Unmanaged sexual reproduction and the dynamics of genetic diversity of a vegetatively propagated crop plant, cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), in a traditional farming system

Occurrence of intervarietal or interspecific natural crosses has been reported for many crop plants in traditional farming systems, underlining the potential importance of this source of genetic exchange for the dynamics of genetic diversity of crop plants. In this study, we use microsatellite loci to investigate the role of volunteer seedlings (plants originating from unmanaged sexual reproduction) in the dynamics of genetic diversity of cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), a vegetatively propagated crop, in a traditional farming system in Guyana. A previous field study showed that farmers incorporate such plants into the germplasm for vegetative propagation, and that many of them are likely to be assigned by farmers to recognized varieties. Under strict vegetative propagation clonality of varieties is expected. The high proportion of polyclonal varieties observed suggests that incorporation of seedlings into the germplasm for propagation is a frequent event. The molecular variability assessed with microsatellite markers shows that there is high differentiation among heterozygous varieties, whereas populations of seedlings do not depart from the proportions expected under Hardy-Weinberg assumptions. Assignment of seedlings to a recognized variety on the basis of morphological similarity greatly increases genetic diversity within the variety. We argue that recombination and gene flow play a major role in the dynamics of genetic diversity of cassava in traditional farming systems. Documenting unmanaged sexual reproduction and its genetic consequences is a prerequisite for defining strategies of in situ conservation of crop plant genetic resources.     

农作物遗传多样性农家保护的现状及前景

农作物地方品种的有效保护是农业生物多样性的可持续利用的基础。由于现代农业的集约化生产方式使大量农作物地方品种被少数高产改良品种所取代,造成农作物基因库的严重“基因流失”（genetic erosion)。农家保护是在农业生态系统中进行的动态保护,被保护的生物多亲性可在其生境中继续进化而产生新的遗传变异,在而是农业生物多样性就地保护的重要途径。然而,尽管人们对作物品种资源农家保护的兴趣不断增长,也有大量有关农家的保护的研究和案例分析,但目前为止还没有比较成功的农家保护实例报道。因此,对农家保护的机制及科学问题进行深入的研究,并寻求一条新的途径来充分发挥农家保护应有的作用,显得格外重要。利用生物多样性布局的水稻混合间栽的生产模式,不仅解决了病害控制的问题,而且也保护了水稻地方品种的多样性。这种混合间栽的生物多样性布局和生产方式可能成为农保护的一条新途径。     

Genetic Structure and Molecular Diversity of Cacao Plants Established as Local Varieties for More than Two Centuries: The Genetic History of Cacao Plantations in Bahia,Brazil

Bahia is the most important cacao-producing state in Brazil, which is currently the sixth-largest country worldwide to produce cacao seeds. In the eighteenth century, the Comum, Pará and Maranhão varieties of cacao were introduced into southern Bahia, and their descendants, which are called ‘Bahian cacao’ or local Bahian varieties, have been cultivated for over 200 years. Comum plants have been used to start plantations in African countries and extended as far as countries in South Asia and Oceania. In Brazil, two sets of clones selected from Bahian varieties and their mutants, the Agronomic Institute of East (SIAL) and Bahian Cacao Institute (SIC) series, represent the diversity of Bahian cacao in germplasm banks. Because the genetic diversity of Bahian varieties, which is essential for breeding programs, remains unknown, the objective of this work was to assess the genetic structure and diversity of local Bahian varieties collected from farms and germplasm banks. To this end, 30 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers were used to genotype 279 cacao plants from germplasm and local farms. The results facilitated the identification of 219 cacao plants of Bahian origin, and 51 of these were SIAL or SIC clones. Bahian cacao showed low genetic diversity. It could be verified that SIC and SIAL clones do not represent the true diversity of Bahian cacao, with the greatest amount of diversity found in cacao trees on the farms. Thus, a core collection to aid in prioritizing the plants to be sampled for Bahian cacao diversity is suggested. These results provide information that can be used to conserve Bahian cacao plants and applied in breeding programs to obtain more productive Bahian cacao with superior quality and tolerance to major diseases in tropical cacao plantations worldwide.     

