Safflower, a semiarid crop, contains a healthy oil with high unsaturated fatty acids. Genetically diverse accessions are important for genetic maintenance of safflower and breeding proposes. The objectives of present investigation were to evaluate the morphological variation of 100 safflower accessions across two years (2022 and 2023), to explore similar genotypic groups and to identify the higher contribution of traits with to the observed variability. The highest coefficient of variation (CV) was observed for seeds per secondary capitulum, number of capitula per plant and weight of lateral capitulum in the first year and the highest CV values were observed for number of capitula per plant and capitula per lateral branch in the second year. The factor analysis identified five factors in the first year and six factors in the second as yield components, height, seed yield, capitulum diameter and phonology while number of branches was identified as the extra factor in the second year. Results showed that the variation of morphologic traits was made up of from the most measured traits of safflower. We defined seven distinct clusters, which made it possible to differentiate safflower accessions based on measured traits across two years. Of 45 accessions were grouped in similar clusters across two years, without any or similar genotype by environment interaction. Some high yielding accessions like C-47 and Lesaf-175 can be entered directly in multi-environmental trials for cultivar release proposes. The recognized variation improves as a good resource, indicating an important issue for future projects for safflower germplasm maintenance and breeding.

We suggest a diversity-dependent strategy, based on Principle Component Analysis, for selecting distinct accessions/parents for breeding from a soybean germplasm collection comprising of 463 lines, characterized and evaluated for 10 qualitative and eight quantitative traits. A sample size of six accessions included all the three states, namely low, medium and high of the individual quantitative traits, while a sample of 16–19 accessions included all the 60–64 distinct states of qualitative as well as quantitative traits. Under certain assumptions, the paper also develops an expression for estimating the size of a target population for capturing maximum variability in a sample three accessions.

The agri-climatic adaptation of an alfalfa variety in North America is categorized by its Fall Dormancy Rating (FDR1 = dormant to FDR9 = non-dormant). Presently, only relatively dormant, winter-hardy varieties (FDR1–4) are grown for seed and herbage at the northern latitudes of western Canada. However, there is considerably greater demand for seed of varieties that have FDR ≥ 4. A study was conducted in the Peace River region of north-western Canada to determine the relationship between FDR and seed production of alfalfa with FDR ≥ 4. Trials were established in each of two consecutive years with four varieties representing each of six FDR categories, FDR4–9. Growth characteristics were determined for two successive years of seed crops for each year of establishment. Seed yield (as a percentage of that for FDR4) was 84, 52, 40, 29 and 39% for FDR5 to FDR9, respectively, whereas total biomass at seed maturity was 89,73, 73, 57 and 57% for FDR5 to FDR9, respectively. Seed yield was more sensitive to changes in FDR than total biomass. Short rotations of specific alfalfa varieties with FDR ≥ 4 could be an option for seed growers in the northerly latitudes of western Canada, provided greater financial compensation is given for higher FDR varieties, and provided genetic drift can be retained within acceptable limits.

The treatment of traditional knowledge (TK) and plant genetic resources is timely international topics for debate with the focus on preventing the misappropriation and misuse of these resources, and on promoting the equitable sharing of benefits that arise from utilization and commercialization. In this paper, the initiatives of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its member countries toward safeguarding TK associated with plant genetic resources are reviewed. While Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines have national frameworks in place for the protection of TK and plant genetic resources, other ASEAN member countries do not. In addition, true regional cooperation among ASEAN countries in the area of TK and plant genetic resources has yet to be realized. After a review of these cases, this paper will argue that a single unique model or solution for all ASEAN member countries cannot meet the wide range of concerns and objectives that exist to protect TK and plant genetic resources. Instead, what is suggested is to create a mix of solutions to better handle TK and plant genetic resources issues.

