Abstract
Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) is an important perennial C4 species due to its large potential for cellulosic bioenergy feedstock production. Identification of quantitative trait loci (QTL) controlling important developmental traits is valuable to understanding the genetic basis and using marker-assisted selection (MAS) in switchgrass breeding. One F1 hybrid population derived from NL94 (♀) × SL93 (♂) and one S1 (first-generation selfed) population from NL94 were used in this study. Both the populations showed significant variations for genotype and genotype by environment interactions for three traits studied: plant vigor, spring green-up, and plant biomass. Plant vigor had strong and positive correlations with plant biomass in both populations. Broad-sense heritability estimates for plant vigor ranged from 0.46 to 0.74 and 0.45 to 0.74 in the hybrid and selfed population, respectively. Spring green-up had similar heritability estimates, 0.42–0.78 in the hybrid population, and 0.47–0.82 in the selfed population. Heritability of plant biomass was 0.54–0.64 in the hybrid population and 0.64–0.74 in the selfed population. Fifteen QTLs for spring green-up, 6 QTLs for plant vigor, and 3 QTLs for biomass yield were detected in the hybrid population, whereas 4 QTLs for spring green-up, 4 QTLs for plant vigor, and 1 QTL for biomass yield were detected in the selfed population. Markers associated with these QTLs can be used in MAS to accelerate switchgrass breeding program. This study provided new information in understanding the genetic control of biomass components and demonstrated substantial heterotic vigor that could be explored for breeding hybrid cultivars in switchgrass.
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Acknowledgements
We acknowledge Gary Williams for field wok assistance. Special thanks go to Dr. Carla Goad for her guidance and support in this study. The project was in part sponsored by NSF-EPSCoR, Sun Grant Initiative, Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment Station, and USDA Hatch to Y.Q. Wu.
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The project was in part sponsored by NSF-EPSCoR, Sun Grant Initiative, Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment Station, and USDA Hatch to Y.Q. Wu.
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D. Chang carried out the experiment, data analysis, and writing of the manuscript, H.X. Dong conducted data analysis and writing of the manuscript, S.Q. Bai designed and supervised the experiment, and Y.Q. Wu conceived and supervised the experiment, wrote, and finalized the manuscript.
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Chang, D., Dong, H., Bai, S. et al. Mapping QTLs for spring green-up, plant vigor, and plant biomass in two lowland switchgrass populations. Mol Breeding 42, 27 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11032-022-01296-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11032-022-01296-7