Nomenclatural standards of black currant cultivars bred at VIR

In the framework of the program initiated at the N.I. Vavilov All-Russian Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (VIR), nomenclatural standards of five domestic black currant cultivars have been prepared. The present paper presents nomenclatural standards of these five cultivars bred at VIR: ‘Binar’, ‘Veloy’, ‘Peterburzhenka’, ‘Poeziya’ and ‘Trilena’. Plant morphological traits and breeding characters of these cultivars are described. Iinformation is provided on the formation and development of the VIR black currants collection at the Pavlovsk Experiment Station of VIR.

Mapping of additive and epistatic QTLs linked to seed longevity in bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Plant genetic resources are stored and regenerated in > 1750 gene banks storing > 7,000,000 accessions. Since seeds are the primary storage units, research on seed longevity is of particular importance. Quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis of 15 traits related to seed longevity and dormancy using 7584 high-quality SNPs recorded across 2 years and originated from five production years revealed a total of 46 additive QTLs. Exploration of the QTLs with epistatic effect resulted in the detection of 29 pairs of epistatic QTLs. To our information, this is only the second report of epistatic QTLs for seed longevity in bread wheat. We conclude that in addition to dense genetic maps, the epistatic interaction between loci should be considered to capture more variation which remained unnoticed in additive mapping.

The J. Derek Bewley Career Lecture. Seeds–plants–crops–biodiversity–environment–people: illustrating understanding and ideas

The J. Derek Bewley Career Lectures presented at the triennial meetings of the International Society of Seed Science support early-career seed scientists by providing retrospective views, from those late in their careers, of lessons learned and future implications. Ambition, ability, inspiration, foresight, hard work and opportunity are obvious career requirements. The importance of mentoring and teamwork combined with the clear communication of results, understanding and ideas are emphasized. The role of illustration in research, and its dissemination, is outlined: illustration can support hypothesis development, testing and communication. Climate change may perturb the production of high-quality seed affecting conservation as well as agriculture, horticulture and forestry. An illustrative synthesis of the current understanding of temporal aspects of the effects of seed production environment on seed quality (assessed by subsequent seed storage longevity) is provided for wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and rice (Oryza sativa L.). Seed science research can contribute to complex global challenges such as future food supplies from seed-propagated crops in our changing climate whilst conserving biological diversity (through seed ecology and technologies such as ex situ plant genetic resources conservation by long-term seed storage in genebanks), but only if that research can be – and then is – applied.

Identification of plant genetic resources affected by shrimp farming in the southwestern coastal region of Bangladesh

The main purpose of the study was to identify the plant genetic resources (PGRs) affected by shrimp farming and to determine their magnitude of vulnerability. Data were collected from randomly selected 100 respondents, through personal interview, using an interview schedule, at Dumuria upazila of Khulna district, during 16 November 2009 to 15 February 2010. The fruit PGRs were more affected by shrimp farming than that of timber yielding and other types of PGRs. Among the 18-fruit PGRs available, all were endangered, except indigenous velvet apple, Diospyros peregrine (Gaertn.) Gürke, which was in threatened condition. Among the fruit species, banana, Musa acuminate; guava, Psidium guajava L.; jackfruit, Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam.; sapota, Manilkara zapota L. and betel nut, Areca catechu L. were in highly endangered. Among the 17-timber yielding and other plant species, only 7-PGRs were affected by shrimp farming while majority (10-PGRs) had been available in different extents. Among the vulnerable PGRs, bamboo, Bambusa bambos (L.) Voss; flame of the forest, Delonix regia (Boj. ex Hook.) Raf.; teak, Tectona grandis L.f. and banyan, Ficus benghalensis L. were endangered, while Indian ash tree, Lannea coromandelica (Houtt.) Merr.; ipil-ipil, Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit and cool mat, Schumannianthus dichotomus (Roxb.) Gagnep. were in threatened condition. In general, the total fruit trees decreased in numbers (-74.17%) after inception of shrimp farming. On the other hand, the total numbers of timber yielding plants increased by 15.45%. From the overall consideration (irrespective of types), the number of plant population decreased (-58.10%) after inception of shrimp farming. It means that the plant species were affected by shrimp farming and became endangered. Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. Tech. 11(2): 18-26, Dec 2021

PhenoApp: A mobile tool for plant phenotyping to record field and greenhouse observations

With the ongoing cost decrease of genotyping and sequencing technologies, accurate and fast phenotyping remains the bottleneck in the utilizing of plant genetic resources for breeding and breeding research. Although cost-efficient high-throughput phenotyping platforms are emerging for specific traits and/or species, manual phenotyping is still widely used and is a time- and money-consuming step. Approaches that improve data recording, processing or handling are pivotal steps towards the efficient use of genetic resources and are demanded by the research community. Therefore, we developed PhenoApp, an open-source Android app for tablets and smartphones to facilitate the digital recording of phenotypical data in the field and in greenhouses. It is a versatile tool that offers the possibility to fully customize the descriptors/scales for any possible scenario, also in accordance with international information standards such as MIAPPE (Minimum Information About a Plant Phenotyping Experiment) and FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) data principles. Furthermore, PhenoApp enables the use of pre-integrated ready-to-use BBCH (Biologische Bundesanstalt für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Bundessortenamt und CHemische Industrie) scales for apple, cereals, grapevine, maize, potato, rapeseed and rice. Additional BBCH scales can easily be added. The simple and adaptable structure of input and output files enables an easy data handling by either spreadsheet software or even the integration in the workflow of laboratory information management systems (LIMS). PhenoApp is therefore a decisive contribution to increase efficiency of digital data acquisition in genebank management but also contributes to breeding and breeding research by accelerating the labour intensive and time-consuming acquisition of phenotyping data.

