Advances in Chickpea Breeding and Genomics for Varietal Development and Trait Improvement in India

Purpose Since the start of seed and other market reforms in the 1990s, the annual number of improved varietal releases for maize in Kenya has increased substantially. Prior to the reforms, private firms were restricted in introducing new varieties, could not protect their intellectual property and farmers had to rely exclusively on improved seeds developed and marketed by the public sector. Reforms have resulted in not only private firms entering the market and releasing improved varieties, but also an increase in varietal releases by the public sector. The purpose of this paper is to review some of the key policy reforms related to maize in Kenya, and their impacts on varietal development and yields. Design/methodology/approach The authors estimate a yield model that relates national maize yields to a number of input policy variables. The authors employ a two-stage least square regression, as one of the explanatory variables – the number of varietal releases – is likely endogenous with yield. The authors use policy variables such as public R&D, the number of plant breeder’s rights issued, and the years since private varieties have been introduced as instrument variables to estimate their influence new varietal releases directly, and then new varieties, inputs and other policies to measure their impact on yields. Findings The results show that policy changes such as the introduction of intellectual property rights had an important impact on the number of improved maize varieties released. However, the outcomes of the policy change such as the number of varieties and the share of area under improved varieties has no impact on increasing maize yields. The authors argue that this is because farmers continue to use older improved varieties because of the dominance of a parastatal in the maize, seed market and that newer improved varieties may not have the assumed yield advantage. Future policy and programs should be directed toward increasing the adoption of improved varieties rather than simply releasing them. Originality/value This paper provides evidence that while policy change may lead to new varietal development and release, its aggregate productivity impacts may be limited without additional reforms and intervention.

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Conventional and Biotechnological Approaches for Targeted Trait Improvement in Lentil

Accelerated Plant Breeding, Volume 3 ◽

10.1007/978-3-030-47306-8_3 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 67-107

Author(s):

Dorin Gupta ◽

Rama Harinath Dadu ◽

Prabhakaran Sambasivam ◽

Ido Bar ◽

Mahsa Azad ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Trait Improvement

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Targeted Sequencing Suggests Wild-Crop Gene Flow Is Central to Different Genetic Consequences of Two Independent Pumpkin Domestications

Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution ◽

10.3389/fevo.2021.618380 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

Author(s):

Heather R. Kates ◽

Fernando López Anido ◽

Guillermo Sánchez-de la Vega ◽

Luis E. Eguiarte ◽

Pamela S. Soltis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Genetic Diversity ◽

Genetic Variation ◽

Gene Flow ◽

Genetic Structure ◽

Morphological Diversity ◽

Cucurbita Maxima ◽

Wild Progenitor ◽

Breeding Potential ◽

Trait Improvement ◽

Wild Progenitors

Studies of domestication genetics enrich our understanding of how domestication shapes genetic and morphological diversity. We characterized patterns of genetic variation in two independently domesticated pumpkins and their wild progenitors to assess and compare genetic consequences of domestication. To compare genetic diversity pre- and post-domestication and to identify genes targeted by selection during domestication, we analyzed ∼15,000 SNPs of 48 unrelated accessions, including wild, landrace, and improved lines for each of two pumpkin species, Cucurbita argyrosperma and Cucurbita maxima. Genetic diversity relative to its wild progenitor was reduced in only one domesticated subspecies, C. argyrosperma ssp. argyrosperma. The two species have different patterns of genetic structure across domestication status. Only 1.5% of the domestication features identified for both species were shared between species. These findings suggest that ancestral genetic diversity, wild-crop gene flow, and domestication practices shaped the genetic diversity of two similar Cucurbita crops in different ways, adding to our understanding of how genetic diversity changes during the processes of domestication and how trait improvement impacts the breeding potential of modern crops.

