Towards a genetic understanding of seed vigour in small-seeded crops using natural variation in Brassica oleracea
2010
Finch-Savage, William E. | Clay, Heather A. | Lynn, James R. | Morris, Karl
Seedling establishment is critical to profitable and sustainable production from small-seeded crops. A programme of work is reported that identifies key seed vigour traits that are required for predictable seedling establishment followed by a quantitative genetic analysis to identify loci that influence them. The three key traits were: (1) rapid germination; (2) rapid initial downward growth of the seedling; and (3) a high potential for upward shoot growth in soil of increasing impedance. All three traits reduce the time between sowing and seedling emergence when the seed bed can be deteriorating. This suggests a strategy of stress avoidance, through rapid progress when adequate moisture is present, rather than reliance on stress tolerance. B. oleracea doubled haploid mapping populations were screened for these traits and quantitative trait loci (QTL) were identified. These QTL were then subsequently fine-mapped where possible. We report on the outcome of this work and discuss the results in the context of other QTL studies. A way forward for marker and candidate gene identification is then outlined that uses a translational approach to exploit the colinearity that exists between B. oleracea and the model plant Arabidopsis.
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