Integrating gene flow, crop biology, and farm management in on-farm conservation of avocado (Persea americana, Lauraceae)

Maintaining crop diversity on farms where cultivars can evolve is a conservation goal, but few tools are available to assess the long-term maintenance of genetic diversity on farms. One important issue for on-farm conservation is gene flow from crops with a narrow genetic base into related populations that are genetically diverse. In a case study of avocado (Persea americana var. americana) in one of its centers of diversity (San Jerónimo, Costa Rica), we used 10 DNA microsatellite markers in a parentage analysis to estimate gene flow from commercialized varieties into a traditional crop population. Five commercialized genotypes comprised nearly 40% of orchard trees, but they contributed only about 14.5% of the gametes to the youngest cohort of trees. Although commercialized varieties and the diverse population were often planted on the same farm, planting patterns appeared to keep the two types of trees separated on small scales, possibly explaining the limited gene flow. In a simulation that combined gene flow estimates, crop biology, and graft tree management, loss of allelic diversity was less than 10% over 150 yr, and selection was effective in retaining desirable alleles in the diverse subpopulation. Simulations also showed that, in addition to gene flow, managing the genetic makeup and life history traits of the invasive commercialized varieties could have a significant impact on genetic diversity in the target population. The results support the feasibility of on-farm crop conservation, but simulations also showed that higher levels of gene flow could lead to severe losses of genetic diversity even if farmers continue to plant diverse varieties.     

SSR标记揭示的云南地方稻品种遗传多样性及其保育意义

为了探索水稻(Oryza sativa L.)地方品种的遗传多样性及其有效保育方法,对采自云南省17个村寨的82个水稻地方品种和3个国际常用的典型籼稻和粳稻品种进行了微卫星(SSR)分子标记的分析.利用19对SSR引物在85个水稻品种中共扩增出了83个基因型,其分子量变异在100～500 bp之间.基于各品种SSR基因型遗传相似系数聚类分析而获得的UPGMA树状图表明各水稻品种之间存在较大的遗传多样性,其相似系数变异在0.15～0.90之间.但这些地方品种的遗传多样性并非呈均等的地理分布.这85个水稻品种在相似系数为0.52之处分为二组,其中一组包括几乎所有的籼稻品种,而另一组包括全部的粳稻品种,表明SSR标记能很好揭示水稻籼-粳分化.同时,有些来自不同采集地的同名品种表现出一定的遗传差异,说明同名异物的现象存在.云南水稻地方品种具有丰富的遗传多样性,对其有效保育十分重要和迫切,但只有根据遗传多样性的水平和分布特点,采用正确的保育对策和取样方法才能确保对云南水稻地方品种的有效保育.结果进一步表明,选用适当的微卫星引物,可以为准确鉴定籼稻和粳稻品种及研究其进化规律提供有效的分子标记方法,并有利于有目标的水稻遗传资源保育和育种创新.     

Establishment of a Core Collection of Traditional Cuban <Emphasis Type="Italic">Theobroma cacao</Emphasis> Plants for Conservation and Utilization Purposes

