Indian gooseberry, popularly known as amla, is harvested from two species of Phyllanthus, namely Phyllanthus emblica and Phyllanthus indofischeri. Although these two species are characterized on vegetative and reproductive features, development of reliable and authentic identification based on molecular approaches is necessary for precise identification. Most of the commercial orchards of Indian gooseberry are established with mixture of the two species. Introduction of unauthentic clones and seedlings in the establishment of orchards and differences in the growth of these two species under different elevations are the major constrains in identification. The present work aims to study the changes in vegetative and reproductive features under different elevations and to develop a simple molecular tool for precise identification of these two species based on single nucleotide polymorphisms in trnL (UAA) intron sequences of chloroplast DNA. Genomic DNA of leaf tissues of P. emblica and P. indofischeri, collected from the authentic source, was subjected to polymerase chain reaction amplification using trnL (UAA) intron gene-specific primers. The amplified product with the molecular weight of 540 bp was sequenced and used as reference for identification of these two species. The trnL (UAA) introns sequenced from 60 individual trees in three different orchards were compared with trnL (UAA) intron of authentic samples, and confirmed that these orchards have 76% population of P. indofischeri and remaining 24% is occupied by P. emblica. Thus, trnL (UAA) intron is a potential DNA marker for precise identification of these two species. The importance of the present study and its practical application in genetic improvement of Indian gooseberry are discussed.

Production of summer squash, Cucurbita pepo, can be severely limited by viral pathogens and powdery mildew. Resistance has been introgressed from Cucurbita moschata, and resistant hybrids have been commercially deployed. Our objective was to assess genetic affinities of such hybrids with susceptible, open-pollinated cocozelle and zucchini cultivars, and two disease-resistant lines derived from six generations of backcrossing to a susceptible zucchini cultivar. Amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) EcoRI/MseI primer combinations were employed and, based on the resulting polymorphic bands, genetic similarities were estimated, and an unweighted pair group method using arithmetic average (UPGMA) cluster analysis was conducted. The open-pollinated cocozelle cultivars clustered with the resistant hybrids. The hybrids had greater similarities with one another than did the open-pollinated cultivars. The zucchini cultivars and their resistant backcross lines formed their own exclusive cluster. However, the resistant backcross lines showed less than 0.80 similarity with their recurrent parent. As the chromosome number of Cucurbita is high (2n = 2x = 40) and the resistances are inherited monogenically and oligogenically, these results, after six generations of backcrossing, cannot be explained by classical genetic linkage.

Target region amplification polymorphism markers were used to assess the genetic diversity and relationship among 151 worldwide collected faba bean (Vicia faba L.) entries (137 accessions maintained at the USDA–ARS, Pullman, WA, 2 commercial varieties and 12 elite cultivars and advanced breeding lines obtained from Link of Georg-August University, Germany). Twelve primer combinations (six sets of polymerase chain reaction) amplified a total of 221 markers, of which 122 (55.2%) were polymorphic and could discriminate all the 151 entries. A high level of polymorphism was revealed among the accessions with an estimated average pairwise similarity of 63.2%, ranging from 36.9 to 90.2%. Cluster analysis divided the 151 accessions into five major groups with 2–101 entries each and revealed a substantial association between the molecular diversity and the geographic origin. All 101 accessions in Group V are originated from China and 13 of the 15 accessions in Group II were from Afghanistan. Thirty-two individual plants were sampled from two entries to assess the intra-accession variation. It was found that the advanced inbred line (Hiverna/5-EP1) had very little variation (5.0%), while the original collection (PI 577746) possessed a very high amount of variation (47.1%). This is consistent with the previous reports that faba bean landraces have a high level of outcrossing in production fields and thus contain larger amount variation within each landrace. One implication of this observation for germplasm management is that a relatively larger population is needed in regeneration to mitigate the possible loss of genetic variation due to genetic drift.

A total of 54 horsegram landraces collected from three altitudinal zones (lower hills, mid hills and higher hills) of Himalayan region were characterized and evaluated for nine quantitative characters. Accessions collected from lower and higher hills were more diverse and differed significantly from mid hills accessions for characters viz., days to flowering, days to physiological maturity, plant height and grain yield per plant. The plotting of first and second principal component axes scores revealed that there was dispersion among the accessions collected from different altitudinal groups. It reveals a less variability among the landraces collected from same altitudinal group but high variability among the landraces collected from different altitudes. This suggests that the horsegram landraces are adapted to specific zone due to different selection pressure practiced by the farmers at different altitudes. Farmers in lower and higher hills select the landraces having high grain yield coupled with less reproductive phase duration and taller in nature.