In chilli, farmer preferences for fruiting habit traits, namely fruit orientation (pendant erect) and fruits node−1 (solitary cluster), vary from region to region. For increased acceptability by farmers/consumers, cultivars should be bred with preferred fruiting habit traits in high green fruit yielding background. An investigation was carried out to study the influence of fruiting habit traits on green fruit yield and its component traits during the 2016 and 2017 rainy seasons. The F2, backcross populations and near-isogenic lines (NILs) derived from crosses involving parents differing for single or both the fruiting habit traits were grouped into fruiting habit classes (single and cluster fruiting; and clustered erect, clustered pendant, single erect and single pendant). Significance of differences in fruit yield and its component traits between/among different fruiting habit trait classes were examined using ‘t’/‘F’ tests. The significance of ‘t’/‘F’ tests was regarded as pieces of evidence for considerable effects of fruiting habit traits on fruit yield and its component traits. While results-based on F2 and backcross generations indicated a lack of effects, those based on NILs indicated significant effects of fruiting habit traits on fruit yield and its component traits. The plants bearing pendant fruits (irrespective of whether they are clustered or single) produced a large number of heavier and longer fruits than those bearing erect fruits. The results are discussed about the strategies to develop high yielding cultivars with farmer preferred fruiting habit traits.

Cordia sinensis, locally known as ‘Goondi’ in India, is an underexploited multipurpose fruit species found in hot arid regions that is well adapted to drought, salt and hot conditions. The present study was undertaken to collect fruit samples from different locations in the Kachchh region of Gujarat, India, and to determine their field establishment for characterization, conservation and utilization. The maximum distribution of the species was observed in Bhuj (45%) and Mandvi (25%). Field boundaries (35%) and scrub forests (30%) had greater frequencies, whereas backyards had rarer frequencies (10%). The species most commonly occurred on levelled topography (60%) with a soil pH in the range of 8–8.5 (63%). Morphological data of three-year-old plants in the field gene bank showed a maximum coefficient of variation in the number of leaves per plant (66.6), followed by the number of branches per plant (45.62) and collar diameter (27.69). Wide variations were recorded in plant height (121.67–212 cm), spread (118–223 cm2) and the number of branches per plant (6–24.33). Specific accessions were identified for fodder (CBCG-12, CBCG-13 and CBCG-16), early flowering and fruiting (CBCG-12, CBCG-13 and CBCG-14), easier propagation by seeds (CBCG-12 and CBCG-13) and salt tolerance (CBCG-15 and CBCG-16). Preliminary findings and information provided about this species' utilization and other aspects might be useful for future research on its domestication, sole plantation and conservation aspects, improving the exploitation of this species by present and future generations.

The objective of our study was to determine the composition of high-molecular weight-glutenin subunits (HMW-GS) in 120 cultivars of common wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Fourteen alleles and 34 allelic compositions were detected using sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The most frequent HMW-GS alleles at the Glu-A1, Glu-B1 and Glu-D1 loci were null (57.1%), 7+9 (43.3%) and 5+10 (61.9%), respectively. However, low-frequency HMW-GS alleles were also observed, such as 13+16, 20, 21, 7 and 18, encoded by the Glu-B1 locus, and 4+12, encoded by the Glu-D1 locus. The wheat–rye 1BL.1RS translocation was identified in 25 cultivars, using acid polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The Glu-score varied greatly, and some lines reached the maximum value of 10.

High-molecular-weight glutenin subunit (HMW-GS) is a key factor affecting dough-processing quality. 1Sty13 is a novel HMW-GS found in the tetraploid species, Elymus sibiricus L. 1Sty13 has faster electrophoretic mobility than the 1Dy12 subunit on sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS)-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The gene encoding the 1Sty13 subunit was composed of 1803 nucleotide base pairs with an open reading frame that was 599 amino acids in length. Analysis of the predicted amino acid sequence of 1Sty13 indicated that the N-terminal domain was similar to the y-type subunit, whereas the C-terminal domains were similar to the x-type subunit. Five cysteine residues were found in 1Sty13, which is one less than the published HMW-GS in the St genome. The 1Sty13 protein was purified at a scale sufficient for incorporation into flour for the SDS sedimentation test, which indicated that incorporating 1Sty13 improved dough quality.

Milk thistle, Silybum marianum (L.) Gaertn. (Asteraceae), is an economically important medicinal plant utilized for silymarin production. Moreover, the species has been positively evaluated for vegetable oil and biomass production. Despite these positive characteristics, milk thistle is still marked by traits that are typical of undomesticated species (most importantly natural fruit dispersal at maturity) and requires further genetic improvement for its complete exploitation. This manuscript summarizes all the information collected through time about a collection of nine milk thistle wild and mutant lines and it discusses the possible further utilization of these genotypes. The accessions are characterized by interesting traits related to: fruit silymarin composition (S. marianum chemotype A and B), fruit fatty acid composition (high oleic and high stearic acid lines), fruit condensed tannins content, vegetative biomass composition (modification of xylans or lignin content), vegetative biomass structure (dwarf and tall lines), modifications of leaf variegation (hypervareigated line) and different types of fruit shatter resistance at maturity. All the lines underwent subsequent generations of selfing and are stable for all the described traits. The accessions will be made available at the Genebank of the Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK, Gatersleben) and may prove to be a useful genetic material for the improvement of qualitative fruit traits (silymarin quality, fatty acid composition) and for the further development of shatter-resistant S. marianum genotypes towards the complete domestication of this promising species.