Presently, Theobroma cacao L. (cacao) in Cuba is mainly cultivated in the eastern region where plantations comprise a mixture of clonal varieties, hybrids, progeny of Trinidad Selected Hybrids, and traditional—also known as ancient—cacao. The ancient genetic resources, probably the plants most closely related to the original introductions, are endangered by their progressive replacement by modern clones. To promote the conservation and utilization of these genetic resources, a representative sample of 537 traditional Cuban cacao plants was used to develop a core collection. Core collections based on 15 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers were generated using five different sampling algorithms: random sampling, simulated annealing, stepwise clustering with random sampling, the M strategy, and maximum genetic diversity. The five core collections were designed to capture 95 % of the SSR alleles in the complete collection. The genetic, morphological, and geographical diversity of each core collection was compared with that of the entire collection. The entire collection contained 139 alleles, including 104 rare ones, with the 95 % allelic coverage threshold achieved with 133 alleles. The core collection generated by the maximum genetic diversity algorithm had the lowest number of accessions (185), the highest mean genetic distance (0.486), the lowest morphological character redundancy, and the highest diversity as assessed by the mean Shannon-Weaver diversity index (0.757). This core collection can thus serve as the basis of future improvement programs based on local genetic resources.     

Abundant Within-varietal Genetic Diversity in Rice Germplasm from Yunnan Province of China Revealed by SSR Fingerprints

In order to estimate genetic diversity of rice (Oryza sativa L.) germplasm in Yunnan Province of China, 60 varieties from different regions were analyzed by microsatellite (SSR) fingerprints. Nine selected SSR primer pairs amplified a total of 55 alleles from these varieties, and high genetic diversity (0.706) was found, although it was not evenly distributed across the regions. Marked genetic variation was detected within the traditional varieties. A UPGMA dendrogram based on SSR polymorphism indicated a great variation among the rice varieties, with coefficients ranging between 0.229 and 1.000. The formation of the rice diversity pattern in Yunnan is associated with natural conditions and especially with diverse cultural demands and farming styles. Strategic conservation of rice germplasm in Yunnan is important, and this could be implemented by collecting varieties across geographic regions with sufficient individuals within the same varieties. Effective rice conservation should also consider cultural aspects during collection.     

SSR-based genetic diversity and structure of garlic accessions from Brazil

Garlic is a spice and a medicinal plant; hence, there is an increasing interest in ‘developing’ new varieties with different culinary properties or with high content of nutraceutical compounds. Phenotypic traits and dominant molecular markers are predominantly used to evaluate the genetic diversity of garlic clones. However, 24 SSR markers (codominant) specific for garlic are available in the literature, fostering germplasm researches. In this study, we genotyped 130 garlic accessions from Brazil and abroad using 17 polymorphic SSR markers to assess the genetic diversity and structure. This is the first attempt to evaluate a large set of accessions maintained by Brazilian institutions. A high level of redundancy was detected in the collection (50 % of the accessions represented eight haplotypes). However, non-redundant accessions presented high genetic diversity. We detected on average five alleles per locus, Shannon index of 1.2, H_O of 0.5, and H_E of 0.6. A core collection was set with 17 accessions, covering 100 % of the alleles with minimum redundancy. Overall F_ST and D values indicate a strong genetic structure within accessions. Two major groups identified by both model-based (Bayesian approach) and hierarchical clustering (UPGMA dendrogram) techniques were coherent with the classification of accessions according to maturity time (growth cycle): early-late and midseason accessions. Assessing genetic diversity and structure of garlic collections is the first step towards an efficient management and conservation of accessions in genebanks, as well as to advance future genetic studies and improvement of garlic worldwide.     

Genetic differentiation analysis of African cassava (Manihot esculenta) landraces and elite germplasm using amplified fragment length polymorphism and simple sequence repeat markers