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.

Spine gourd (Momordica dioica Roxb. ex Willd.) is a highly nutritious and underutilized vegetable containing high amount of protein as compared to other cucurbitaceous vegetables. Twenty-six accessions of spine gourd (M. dioica Roxb.), collected from eastern India, were evaluated to study the diversity and other genetic parameters. The estimates of genotypic coefficient of variation and phenotypic coefficient of variation for all the characters indicated that selection can be done on the basis of phenotype alone. On the basis of cluster analysis, spine gourd accessions can be categorized into three distinct groups. The accessions of spine gourd from eastern India showed an immense variation and can be used as a potential source of germplasm for crop improvement. The results presented here on nature and magnitude of genetic variability and diversity existing in this species will provide the foundation for designing an efficient spine gourd breeding programme. As spine gourd is distributed widely almost throughout India, further collections from Peninsular and Western India are suggested for maximum diversity sampling.

Castor (Ricinus communis L.) is an important non-edible oilseed crop that can potentially be used as feedstock for biodiesel production. There are 1033 accessions in the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) castor germplasm collection. The range of oil content in these accessions has never been surveyed. For exploiting castor as a feedstock for biodiesel production, the entire USDA castor collection was procured from the National Plant Germplasm System (Germplasm Resources Information Network) and the oil content was measured with nuclear magnetic resonance. The variation of oil content among all castor accessions ranged from 37.2 to 60.6% with an average of 48.2%. One hundred seed weights were determined and seed-coat colour was also recorded from each accession. One hundred seed weight ranged from 10.1 to 73.3 g with an average of 28.3 g. There was a significant correlation between seed weight and oil content but the correlation value was low (r = 0.1572, P < 0.0001). Fifty accessions with a wide range of oil content were selected to be field grown for further evaluation. The results obtained from this survey will be useful for castor breeders seeking germplasm accessions with high oil content in the collection.

Wild peanut species are useful genetic resources for improving the levels of disease/pest resistance and for enhancing the quality of seed composition by interspecific hybridization. The variation in oil content and fatty acid composition of wild peanut species in the United States Department of Agriculture germplasm collection is unknown. Seeds available from 39 wild species (plus a cultivated peanut) were requested from the U.S. peanut germplasm collection. Oil content was measured using nuclear magnetic resonance, fatty acid composition was analysed using gas chromatography, and the D150N functional mutation of the FAD2A gene was screened by real-time PCR. Significant variability in oil content (41.7–61.3%) was identified among the wild peanut species. Arachis magna contained significantly more oil (61%) than cultivated peanut (56%). There was no functional mutation identified within the FAD2A gene target, and no wild species were identified with a high ratio of oleic acid to linoleic acid. The results from gas chromatography and real-time PCR analyses were consistent. However, Arachis sylvestris contained a significantly higher amount (22%) of long-chain fatty acid (LCFA) than the cultivated peanut (4%). Thus, A.magna and A. sylvestris may be good breeding materials to use for increasing oil content or LCFA composition of cultivated peanuts in breeding programs.

Hydrangea and Schizophragma are popular horticultural and ornamental plants. This study was designed to identify unknown accessions of Hydrangeaceae that have leaf morphological characters different from Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolaris and Schizophragma hydrangeoides in Jeju, Korea. A total of 29 accessions of Hydrangea and Schizophragma from the wild were collected and analyzed using randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from the ribulose-1, 5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase large subunit (rbcL) gene. Morphological characteristics of leaves and shoot apices of several accessions were also examined. Based on the RAPD markers, SNPs of the (rbcL) gene and morphological characteristics of apical buds, the unknown accessions were identified as H. anomala var. petiolaris.

Prunus avium cultivars widely used in northern Greece were investigated in terms of inter- and intra-cultivar genetic variation and DNA fingerprinting. Based on 11 simple sequence repeats loci, the average number of alleles per locus (Na = 2.82), probability of identity (PID = 0.327), polymorphic information content (0.451) and expected heterozygosity (He = 0.494) were within the range reported in similar studies. The most informative markers were BPPCT039 and EMPa018. The cultivars were clearly separated in both an unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean dendrogram and a multivariate space ordination. Any two cultivars differed on the average at 6.30 loci. The null hypothesis of zero intra-cultivar variability was tested and could not be rejected. Two cultivars (Tragana Edessis and Tragana Sarakinon) were genetically similar, but not identical. This study, the first of its kind for sweet cherry in Greece, presents a useful molecular tool for resolving issues of intra-cultivar variability and synonimity and provides a warranty of genetic identity in the handling and management of local traditional germplasm.