Mentha (Nepetoideae, Lamiaceae) is a taxonomically complex genus consisting of 29 species and 11 different hybrids including a number of economically important species among them medical plants used for more than 250 years. Because of its high incidence of polyploidy, diverse morphology, high degree of chromosome number variations and interspecies hybridization, Mentha is considered to be a taxonomical challenge. In this paper, we describe cloning and sequencing of internal transcribed spacers (ITS) 1 and 2 of three mint species: Mentha aquatic L., Mentha longifolia L. (Huds) and Mentha piperita L., collected from natural habitats of Bulgaria. The applicability of ITS1 and ITS2 for molecular fingerprinting and further comparative studies, including the newly obtained ITS1 and ITS2 sequences, was tested in phylogenetic analysis of all eight Mentha species, found in Bulgarian flora.

Camellia oleifera is an important woody plant producing healthy edible oils. People need a large number of molecular markers, especially microsatellite, in breeding of C. oleifera. In this study, we sequenced the root transcriptomes of C. oleifera, and then designed a novel set of microsatellite markers based on the root-expressed genes. We assembled a total of 57,121 unigenes with a length of 42.63 Mb, which harboured 15,902 microsatellites. Among these microsatellites, di-nucleotide repeat motifs were the most abundant group (56.45%), then followed by tri- (25.20%), mono- (12.12%), hexa- (3.21%), penta- (2.18%) and quad-nucleotide ones (0.84%). In total, 6738 primer pairs were designed successfully to amplify the microsatellite loci. To test these microsatellite markers, 48 primer pairs were randomly selected and synthesized and validated in C. oleifera and its eight relatives. Up to 75% of the primer pairs amplified in C. oleifera and its relatives, and 62.5% displayed polymorphism. The transferability and diverse alleles across its eight relatives were detected for each polymorphic primer pair. The novel set of microsatellites derived from the root transcriptomes here provided a useful resource for future molecular genetics improvement of C. oleifera and its relatives.

The collected articles in this volume are discussed in their wider context.

Maize and Imperata cylindrica have been utilized globally as a pollen source for induction of haploids in wheat through chromosome elimination technique. Pollen parents with a higher haploid induction rate are desired for recovering the high frequency of haploids in wheat and related species. The present investigation was carried out with the aim to assess haploid induction efficiency of diverse germplasm of maize and I. cylindrica in different generations of intra and intergeneric crosses of hexaploid and tetraploid wheat and triticale-wheat derivatives. Crosses of twenty-six lines (female) with each of two I. cylindrica and twenty-one maize genotypes (testers) were evaluated for four haploid induction parameters viz., pseudoseed formation frequency (PFF), embryo formation frequency (EFF), haploid regeneration frequency (HRF) and haploid formation frequency (HFF). I. cylindrica outperformed maize in haploid induction rate with a frequency of embryos formed with I. cylindrica (18.39%) were significantly higher as compared to maize (4.08%). In the case of I. cylindrica genotype Ic-ye identified best with mean EFF of 30.55, 14.48 and 25.43% for hexaploids, tetraploids and triticale × wheat derivatives, respectively whereas in the case of maize genotype HPMC-60 performed best with EFF of 12.61% for hexaploids, HPMC-58 (12.58%) for tetraploids and HPMC-16 for triticale × wheat derivatives with EFF of 8.91%. I. cylindrica genotype Ic-ye and maize genotypes HPMC-14, HPMC-53, HPMC-60, HPMC-64 with significantly positive GCA for haploid induction parameters may be utilized as efficient pollen parents for recovering higher frequency of haploids in wheat.