Molecular‐marker‐aided evaluation of germplasm plays an important role in defining the genetic diversity of plant genotypes for genetic and population improvement studies. A collection of African cassava landraces and elite cultivars was analysed for genetic diversity using 20 amplified fragment length polymorphic (AFLP) DNA primer combinations and 50 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. Within‐population diversity estimates obtained with both markers were correlated, showing little variation in their fixation index. The amount of within‐population variation was higher for landraces as illustrated by both markers, allowing discrimination among accessions along their geographical origins, with some overlap indicating the pattern of germplasm movement between countries. Elite cultivars were grouped in most cases in agreement with their pedigree and showed a narrow genetic variation. Both SSR and AFLP markers showed some similarity in results for the landraces, although SSR provided better genetic differentiation estimates. Genetic differentiation (Fst) in the landrace population was 0.746 for SSR and 0.656 for AFLP. The molecular variance among cultivars in both populations accounted for up to 83% of the overall variation, while 17% was found within populations. Gene diversity (H_e) estimated within each population varied with an average value of 0.607 for the landraces and 0.594 for the elite lines. Analyses of SSR data using ordination techniques identified additional cluster groups not detected by AFLP and also captured maximum variation within and between both populations. Our results indicate the importance of SSR and AFLP as efficient markers for the analysis of genetic diversity and population structure in cassava. Genetic differentiation analysis of the evaluated populations provides high prospects for identifying diverse parental combinations for the development of segregating populations for genetic studies and the introgression of desirable genes from diverse sources into the existing genetic base.     

Influence of ethnic traditional cultures on genetic diversity of rice landraces under on-farm conservation in southwest China

Background

Crop genetic resources are important components of biodiversity. However, with the large-scale promotion of mono-cropping, genetic diversity has largely been lost. Ex-situ conservation approaches were widely used to protect traditional crop varieties worldwide. However, this method fails to maintain the dynamic evolutionary processes of crop genetic resources in their original habitats, leading to genetic diversity reduction and even loss of the capacity of resistance to new diseases and pests. Therefore, on-farm conservation has been considered a crucial complement to ex-situ conservation. This study aimed at clarifying the genetic diversity differences between ex-situ conservation and on-farm conservation and to exploring the influence of traditional cultures on genetic diversity of rice landraces under on-farm conservation.

Methods

The conservation status of rice landrace varieties, including Indica and Japonica, non-glutinous rice (Oryza sativa) and glutinous rice (Oryza sativa var. glutinosa Matsum), was obtained through ethno-biology investigation method in 12 villages of ethnic groups from Guizhou, Yunnan and Guangxi provinces of China. The genetic diversity between 24 pairs of the same rice landraces from different times were compared using simple sequence repeat (SSR) molecular markers technology. The landrace paris studied were collected in 1980 and maintained ex-situ, while 2014 samples were collected on-farm in southwest of China.

Results

The results showed that many varieties of rice landraces have been preserved on-farm by local farmers for hundreds or thousands of years. The number of alleles (Na), effective number of alleles (Ne), Nei genetic diversity index (He) and Shannon information index (I) of rice landraces were significantly higher by 12.3–30.4 % under on-farm conservation than under ex-situ conservation. Compared with the ex-situ conservation approach, rice landraces under on-farm conservation programs had more alleles and higher genetic diversity. In every site we investigated, ethnic traditional cultures play a positive influence on rice landrace variety diversity and genetic diversity.

Conclusion

Most China’s rice landraces were conserved in the ethnic areas of southwest China. On-farm conservation can effectively promote the allelic variation and increase the genetic diversity of rice landraces over the past 35 years. Moreover, ethnic traditional culture practices are a crucial foundation to increase genetic diversity of rice landraces and implement on-farm conservation.

     

Local genetic diversity of sorghum in a village in northern Cameroon: structure and dynamics of landraces

We present the first study of patterns of genetic diversity of sorghum landraces at the local scale. Understanding landrace diversity aids in deciphering evolutionary forces under domestication, and has applications in the conservation of genetic resources and their use in breeding programs. Duupa farmers in a village in Northern Cameroon distinguished 59 named sorghum taxa, representing 46 landraces. In each field, seeds are sown as a mixture of landraces (mean of 12 landraces per field), giving the potential for extensive gene flow. What level of genetic diversity underlies the great morphological diversity observed among landraces? Given the potential for gene flow, how well defined genetically is each landrace? To answer these questions, we recorded spatial patterns of planting and farmers’ perceptions of landraces, and characterized 21 landraces using SSR markers. Analysis using distance and clustering methods grouped the 21 landraces studied into four clusters. These clusters correspond to functionally and ecologically distinct groups of landraces. Within-landrace genetic variation accounted for 30% of total variation. The average F _is over landraces was 0.68, suggesting high inbreeding within landraces. Differentiation among landraces was substantial and significant (F _st = 0.36). Historical factors, variation in breeding systems, and farmers’ practices all affected patterns of genetic variation. Farmers’ practices are key to the maintenance, despite gene flow, of landraces with different combinations of agronomically and ecologically pertinent traits. They must be taken into account in strategies of conservation and use of genetic resources.     

