Analysis of Crop Genetic and Germplasm Diversity

The article provides a historical background on the activities of the N. I. Vavilov All‑Russian Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (VIR) for a 125‑year period. The Institute began its history as the Bureau of Applied Botany in the end of the 19th century, the times of the Russian Empire; it went through the crucible of World War I, the October Revolution and the Civil War, to become the All‑Union Institute of Plant Industry (VIR) in the Soviet times. The Institute overcame the period of Stalin’s repressions and the devastating irreparable losses sustained during the World War II and the Siege of Leningrad. In the post‑war period, VIR underwent revival, and since 1967 has been proudly bearing the name of N. I. Vavilov. The most successful period in the history of VIR was in the 60‑70s of the 20th century, while in the 90s there followed a period of a sharp drop in funding of all research, and the institute staff was preserving and saving the Vavilov collection at the cost of incredible efforts. In the 21st century, VIR continues its work as a globally known leader in the spheres of systematic collection, comprehensive study, reliable conservation and rational use of genetic resources of cultivated plants and their wild relatives for solving the problems directly related to ensuring national and global food security.

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DIVERSITY OF PINEAPPLE GENETIC RESOURCES IN CUBA: THREATS AND ACTIONS FOR MINIMIZING LOSSES

Revista Fitotecnia Mexicana ◽

10.35196/rfm.2017.1.93-101 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 40 (1) ◽

pp. 93-101

Author(s):

Daymara Rodríguez-Alfonso ◽

Miriam Isidrón-Pérez ◽

Dubiel Alfonso-González ◽

María J. Grajal-Martín ◽

José I. Hormaza-Uroz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Genetic Resources ◽

Plant Genetic Resources ◽

Field Trips ◽

Ex Situ ◽

Current Status ◽

Eastern Region ◽

Germplasm Preservation ◽

Germplasm Diversity ◽

Research Action

Conservation of plant genetic resources (PGR) is essential to preserve diversity and to provide genes for plant breeding. This paper assesses the current status of pineapple PGR diversity in Cuba and actions are proposed to minimize the loss of diversity. In situ diversity was evaluated through field trips to different locations across the country, evidence was found that pineapple germplasm diversity is low. Only three (Spanish, Cayenne and Pernambuco) out of the five horticultural groups of this crop are presently planted at Cuba. Red Spanish is the predominant cultivar, and White Pineapple is an endangered one. The highest diversity was found at the Eastern region, where it was possible to find at least two different cultivars from each of these three groups. The ex situ pineapple collection contains 56 accessions, 45 % belong to the Spanish group, 20 % to Cayenne and 14 % to Pernambuco, while the rest are hybrids, improved cultivars and other related species. Threats of diversity loss were identified by the Research-Action-Participation method. Farmers and experts agreed that growing of the most common cultivars is being abandoned and consequently, there is high risk of loss of in situ diversity. Results document the low diversity of pineapple genetic resources in the country and the need to use in situ and ex situ conservation approaches as complementary strategies for germplasm preservation for future generations.

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Conservation of crop genetic resources in Brazil in the context of the target 9 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation

Rodriguésia ◽

10.1590/2175-7860201869406 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 69 (4) ◽

pp. 1557-1565

Author(s):

Juliano Gomes Pádua

Keyword(s):

Genetic Resources ◽

Plant Genetic Resources ◽

Plant Conservation ◽

Global Strategy ◽

Wild Plants ◽

Cultivated Plants ◽

Crop Species ◽

The World ◽

The Status ◽

Cultivated Species

Abstract Cultivated species, on which humankind depends for survival, have been created by farmers that have crossed and selected wild plants and developed landraces. Early in 20th century, the theory of Centers of Origin of Cultivated Plants was proposed by Vavilov. He also warned the world about the loss of plant genetic diversity due to the dominance of a small number of genetically similar crops, a fact that help starting a movement for the conservation of plant genetic resources. From this time, several strategies and institutions were established around the world to act in plant genetic resources (PGR) conservation. In Brazil, a remarkable player in PGR conservation, some institutions conserve several crop species as well as their wild relatives and other socio-economically valuable plant species. In this paper we present the status of PGR conservation in Brazil as well as initiatives and laws aiming at respecting, preserving and maintaining associated indigenous and local knowledge, in the context of the target 9 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation.