Deploying whole and dissected nuclear genome of wild Triticeae species in the homoeologous wheat genetic background through inter-specific hybridization and introgression is a lower cost and effective option to prepare wheat germplasm with unexploited genes for disease resistance and enhanced grain yield and quality traits. The whole nuclear genomes of Dasypyrum villosum (Dv) and T. turgidum var durum have been combined, and an homoploid derivative of the original amphiploid displayed typical ‘farro’ spike morphology, tough rachis and the adaptive traits of Dv such as high resistance to diseases (caused by Tilletia tritici, Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici, Puccinia triticina and P. graminis f. sp. tritici), heading earliness and fortified caryopses (high protein and micronutrient contents). The dissection of the Dv genome by either ‘Triticum aestivum cv Chinese Spring (CS) × hexaploid amphiploid’ or ‘(CS × Dv) × CS’ hybridization and backcrossing provided wheat introgression breeding lines (IBLs) expressing one or more of the Dv adaptive traits. Molecular analyses revealed that either cryptic or Genomic In-situ Hybridization (GISH) detectable Dv chromatin introgression occurred in those IBLs. The IBLs, after 2 years of low-input field tests and genetic analyses in Italy and Hungary, showed simple inheritance, dominance and stability of the adaptive and disease resistance traits.

Cashew (Anacardium occidentale L.) is cultivated in more than 30 countries because of its economic and nutritional importance. Despite having a significant agronomic role, little is known about the genetic and phenotypic diversity of cashew populations in Brazil. Thus, we aimed to characterize and estimate the diversity among cashew genotypes based on agro-morphological and physicochemical traits, with an objective of selection of varieties for breeding programmes. Forty-three cashew trees were evaluated based on 13 morphological traits and three physicochemical traits. A wide range of variations was recorded for the phenotypic characteristics, including total weight, fruit weight, pseudofruit length, kernel weight and total acidity, suggesting the existence of considerable variations for potential use in breeding programmes. Principal component analysis explained 79.74% of the total variation in the first two principal axes. The dendrogram based on the UPGMA method classified the 43 genotypes into six groups. Groups IV and VI were the most dissimilar, with emphasis on the genotypes 28 and 43, which were observed to be most divergent based on the Euclidean distance matrix (3.054). This makes it possible to select genotypes for hybridization with F1 generation gains. Based on cluster analysis and comparison of means among the six groups, promising genotypes were identified with superior traits, such as fruit weight, pseudofruit length, kernel weight and total acidity. This suggests the importance of phenotypic characterization for cashew breeding programmes. In addition, the observed vast diversity is an important genetic basis for improving cashew yield in northeastern Brazil.

Tea (Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze) leaves are an important beverage crop due to their high caffeine content. Although the north of Iran is the main region for high-quality tea plants, there is no document on variations of phenotypic traits of different accessions. The present study was to assess the biodiversity of 12 tea accessions originating from four tea main sites in Iran (Langroud, Siahkal, Kobijar and Bazkiaguorab) using multivariate analysis. Two-year-old tea plants were cultivated in a completely randomized design with five replicates in a greenhouse. One year after plant establishment, phenotypic characteristics were studied. The tea accessions showed different responses in chlorophyll and total ash contents. The highest and lowest amount of caffeine in tea accessions was found in Kobijar A7 and Langroud A2, respectively. Epicatechin was obtained in a 6.48–15.44 mg g−1 range, and the maximum variability was found in epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), differing from 0.94 to 21.03 mg g−1. Langroud A2 and Bazkiaguorab A11 contained the maximum EGCG and the total polyphenolic content in Bazkiaguorab was greater than other accessions. Heat map analysis showed the maximum variability of EGCG, catechin, and GA among the accessions. The main essential oil compounds were 2-pentyl furan followed by hexanal, gamma-terpinene, octane, ortho-cymene, terpinen-4-ol, alpha-copaene and E-caryophyllene. In conclusion, changes in phytochemical traits caused by genetics and origin can significantly alter the quality of tea compounds. The results of this study can be utilized as raw materials in future breeding projects to improve new cultivars with superior characteristics.