SSR标记揭示的云南地方稻品种遗传多样性及其保育意义

为了探索水稻(Oryza　sativa　L.)地方品种的遗传多样性及其有效保育方法,对采自云南省17个村寨的82个水稻地方品种和3个国际常用的典型籼稻和粳稻品种进行了微卫星(SSR)分子标记的分析。利用19对SSR引物在85个水稻品种中共扩增出了83个基因型,其分子量变异在100～500　bp之间。基于各品种SSR基因型遗传相似系数聚类分析而获得的UPGMA树状图表明各水稻品种之间存在较大的遗传多样性,其相似系数变异在0.15～0.90之间。但这些地方品种的遗传多样性并非呈均等的地理分布。这85个水稻品种在相似系数为0.52之处分为二组,其中一组包括几乎所有的籼稻品种,而另一组包括全部的粳稻品种,表明SSR标记能很好揭示水稻籼-粳分化。同时,有些来自不同采集地的同名品种表现出一定的遗传差异,说明同名异物的现象存在。云南水稻地方品种具有丰富的遗传多样性,对其有效保育十分重要和迫切,　但只有根据遗传多样性的水平和分布特点,采用正确的保育对策和取样方法才能确保对云南水稻地方品种的有效保育。结果进一步表明,选用适当的微卫星引物,可以为准确鉴定籼稻和粳稻品种及研究其进化规律提供有效的分子标记方法,并有利于有目标的水稻遗传资源保育和育种创新。     

Microsatellite Polymorphisms in Cassava Landraces from the Cerrado Biome, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

Using nine microsatellite loci, we investigated genetic structure and diversity in 83 Brazilian cassava accessions, including several landraces, in the Cerrado biome in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. All nine loci were polymorphic, averaging 6.00 alleles per locus. Treating each of seven municipalities as a cassava group or population, they averaged 3.5 alleles per locus, with 97% polymorphic loci, high values for observed heterozygosity (0.32) and gene diversity (0.56). Total genetic variability was high (0.668), and most of this genetic variability was concentrated within municipalities (0.577). Cluster and structure analyses divided accessions into two major clusters or populations (K = 2). Also, a significant genetic versus geographic correlation was found (r = 0.4567; P < 0.0260). Migratory routes in the Cerrado are considered main contributors to the region’s high cassava diversity and spatial genetic structure, amplifying interactions between traditional farmers and the evolutionary dynamics of this crop.     

Indicators for the on-farm assessment of crop cultivar and livestock breed diversity: a survey-based participatory approach

Agrobiodiversity plays a fundamental role in guaranteeing food security. However, still little is known about the diversity within crop and livestock species: the genetic diversity. In this paper we present a set of indicators of crop accession and breed diversity for different farm types at farm-level, which may potentially supply a useful tool to assess and monitor farming system agrobiodiversity in a feasible and relatively affordable way. A generic questionnaire was developed to capture the information on crops and livestock in 12 European case study regions and in Uganda by 203 on-farm interviews. Through a participatory approach, which involved a number of stakeholders, eight potential indicators were selected and tested. Five of them are recommended as potentially useful indicators for agrobiodiversity monitoring per farm: (1) crop-species richness (up to 16 crop species), (2) crop-cultivar diversity (up to 15 crop cultivars, 1–2 on average), (3) type of crop accessions (landraces accounted for 3 % of all crop cultivars in Europe, 31 % in Uganda), (4) livestock-species diversity (up to 5 livestock species), and (5) breed diversity (up to five cattle and eight sheep breeds, on average 1–2).We demonstrated that the selected indicators are able to detect differences between farms, regions and dominant farm types. Given the present rate of agrobiodiversity loss and the dramatic effects that this may have on food production and food security, extensive monitoring is urgent. A consistent survey of crop cultivars and livestock breeds on-farm will detect losses and help to improve strategies for the management and conservation of on-farm genetic resources.     

