMiR is an attractive approach for the development of unique and informative microsatellites, or for genome scanning directly as a molecular marker that can potentially be employed for the estimation of genetic diversity or to identify polymorphic loci involved in adaptations particularly in the non-model species, for which sufficient genomic data are not available.

‘Broccolo fiolaro’ (Brassica oleracea L. convar.Italica) is a typical vegetable produced in a restricted hill country area around Creazzo(Vicenza) in north-eastern Italy. The cultivation of this vegetable dates back severalcenturies ago, but a very few farms are still involved in the production.‘Broccolo fiolaro’ is a variety of broccoli highly valued for itsagronomic and organoleptic features.

Four ‘Broccolo fiolaro’ selections were characterized by simplesequence repeats (SSRs) molecular markers and compared with other five cultivatedvarieties of broccoli of the Italica group in order to reconstruct their genetic structureand evaluate the degree of similarity among and within populations. The analysis of 12 SSRpolymorphic loci pointed out a low genetic variability among the four ‘Broccolofiolaro’ selections. Moreover, the whole ‘Fiolaro’ groupshowed significant differentiation from the other broccoli cultivars and could be easilydistinguished by cluster analysis. An assignment test on ~30 genotyped plants randomlychosen from each broccoli population correctly recognized the proper accession 88% of thetime, proving this method to be useful for cultivar identification.

Guinea grass (Megathyrsus maximus Jacq.) is an important forage species in vast rangelands/grasslands of India and several tropical countries owing to its high biomass yield, good nutritional quality and wide adaptation. Evaluation of the existing natural variation and selection of desirable genotypes is the most plausible breeding method for this apomictic and polyploid grass. Developing a core sub-set to narrow down the number of germplasm required for future genetic studies is also pertinent. The present study involved characterization of 152 diverse M. maximus germplasm representing collections from different agro-ecological zones of India as well as those procured from Africa and Brazil; and development of a core sub-set. Nineteen metric, seven non-metric and nine nutritive traits together established the presence of wide variability among the genotypes. Clustering of the genotypes resulted in eight distinct clusters. The largest cluster included genotypes from Ethiopia, north India, north-western India, south India and north-eastern hill region, thus represented the highest diversity. Eleven of the total 26 Ethiopian genotypes clustered together. Non-metric morphological traits effectively differentiated the genotypes, and were associated with nutritional quality also. Genotypes which flowered once in a year showed slightly better crude protein and digestibility. The clusters were further sub-clustered and representatives were selected to develop the core sub-set of 23 genotypes comprising 20 indigenous and three exotic accessions. Comparison of the range of diversity and mean value for traits as obtained in the core sub-set and that in the total germplasm indicated successful capturing of maximum diversity in the core sub-set.

The National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences' (NIAS) Genebank is the coordinating institute in Japan for the conservation of plant, microorganism and animal genetic resources related to food and agriculture. The NIAS Genebank manages this activity in collaboration with sub-banks located across Japan and acts as the central bank. It is important for genebanks to maintain the viability of genetic resources during conservation. Generally, seeds are stored at low temperature and low humidity. Germination percentage is used to monitor seed viability. We have developed data-management software to manage germination testing data in the NIAS Genebank. The software can monitor the pattern of the loss of seed viability of each accession and also support the selection of accessions that need regeneration of seeds. Web-based plant accessions search software displays the latest data on the availability and germination percentages of accessions.

Short duration cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cultivar may be more profitable for the growers, as it will have shortened critical growth window for drought, heat and insect pests. Therefore, in the present research work, two cotton advance lines IUB-71 and IUB-73 along with an approved cotton cultivar IUB-13 were tested under four different sowing dates i.e. S1 (25th April), S2 (10th May), S3 (25th May) and S4 (10th June) in 2017 and 2018 under field condition. Field layout was RCBD factorial with four sowing dates as one factor and three cotton genotypes as another factor with three replications. Data were recorded for plant height, total number of nodes, bolls per plant, seed cotton yield (SCY), above ground fresh biomass (AGFB) and harvest index (HI). An overall decreasing trend with increasing sowing dates was observed in all the traits except HI that relatively increased in all the three genotypes. Within each sowing date, a higher value for each trait was observed for genotype IUB-73 except for AGFB might be due to higher reproductive allocation. It is concluded that IUB-73 due to superior SCY and HI specifically under late planting is best fit for short cotton seasons with reduced critical window for cotton management.

Improved root architecture of cultivated barley can improve crop performance in drought-prone areas. In this study, seedlings of 315 wild barley (Hordeum vulgare subsp. spontaneum) accessions from the Wild Barley Diversity Collection (WBDC) were grown under hydroponic conditions for 8 d after germination and then root characteristics were analysed. Significant differences were observed among the accessions with regard to seminal root number (SRN), root length (RL), specific root length (SRL), root fresh weight and root dry weight (RDW). Principal component analysis explained about 81% of the total variation for ten traits. Principal component (PC) 1, PC2 and PC3 explained about 38, 30 and 13% of the total variation among the accessions. The two most prominent contributors in each PC were RL and SRL, RDW and SRN, and the longitude and latitude of the collection sites, respectively. Accessions WBDC266, WBDC302, WBDC286 and WBDC011 had the longest RL and the highest RDW, specific dry root weight and SRL, respectively. These accessions may be useful genetic resources for the improvement of these root traits in cultivated barley.