Genetic diversity and structure plays a key role in the selection of parents for crosses in plant breeding programmes. The aim of the present study was to analyse the genetic diversity and structure of Eritrean bread wheat accessions. We analysed 284 wheat accessions from Eritrea using 30 simple sequence repeat markers. A total of 539 alleles were detected. The allele number per locus ranged from 2 to 21, with a mean allele number of 9.2. The average genetic diversity index was 0.66, with values ranging from 0.01 to 0.89. Comparing the three genomes of wheat, the B genome had the highest genetic diversity (0.66) and the D genome the lowest diversity (0.61). A STRUCTURE analysis based on the Bayesian model-based cluster analysis followed by a graphical representation of the distances by non-parametric multidimensional scaling revealed a distinct partition of the Eritrean wheat accessions into two major groups. This is the first report of the genetic diversity and structure of Eritrean bread wheat.

In Chile, two quinoa ecotypes are grown: salares, also present in the highlands of Bolivia, and coastal, in central and southern areas of the country, at sea level. Genotypes from the coastal ecotype have characteristics that differentiate them from the most popular quinoa genotypes grown in the Andean Region of South America. The objectives of this study were: (1) to determine the cardinal temperatures for seed germination in quinoa genotypes from coastal and salares ecotypes cultivated in Chile, and (2) to study the presence of physiological dormancy (PD) in these genotypes. Seed germination from nine quinoa genotypes, two from salares and seven from coastal ecotypes, was evaluated in a gradient of temperatures between 11 and 42°C. Germination was also evaluated at 20°C at 0, 7 and 15 months from harvest. Results showed that seed from the nine genotypes germinated at their maximum percentage between 11 and 35°C. However, their faster germination occurred between 25 and 35°C. There was a significant difference between optimum temperature for germination between genotypes from coastal (28°C) and salares (30°C). An increase in germination rates after 7 months of storage suggested the presence of a non-deep PD in seeds from coastal ecotype, which may be useful to improve pre-harvest sprouting resistance in quinoa breeding programmes.

The Dasylirion genus is highly represented in the arid and semi-arid regions of Mexico and USA, playing important ecological and economical roles. Inferring the evolutionary patterns of this group will eventually facilitate understanding biological phenomena and outlining conservation and usage strategies. We performed a molecular phylogenetic analysis based on two chloroplast DNA regions: maturase-K gene (matK) and the large subunit of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase gene (rbcL). We constructed a phylogenetic tree by maximum likelihood with GTR as the sequence substitution model and a relaxed clock, inferred diversification patterns by lineage through time and explored the diversification rates of Dasylirion by the Yule model. The study included 11 species of the genus, which represent 50% of all its known species. We used two calibration points to date the tree, one based on fossil records of Acorus gramineus, and the other on the estimated stem age of the Yucca genus. The combined sequences of the two partial genes comprised 1455 bp and 18 polymorphic sites. We estimated an average substitution rate of 0.0005 nucleotide per million years for the concatenated DNA sequences. The molecular dating analysis estimated that the Dasylirion genus appeared more than 5.46 million years ago, with a rate of diversification of 0.0466 net speciation events per million years. The estimated age represents a lower bound, since not all Dasylirion species are included. These findings are consistent with other origin and diversification hypotheses for arid-land Asparagaceae in the Mexican highlands as a result of geomorphological events in North America.

This is the first report of a pasture plant collecting mission to the highlands of Eritrea and a preliminary examination of the potential of species for both Eritrea and southern Australia. In 2004, seeds from 53 legume species were collected from 58 locations in the southern highlands between Keren, Adi Quala and Senafe. Strains of Rhizobium from 18 species were also collected. Seed collections of 11 species with Rhizobium were established in germplasm nurseries at the Medina Research Station, Western Australia between 2005 and 2010. Observations on their growth, flowering and seed production were recorded. Based on a climate match analysis and observations from germplasm nurseries, it was suggested that species with most promise for parts of southern Australia include the annual legume Biserrula pelecinus ssp. leiocarpa and the perennial shrub Colutea abyssinica. The greatest potential, however, is reserved for the highlands of Eritrea where germplasm is well adapted. Species found low in the landscape including from the genera Lotus, Trifolium and Medicago appeared well utilized. Different species found higher in the landscape including from the genera Indigofera, Tephrosia, Crotalaria, Trifolium schimperi, B. pelecinus ssp. leiocarpa and C. abyssinica were much less common, appeared under-utilized and may be under threat from genetic erosion. Animal production on the non-arable dry hillsides of the highlands would benefit from better utilization of these species through replanting some areas, careful grazing management and demonstration of the benefits of increasing the native legume component of these wild pastures.