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Quantitative and Qualitative Genetic Studies of Some Acacia Species Grown in Egypt

Plants ◽

10.3390/plants9020243 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (2) ◽

pp. 243

Author(s):

Nader R. Abdelsalam ◽

Hayssam M. Ali ◽

Mohamed Z. M. Salem ◽

Hosam E. El-Wakil

Keyword(s):

Genetic Differentiation ◽

Genetic Resources ◽

Genetic Improvement ◽

Plant Genetic Resources ◽

Morphological Data ◽

Genetic Studies ◽

Acacia Species ◽

Improvement Programs ◽

Similarities And Differences ◽

Qualitative Characteristics

The objective of the current work is to study the genetic differentiation between Acacia species growing in Egypt as plant genetic resources based on morphological, biochemical, and molecular markers. The 20 replicates of Acacia tree collected from four localities from Egypt were A. tortilis ssp. raddiana and A. farnesiana (Siwa Oasis and Borg El-Arab City), A. stenophylla, A. sclerosperma (Marsa Matroh City), and A. saligna (Abis Station Farm, Alexandria). The results based on the previous markers indicated highly significant differences between Acacia species, confirming the hypothesis of the possibility of using morphological, biochemical, and molecular parameters in species identification. Qualitative characteristics results indicated some similarities and differences that are taxonomically important for comparing taxonomical grouping with morphological data for the genetic description of Acacia species. The activities of antioxidant enzymes have been studied intensively and the results provide strong similarities between the Acacia species (69%), between A. raddiana (Siwa and Borg Al-Arab) and A. saligna, followed by all Acacia species (50%). Finally, the molecular studies showed that a total of 563 amplification fragments, 190 fragments were monomorphic, and 373 fragments were polymorphic. The highest number of amplification fragments (21) was detected with OPB-20 primer, while OPA-20 showed seven amplification fragments; the average number was 13.09. The results indicated that Acacia species exhibit high genetic differentiation, helpful in the future for genetic improvement programs. The novelty of the current study is highlighting the importance of plant genetic resources in Egypt and using different techniques to measure the differentiation between these species.

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Morphological Analysis of Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus L.) Accessions of Different Origin from VIR Collection

Proceedings of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. Section B. Natural, Exact, and Applied Sciences. ◽

10.2478/prolas-2019-0077 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 73 (6) ◽

pp. 502-512

Author(s):

Tamara N. Smekalova ◽

Natalia V. Lebedeva ◽

Lyubov Yu. Novikova

Keyword(s):

Genetic Resources ◽

Western Europe ◽

Morphological Analysis ◽

Plant Genetic Resources ◽

Morphological Characteristics ◽

Jerusalem Artichoke ◽

Wide Range ◽

Food And Feed ◽

Leningrad Province ◽

Different Origin

Abstract The article is dedicated to morphological analysis of the Jerusalem artichoke genetic resources collected at the N. I. Vavilov All-Russian Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (VIR). The crop has a wide range of various usages, such as: food and feed, and medicinal, melliferous, and ornamental products. In this study, morphological characteristics of vegetative and generative plant organs (stems, leaves, tubers and inflorescences) from the VIR collections in the Maikop Experiment Station of VIR (Russian Caucasus, Republic of Adygea) and in Gatchina District, Leningrad Province, Russia were analysed. The widest range of variability was observed in accessions from Western Europe. Accessions from United States, Japan and Australia were the most unique in their set of traits, which may indicate specific paths of their evolution in these isolated territories. Accessions with unique combinations of studied traits were determined. Some traits characterizing leaf, inflorescence and tuber proved to be valuable for taxonomic and geographic analyses.

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