Resource-Use Patterns in Swidden Farming Communities: Implications for the Resilience of Cassava Diversity

Resource-use patterns, especially through exchanges among farmers, may ultimately confer resilience to the local agrobiodiversity. We investigated the use of cassava ethnovarieties by swidden farming communities in Brazil, exploring the structure of networks depicting farmers and the varieties they cultivate. The emergent nested resource-use pattern indicated that all farmers shared a core of top-ranked ethnovarieties (most common/abundant) while some farmers also cultivate rarer varieties. This pattern may result of individual preferences. Due to the current loss of interest and cultivation area for traditional agriculture, we simulated the extinction of crop fields to evaluate whether nestedness conferred robustness to cassava diversity. The diversity of ethnovarieties of cassava tended to be conserved when farmers were randomly removed from the network than when we preferentially removed farmers with more diverse crop fields. Stem cuttings of ethnovarieties are commonly exchanged among farmers, thus the extinction of ethnovarieties within crop fields could be restored. Therefore, we suggest that the interplay between the farmer’s resource-use patterns and exchange system strengthens the resilience of cassava diversity, which is an important staple resource for such communities.     

Informal "seed" systems and the management of gene flow in traditional agroecosystems: the case of cassava in Cauca, Colombia

Our ability to manage gene flow within traditional agroecosystems and their repercussions requires understanding the biology of crops, including farming practices' role in crop ecology. That these practices' effects on crop population genetics have not been quantified bespeaks lack of an appropriate analytical framework. We use a model that construes seed-management practices as part of a crop's demography to describe the dynamics of cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) in Cauca, Colombia. We quantify several management practices for cassava--the first estimates of their kind for a vegetatively-propagated crop--describe their demographic repercussions, and compare them to those of maize, a sexually-reproduced grain crop. We discuss the implications for gene flow, the conservation of cassava diversity, and the biosafety of vegetatively-propagated crops in centers of diversity. Cassava populations are surprisingly open and dynamic: farmers exchange germplasm across localities, particularly improved varieties, and distribute it among neighbors at extremely high rates vis-à-vis maize. This implies that a large portion of cassava populations consists of non-local germplasm, often grown in mixed stands with local varieties. Gene flow from this germplasm into local seed banks and gene pools via pollen has been documented, but its extent remains uncertain. In sum, cassava's biology and vegetative propagation might facilitate pre-release confinement of genetically-modified varieties, as expected, but simultaneously contribute to their diffusion across traditional agroecosystems if released. Genetically-modified cassava is unlikely to displace landraces or compromise their diversity; but rapid diffusion of improved germplasm and subsequent incorporation into cassava landraces, seed banks or wild populations could obstruct the tracking and eradication of deleterious transgenes. Attempts to regulate traditional farming practices to reduce the risks could compromise cassava populations' adaptive potential and ultimately prove ineffectual.     

Can in vitro biology have farm-level impact for small-scale cassava farmers in Latin America?

