Cooking time is a major factor associated with consumer preference of dry beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.). The genetic control of cooking time was investigated with a quantitative trait loci (QTL) study on a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population developed from TZ-27 (slow cooking) and TZ-37 (fast cooking). The RIL population of 146 lines was grown on research farms over 2 years in Arusha and Morogoro, Tanzania. Arusha is an important mid-altitude bean-growing region, with moderate temperatures and reliable rainfall, whereas the low altitude and high temperatures in Morogoro make it unfavorable for bean production.

In photosynthetic electron transport, large multiprotein complexes are connected by small diffusible electron carriers, the mobility of which is challenged by macromolecular crowding. For thylakoid membranes of higher plants, a long-standing question has been which of the two mobile electron carriers, plastoquinone or plastocyanin, mediates electron transport from stacked grana thylakoids where photosystem II (PSII) is localized to distant unstacked regions of the thylakoids that harbor PSI.

Increasing yield is an important target for barley breeding programs. One approach to increase yield is by enhancing individual grain weights through the regulation of grain size. Fine mapping major grain size-related quantitative trait loci is necessary for future marker-assisted selection strategies, yet studies of this nature are limited in barley. In the present study, we utilised a doubled haploid population derived from two Australian malt barley varieties, Vlamingh and Buloke, coupled with extensive genotypic and phenotypic data from three independent environments.

Early leaf spot (ELS) and late leaf spot (LLS) are two serious peanut diseases in the USA, causing tens of millions of dollars of annual economic losses. However, the genetic factors underlying resistance to those diseases in peanuts have not been well-studied. We conducted a genome-wide association study for the two peanut diseases using Affymetrix version 2.0 SNP array with 120 genotypes mainly coming from the US peanut mini-core collection.

Cotton fiber quality traits are controlled by QTLs and are susceptible to environmental influence. Fiber quality improvement is an essential goal in cotton breeding but is hindered by limited knowledge of the genetic basis of fiber quality traits. In this study, two sets of introgression lines of Gossypium hirsutum × G. barbadense were used to dissect the QTL stability of three fiber quality traits (fiber length, strength and micronaire) across environments using 551 simple sequence repeat markers selected from our high-density genetic map.

The demand for cereal grains as a main source of energy continues to increase due to the rapid increase in world population. The leaf rust diseases of cereals cause significant yield losses, posing challenges for global food security. The deployment of resistance genes has long been considered as the most effective and sustainable way to control cereal leaf rust diseases.

Spikelet number traits and heading date (HD) play key roles in yield improvement of wheat and its wide adaptation to different environments. Here, we used a Recombinant Inbred Lines population derived from a cross between Yi5029 (5029) and Nongda4332 (4332) to construct a high-density genetic linkage map and identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with total spikelet number per spike (TSPN), fertile spikelet number per spike (FSPN), sterile spikelet number per spike (SSPN) and HD. A total of 22 environmentally stable QTL for TSPN, FSPN, SSPN and HD were identified.

Mining genetic loci for yield is challenging due to the polygenic nature, large influence of environment and complex relationship among yield component traits (YCT). Many genetic loci related to wheat yield have been identified, but its genetic architecture and key genetic loci for selection are largely unknown. Wheat yield potential can be determined by three YCT, thousand kernel weight, kernel number per spike and spike number. Here, we summarized the genetic loci underpinning YCT from QTL mapping, association analysis and homology-based gene cloning. The major loci determining yield-associated agronomic traits, such as flowering time and plant height, were also included in comparative analyses with those for YCT.

Genomic selection offers new opportunities to revisit hybrid breeding by replacing extensive phenotyping of hybrid combinations by genomic predictions. A key question remains to identify the best design to calibrate genomic prediction models. We proposed to use single-cross hybrids issued from an incomplete factorial design between segregating populations and compared this strategy with a conventional approach based on topcross evaluation.

Diplocarpon rosae, the cause of rose black spot, is one of the most devastating foliar pathogens of cultivated roses (Rosa spp.). The primary method of disease control is fungicides, and they are viewed unfavorably by home gardeners due to potential environmental and health impacts. Planting rose cultivars with genetic resistance to black spot can reduce many of the fungicide applications needed in an integrated pest management system.