DNA Marker Based Diversity Across Rice Genotypes and Advanced Breeding Lines Bred for Temperate India

Background: Characterization and evaluation of plant genetic resources play an important role for their utilization in the crop improvement programmes. Methods and results: This study entails the agro-morphological, cooking quality and molecular characterization of 51 genotypes / advance breeding lines of rice from Kashmir Himalayas. Significant variability was observed for all agro-morphological and cooking quality traits among all the studied genotypes. Cluster analysis using UPGMA method divided the genotypes into two major clusters having 15 and 36 genotypes. Thirty eight genotypes screened using 24 SSR markers detected 48 alleles with 2.0 alleles per locus and an average polymorphism information content (PIC) of 0.37. High polymorphism information content (PIC) values was observed for the primers RM263 (0.67), RM159 (0.59) and RM333 (0.50). Furthermore, out of 38 SSR markers screened on 192 temperate rice germpalsm lines, R4M17 accurately differentiated indica and temperate japonica genotypes amplifying 220 bp and 169bp, respectively. Accordingly, 15 genotypes were reported as indica and 28 temperate japonica in addition to 149 genotypes as intermediate types. Conclusion: The information on marker-based diversity and performance based on cooking quality and agronomic traits helped to select the most divergent lines for crossing and also the analysis was useful to generate information on indica - japonica classification of our germplasm.

Analysis of Crop Genetic and Germplasm Diversity

Plant genetic resources are the basis for the genetic improvement of cultivated plants and future food and feed security [...]

Nomenclature standards and DNA barcoding of apple varieties originated by VIR Crimean Experimental Breeding Station

Current pace of breeding technologies relies on a tighter control of quality and identity of breeding achievements. Thereby, standardised variety nomenclature becomes of particular relevance to store original genetic information and warrant authenticity of the breeding product. A nomenclature standard regulates the variety’s name and habitus. A herbarium specimen is most appropriate for standardisation, since it defines a set of strongly inherited morphological characters for a variety. Nomenclature standards must be permanently stored in a scientific herbarium collection. The N. I. Vavilov All-Russian Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (VIR) in alliance with national plant breeders initiated a first nomenclature standard collection of national-breeding cultivars. Aside to classical herbarising, the collection utilises molecular genetic techniques, particularly genotyping, to enable extended variety verification. The VIR team has developed the nomenclature standards of six apple varieties originated by the Crimean Experimental Breeding Station, a VIR Branch (Beloe Solntse, Zolotoy Potok, Kubanochka, Leto Krasnoe, Luchistoe and Shchedrost). The standards are supplemented with DNA barcodes obtained jointly with the N. I. Vavilov Institute of General Genetics. Fifteen microsatellite markers were used for barcoding. The herbarium nomenclature specimens adhered to the VIR-developed protocol in accordance with the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants (ICNCP). The specimens are registered in the VIR Herbarium database and deposited in the World Crop Wild and Weed Relatives (WIR) Herbarium type collection.

Nomenclatural standards of apple cultivars bred at the Pavlovsk experiment station of VIR

In the framework of the program of creating nomenclatural standards of domestic cultivars initiated by the N.I. Vavilov All-Russian Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (VIR), nomenclatural standards of apple cultivars bred at the Pavlovsk Experiment Station of VIR have been developed. The cultivars in question are ‘Kormay’, ‘Kordonovka’, ‘Kryukovskoye’, ‘Krasnoshchyokoye’, ‘Leningradskaya Zelyonka’, ‘Leningradskiy Sinap’, ‘Leningradskoye Zheltoye’, ‘Lyubimitsa Tarasenko’, ‘Novogodneye’, ‘Novoye Polosatoye’, ‘Pashkevicha Krasnoye’, and ‘Sigovskoye’.

Morphological Characterization of Taro and Its Utilization as a Learning Resource of Biology Education in Eastern Indonesia

The tendency to prioritize food crops, such as rice and wheat, to meet human needs has resulted in dependence, degradation, and loss of local knowledge. In this term, biology education plays its role by exploring the potential of local plants, including their use as learning resources. One of those local plants is the taro plant (Colocasia Esculenta L.), an alternative staple food for those who live in Eastern Indonesia. The research method used was qualitative research. The data collection techniques included observation, interviews, characterization, and questionnaires. The data collected were analyzed through descriptive analysis. The morphological characterization of taro was done based on Descriptors for Taro IPGRI (International Plant Genetic Resources Institute). The poster development procedure used was the ADDIE model. The results of the exploration showed five local taro accessions that had variations in morphological characters. The plant range was directly proportional to the plant height. There was one accession that was tall (AT 5) and had the potential to be cultivated on a large scale. Most of the leaves were green, while the leaf vein color was varying, namely white, green, and purple, with harvesting periods ranging between 4 to 9 months. The leaf vein pattern has a shape like a letter Y. Five accessions had petiole cross-sections, a waxy coating on the leaf surface, and predominantly white intervenii. The assessments of material experts, media, and users showed that the poster was feasible, usable as a biology learning resource.