Summary Cassava is uniquely suited for food security and economic development in unfavored areas of the tropics. Development research for cassava is an urgent need. In 1998, the Cassava Biotechnology Network (CBN) convened a workshop of cassava stakeholder groups in Latin America. After hearing an opening statement from representatives of small-scale cassava producers and processors, stakeholders formulated a consensus set of research and development (R&D) priorities. An adequate supply of good-quality planting material of desired varieties was clearly the most urgent, followed by R&D on market-value traits; yield losses due to pests, diseases, and drought; and cropping system flexibility. Two new projects are using in vitro techniques to address priorities of small-scale cassava farmers in Latin America. One project in Colombia combines a nongovernmental organization, a local farmers’ association, and the international research center, CIAT, to explore affordable micropropagation. Findings to date show that most culture medium components can be replaced with local products, and a rustic growth room permits good culture growth without electricity or air conditioning. Low-costs system(s) developed will be assessed as a local microenterprise. A second project, in Ecuador, couples local cassava germplasm (with oral histories and an in vitro back-up collection) and elite clones (introduced in vitro) with new concepts in agribusiness development, to restart local farmers’ cooperatives after the disastrous 1998–99 el Ni?o floods. The project was developed through group planning by the cooperatives, the local technical university, the national agricultural research program, and CIAT. Research to improve in vitro tools focuses on safe and stable conservation and exchange of cassava genetic resources, long-term, less expensive conservation, rapid clonal propagation, and ultimately, genetic transformation technologies to add desired traits to useful cassava varieties.     

Morphological and phenological comparisons of two Hopi maize varieties conserved in situ and ex situ

Over the last twenty-five years, crop genetic resources (CGR) have been preserved in genebanks around the world for use by formal plant breeders. Recently conservation of folk crop varieties for direct use by the farmer-breeders of traditional agricultural communities has been suggested as another purpose for CGR conservation. While both in and ex situ CGR conservation programs have been proposed to meet the needs of formal plant breeders and farming communities, the needs and goals of the two groups are different. Formal breeders seek maximum allelic diversity while farmer-breeders are interested in both diversity and population structure that provide local adaptation. Based on the morphological and phenological data analyzed for this study of two Hopi maize varieties conserved in and ex situ, it appears that both genetic shift and genetic drift have occurred ex situ, and that populations conserved ex situ are different from those maintained in situ. These findings suggest that CGR conservation strategies must be re-evaluated in light of the specific conservation goals that are sought.     

Diversification of indigenous gene- pool by using exotic germplasm in lentil (Lens culinaris Medikus subsp. culinaris)

Genetic diversity was studied among 21 accessions of lentil using SSR markers and morphological traits in order to assess the diversification of Indian gene-pool of lentil through introgression of exotic genes and introduction of germplasm. Among these , 16 genotypes either had ‘Precoz’ gene, an Argentine line in their pedigree or genes from introduced lines from ICARDA. Sixty five SSR markers and eight phenotypic traits were used to analyse the level of genetic diversity in these genotypes. Forty three SSR markers (66 %) were polymorphic and generated a total of 177 alleles with an average of 4.1 alleles per SSR marker. Alleles per marker ranged from 2 to 6. The polymorphic information content ranged 0.33 to 0.80 with an average of 0.57, suggesting that SSR markers are highly polymorphic among the studied genotypes. Genetic dissimilarity based a dendrogram grouped these accessions into two main clusters (cluster I and cluster II) and it ranged 33 % to 71 %, suggesting high level of genetic diversity among the genotypes. First three components of PCA based morphological traits explained higher variance (95.6 %) compared to PCA components based on SSR markers (42.7 %) of total genetic variance. Thus, more diversity was observed for morphological traits and genotypes in each cluster and sub-cluster showed a range of variability for seed size, earliness, pods/plant and plant height. Molecular and phenotypic diversity analysis thus suggested that use of germplasm of exotic lines have diversified the genetic base of lentil germplasm in India. This diversified gene-pool will be very useful in the development of improved varieties of lentil in order to address the effect of climate change, to adapt in new cropping systems niches such as mixed cropping, relay cropping, etc. and to meet consumers’ preference.