Wild apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) is an economically important fruit crop for folk and marginal farmers and local tribal populations in the high-altitude difficult terrains of north-western Himalayas in Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh states of India. This is a multi-purpose fruit tree species which, besides its fresh edible fruits, is preserved for use in diverse ways depending upon the type of cultivar. Seed kernel of apricot is used as edible nut and for the production of edible oil. In the present study, 147 diverse accessions of wild and cultivated apricot belonging to 28 folk cultivars were collected and characterized for fruit, stone and kernel characters. Indigenous traditional uses and importance of fruits and kernels of these folk cultivars have been recorded and described. Promising table-type cultivars identified were Margulam, Lodi, Shakarpara, Narmo and Khurmani, while drying-type cultivars were Halman, Shakarpara, Rakchey Karpo and Tachu. Cultivars Chuli and Shadi were the most common types and widely distributed with vast variability, while other cultivars had localized presence. Some of these folk cultivars have high potential for promotion as commercial cultivars of apricot in this high-altitude area basically depending upon traditional production system. Genetic resource management including collection, characterization and documentation of existing variability of apricot is of immense importance for safe conservation and commercialization of potential cultivars to enhance farmer's livelihood in this fragile agroecosystem.

Eryngium maritimum L. is a wild plant species threatened or endangered in most of Northern Europe, where species is on the northern margin of its distribution range. Recent studies have found reduction of size and even extinction of many populations. Assessment of genetic diversity in natural populations of endangered wild plant species can reflect condition and fitness of particular population and inform decisions on appropriate conservation measures. Application of inter simple sequence repeat markers and chloroplast DNA sequencing could not resolve genetic relationship between E. maritimum populations in Northern Europe. Therefore, the more sensitive retrotransposon-sequence-specific amplification polymorphism (SSAP) molecular marker system was developed. Six Ty1-copia long terminal repeat retrotransposons were isolated from E. maritimum genome (Tem1–Tem6) and assessed for their utility as molecular markers in this species. Two retrotransposons – Tem2 and Tem5 – were recognized as most informative based on the level of polymorphism and SSAP banding pattern quality. On average, 20.4% of SSAP bands were polymorphic for the five most informative primer combinations in a set of 150 Northern European E. maritimum plants from 13 locations, providing a useful tool for assessment of genetic diversity in this endangered species.

The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (1CRISAT) genebank in India holds the world's largest collection of 21,594 pearl millet germplasm accessions from 50 countries including 6529 landraces from ten Asian countries. Gap analysis using passport and characterization data and geographical information system tools revealed 134 distinct districts of 14 provinces in India and 12 districts of Punjab province in Pakistan as the major geographical gaps. Different methods of identifying geographical gaps used in the study indicated Chittoor, Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Prakasam and Warangal in Andhra Pradesh; Raigarh in Chattisgarh; Dewas and Rewa in Madhya Pradesh; Buldana and Hingoli in Maharashtra; Malkangiri, Nabarangapur, Naupada and Sundergarh in Orissa; Bhilwara, Chittaurgarh and Kota in Rajasthan; Thiruvallur and Vellore in Tamil Nadu; and Auraiya, Chandauli, Chitrakoot, Gonda, Gorakhpur, Hamirpur, Kushinagar, Mau, Shrawasti and Sonbhadra in Uttar Pradesh as common geographical gaps in India. A total of 208 distinct districts in 12 provinces were identified as gaps in diversity for one or more traits. Among all districts, Beed, Latur and Osmanabad in Maharashtra, India, for all traits; Rajanpur, Muzaffargarh, Multan and Lodhran for panicle length and Chakwal and Sargodha for panicle width in Pakistan; and southern parts of North Yemen and Lahiz provinces in Yemen were identified as gaps in the diversity. In India, Warangal in Andhra Pradesh; Rewa in Madhya Pradesh; Hingoli in Maharashtra; Vellore in Tamil Nadu; and Auraiya, Chandauli, Chitrakut, Gorakhpur and Mau in Uttar Pradesh were identified as gaps in diversity for one or more traits and found common to geographical gaps identified. In Pakistan, Lodhran, Multan and Muzaffargarh were identified as gaps common to probability and diversity methods. Area for exploration should be decided prior to launch of the collection mission in consultation with local government officials and extension officers, who are known to have knowledge in pearl millet cultivation in the identified districts. It is suggested to collect the complete passport data including georeference information while collecting the germplasm.