Abstract
Durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) breeding programs face many challenges surrounding the development of stable varieties with high quality and yield. Therefore, researchers and breeders are focused on deciphering the genetic architecture of biotic and abiotic traits with the aim of pyramiding desirable traits. These efforts require access to diverse genetic resources, including wild relatives, germplasm collections and mapping populations. Advances in accelerated generation technologies have enabled the rapid development of mapping populations with significant genetic diversity. Here, we describe the development of a durum Nested Association Mapping (dNAM) population, which represents a valuable genetic resource for mapping the effects of different alleles on trait performance. We created this population to understand the quantitative nature of drought-adaptive traits in durum wheat. We developed 920 F6 lines in only 18 months using speed breeding technology, including the F4 generation in the field. Large variation in above- and below-ground traits was observed, which could be harnessed using genetic mapping and breeding approaches. We genotyped the population using 13,393 DArTseq markers. Quality control resulted in 6,785 high-quality polymorphic markers used for structure analysis, linkage disequilibrium decay, and marker-trait association analyses. To demonstrate the effectiveness of dNAM as a resource for elucidating the genetic control of quantitative traits, we took a genome-wide mapping approach using the FarmCPU method for plant height and days to flowering. These results highlight the power of using dNAM as a tool to dissect the genetics of durum wheat traits, supporting the development of varieties with improved adaptation and yield.
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Funding
The development of dNAM was made possible by funds provided by Monsanto’s Beachell-Borlaug International Scholar Program (MBBISP) and Research Scholarship funds for a PhD program provided by The University of Queensland (UQRS) 2015–2019. Genotyping of the NAM population was Funded by Dr Filippo Bassi from ICARDA in Morocco and Ayed Al-Abdallat from Jordon University through a Food and Agriculture Organization grant (FAO; grant LoA/TF/W3B-PR-02/JORDAN/2016/AGDT).
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SA, LH, and FMB conceived and designed the scheme for dNAM population development; SA and LH performed the crosses and developed the dNAM population. SA collected phenotypic data. LH and FMB genotyped the dNAM population. ED provided advice about structure and diversity analyses; SA, YK, ED, DJ, and HR drafted the original manuscript; all authors revised the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Alahmad, S., Kang, Y., Dinglasan, E. et al. A multi-reference parent nested-association mapping population to dissect the genetics of quantitative traits in durum wheat. Genet Resour Crop Evol 70, 1471–1485 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10722-022-01515-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10722-022-01515-2