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Stochastic simulation of sheep breeding schemes for Iceland, with a focus on ewe trait improvement

Icelandic Agricultural Sciences ◽

10.16886/ias.2020.03 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2020 ◽

pp. 25-33

Author(s):

Eyjólfur Ingvi Bjarnason ◽

Leiv Sigbjørn Eikje ◽

Gunnar Klemetsdal

Keyword(s):

Stochastic Simulation ◽

Sheep Breeding ◽

Trait Improvement ◽

Breeding Schemes

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Rice Varietal Development to Meet Future Challenges

The Future Rice Strategy for India ◽

10.1016/b978-0-12-805374-4.00007-5 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 161-220 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Arvind Kumar ◽

Nitika Sandhu ◽

Shailesh Yadav ◽

Sharat Kumar Pradhan ◽

Annamalai Anandan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Varietal Development ◽

Future Challenges

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Progress with Varietal Development at CCRI, Sakrand Sindh

Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences ◽

10.3923/pjbs.2000.466.468 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 3 (3) ◽

pp. 466-468

Author(s):

A.R. Soomro ◽

Kaneez Soomro ◽

A.W. Soomro ◽

A.H. Soomro ◽

G.H. Mallah ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Varietal Development

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Drivers of Dry Common Beans Trade in Lusaka, Zambia: A Trader’s Perspective

Sustainable Agriculture Research ◽

10.5539/sar.v5n2p15 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 5 (2) ◽

pp. 15 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Timothy Sichilima ◽

Lawrence Mapemba ◽

Gelson Tembo

Keyword(s):

Grain Size ◽

Common Bean ◽

Social Economic ◽

Market Price ◽

Hedonic Pricing ◽

Common Beans ◽

Policy Makers ◽

The Social ◽

Varietal Development ◽

Market Sample

<p>This study was designed to analyze drivers of dry common beans trade in Lusaka, Zambia. Specifically, the study analyzed the effect of common bean grain characteristics on bean market price. Data was collected using structured questionnaires from 225 traders stationed in three markets namely: Soweto, Chilenje and Mtendere.</p>Using hedonic pricing, the findings reveal that medium sized grain was an important characteristic which significantly affected the pricing of common bean. For instance, it was observed that medium grain size fetched ZMW1.266 per kilogram (kg) and ZMW 1.042 per kg more than grains of smaller size in the pooled and Soweto market sample, respectively. It was further revealed that yellow, yellow and white color significantly affected the bean price received by traders. Other factors which significantly affected the pricing of beans included age of the trader, being a retail trader and trading at Chilenje market. Given these findings, common bean breeders need to include traders and consumers as important actors whose knowledge can make resourceful impact in varietal development. Furthermore, interventions by policy makers that respond to the social economic needs of traders is recommended to improve bean trade.

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Mutation Breeding in Tomato: Advances, Applicability and Challenges

Plants ◽

10.3390/plants8050128 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 8 (5) ◽

pp. 128 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Juhi Chaudhary ◽

Alisha Alisha ◽

Vacha Bhatt ◽

Sonali Chandanshive ◽

Nirbhay Kumar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Genome Editing ◽

Large Scale ◽

Insertional Mutagenesis ◽

Crop Improvement ◽

Mutation Breeding ◽

Tomato Crop ◽

Technological Advances ◽

Trait Improvement ◽

Induced Mutagenesis ◽

Efficient Exploration

Induced mutagenesis is one of the most effective strategies for trait improvement without altering the well-optimized genetic background of the cultivars. In this review, several currently accessible methods such as physical, chemical and insertional mutagenesis have been discussed concerning their efficient exploration for the tomato crop improvement. Similarly, challenges for the adaptation of genome-editing, a newly developed technique providing an opportunity to induce precise mutation, have been addressed. Several efforts of genome-editing have been demonstrated in tomato and other crops, exploring its effectiveness and convenience for crop improvement. Descriptive data compiled here from such efforts will be helpful for the efficient exploration of technological advances. However, uncertainty about the regulation of genome-edited crops is still a significant concern, particularly when timely trait improvement in tomato cultivars is needed. In this regard, random approaches of induced mutagenesis are still promising if efficiently explored in breeding applications. Precise identification of casual mutation is a prerequisite for the molecular understanding of the trait development as well as its utilization for the breeding program. Recent advances in sequencing techniques provide an opportunity for the precise detection of mutagenesis-induced sequence variations at a large scale in the genome. Here, we reviewed several novel next-generation sequencing based mutation mapping approaches including Mutmap, MutChromeSeq, and whole-genome sequencing-based mapping which has enormous potential to accelerate the mutation breeding in tomato. The proper utilization of the existing well-characterized tomato mutant resources combined with novel mapping approaches would inevitably lead to rapid enhancement of tomato quality and yield. This article provides an overview of the principles and applications of mutagenesis approaches in tomato and discusses the current progress and challenges involved in tomato mutagenesis research.

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