Genetic dissection of QTLs linked to seed yield and its contributing traits in horsegram (Macrotyloma uniflorum)

Abstract

Abstract With continuous increase in world’s population, the main challenge among breeders is to increase food production with endurable utilization of available natural resources to accomplish a goal of zero hunger. Cultivating the nutritious underutilized crops could be a significant approach to address the issues of nutritional insecurity. Among 39 crops identified by FAO, horsegram is also considered as an important “Future Smart Food”. It has attracted interest amongst the scientific community due to its unparallel nutritional and pharmaceutical properties. Improving seed yield and related traits are main objectives of plant breeders for enhancing productivity in the crops. Horsegram lacks the information on the genetic structure of its yield contributing traits. The present study was aimed to dissect the quantitative trait loci of seed yield and its associated traits in horsegram by utilizing linkage map already developed in our lab of intraspecific F8 RIL population of 162 individuals derived from HPKM249×HPK4 cross. Phenotypic data of different years and locations were used to identify QTLs for yield related traits by composite interval mapping (CIM). A total of six QTLs (LOD ≥ 2.5) were detected across different environments for seed size, seeds per plant, pods per plant and yield per plant. These were major QTLs with phenotypic variation explained (PVE) greater than ten percent and one of them was stable QTL across different locations and years. Phenotypic variation explained by QTLs ranged from 10.8 to 20.16 per cent thus they are of economic importance.